Kids say funny things....cool!

I find my kids pretty funny. Some are funnier then others. Chris is the one who laughs the easiest....he also has an odd sense of humor. So we get back to the beast to change after the rock slide thing. The men go in first and make the ladies hang out. No to be a chauvinist, but we only take a few minutes...so we go first.

Anyway, so Chris and I store our clothes next to each other in the back of the RV. We both strip our swimsuits off and start getting out our clothes when Chris says to me....."Dad...here we are Dad, two guys naked in the back of an RV" Then he started snickering...I start cracking up. I of course make some remarks that my biggest fan thinks are Hilarious and he rolls around laughing when the girls are out in the heat waiting for us.

Just a good laugh....made me laugh when I wrote this!

Slide Park State Park....cool!

Before leaving for New Mexico today, we went to Slide Park State Park in Sedona. It's a natural rock slide that is in a creek that runs through the park. It's a lot like Johnson Shut Ins park in Missouri....except that it is much more beautiful...the red rock od Sedona is outstanding. The water however, was much colder. We all went for a slide....no major accidents and we left without Denise having to use any sanitary knapkins as bandages like before
Yes in the picture you can see me....I did slide down!

The ride to New Mexico was about 5 hours. We stopped about 50 miles east of Alburquere. There are ancient pueblos of Acoma that we will visit tomorrow morning. Funny...Sedona is bsolutley beautiful....but the 2 1/2 hour ride from Flagstaff to the New Mexico boarder was a bore....nothing but scrub brush. Then once we hit the New Mexico border....WOW...the red rock re-appeared and the drive was great for about another 70 miles.

Apps and drinks at the RV site....cool

We had a great day!. We started out by taking the pink jeep tour. We took the broken arrow trail. Outstanding! The 18 year old jeep sat 8. We were the only ones in the jeep. Bob, our driver, was a great guy who was full of information. I sat shot gun and had a great view of the huge rocks we climbed. The kids had a great time. Chris was the most excited.

I then took the beast to the muffler shop when Denise and the kids walked the main drag in Sedona. It cost me $85 to get the pipe fixed. By the time I got back, it was late afternoon. We shopped a little longer and then decided to have apps and drinks at our site.

Off to Circle K for Zingers and slushies...OK Denise and Chris could not have either so they each got a pint of Dove ice cream (fatties). What a great happy hour!

The weather was great....we are off to the natural rock slide tomorrow and then to New Mexico!

Sedona is great.....COOL!

I love Sedona....period. It's a great little artistic town and it's really beautiful. The 86 degrees with a good breeze doesn't hurt!
Yesterday we went straight to the RV site. With the hanging pipe...we wanted to see if we could get that fixed. I will need to go to a muffler shop this afternoon. Not a big issue....since my clan will be doing a little shopping...I won't miss much!

The RV camp is one of the best we have been at. It has a river running through it. We went wading in the river yesterday afternoon. Everyone except our official party pooper of the day...Taylor. She sat on the shore. The cool part about Sedona is the color of the rocks. The rocks and mountains are a bright red. The river had a few rapids with these red outcrops...it was great. The water was alos warm....so to say.

Shelby and I were up early and watched the Blue Herons. There are about 15 nests of these great birds right above some of the sites. The nests are about 100 feet in the trees. They are HUGE birds!

We are off on a jeep tour of Sedona this morning.

The weather looks like another beautiful day.

The H.O.W.is falling apart...let me bitch...not cool!

OK....11/2 hours of bone jarring bumps on the skywalk detour has taken it's toll.

I have been pretty polite about the beast, but for 80-100K to buy one of these pigs...I think it's really a piece of garbage. I would think at that price the thing would not only have more features...but not fall apart.

First it was the speaker system...you cannot hear the TV when you have the engine running and the generator on....so basically you cannot watch movies when you drive!! That's made it easy for the 10-12 hour stints of driving we have done!

Then the back up camera system does not work. Not sure why but....as my buddy Al use to say that's what bumpers are for...twice I have whacked something...no damage so far.

You have heard about the crazy flapping awning....well it went crazy again yesterday...Taylor and I have it down now and had it fixed in a few minutes.

During the bumps...the doorknob for the bathroom came off....not really a big issue ...except for yesterday. I got a little lazy and did not perform my fatherly duties of cleaning out the poop. We had only 3 hours to our next site and it was HOT and it was only 1/2 full...so wait right? I guess then every Foley had to visit a man about a horse if you know what I mean....of course they could not use the rest area rooms like dad.....no they loaded up and went in the H.O.W. So with the door broken and the tank full and the heat at about 100....well it was a potent mixture....Denise was going crazy about the smell......So three hours of doo doo smell in the back....I didn't smell a thing.

You know about the microwave flying out of the wall....

So yesterday we pull into a state park in Sedona. As we pull in I hear a large scraping sound. The ranger and I get under the beast.....sounds like the muffler dragging.....well it wasn't the muffler...but it was the exhaust pipe for the generator. The thing is about 8 feet long and it looks like a pretzel. So Ranger Rick grabs a hack saw and cuts the thing off. Sounded OK to me....Now I have to ge to a muffle place and kill 2 hours to have a guy in town weld a new one on.....

These are just the majors...my advice before anyone buys one of these things....road test it for a month.

On top of all of this....you should see this pig....we have not washed it...it looks worse then the RV from the movie RV with Robin Williams.

South rim of the Grand Canyon is ALWAYS COOL!

We are staying at Trailer Village inside of Grand Canyon National Park. All amentias except wireless and SHOWERS! We are off to Sedona tomorrow. Today we hiked the south rim. Now hike is probably a strech….we walked about 3 miles around the rim. The park has changed a lot since Billy Graham and I went cross-country in 1981. The park has a bus system and a walkway system that covers most of the rim. It was 83 degrees with a nice breeze. The Grand Canyon is basically….indescribable…It’s unbelievable…a must for every American.

One of the highlights of our long trip last night was the stars. We got in after midnight and there were few if any lights on in the park. When we got out of the RV….it was a beautiful display of the galaxy! Chris, Denise and I just stood for a few minutes and enjoyed.

Tonight we actually had sometime just to hang out and get to bed early. One of the few nights we have watched TV. I think the girls are getting a little tired of the National Park Touring. I think they will really enjoy Sedona. We have a few surprises for them. Chris s having a great time!

Drive to the west rim…..not cool.

I guess the West Rim of the Grand Canyon is not too popular. There is only one way to get there and for 17 miles it is unpaved. Unpaved would be OK if it was smooth….
You know the feeling you get when you kinda cross over the bike lane on the highway…..it rumbles due to those cuts in the pavement. They put them there to wake you up!,…Well, think of it 50 times worse for 40 minutes straight.

It rattled the beast so bad that screws in the microwave came flying out. Thanks to Taylor, we saved the microwave from flying across the RV. The door knob on the bathroom?????unscrewed it self and came flying off. My butt felt like it was in a massage chair. It was crazy!.. Worse????of yes it got worse….we did not get out of the park until 7:41pm….I had to drive this ½ lane nightmare in the dark. It made for a long drive. It was a 3 hour detour out of our way….but it was well worth it. We didn’t end up getting to our site at the south rim until after midnight.

Hoover Dam and The West Rim

Added a few more to the top 20 yesterday.

After leaving Vegas, we stopped at Hoover Dam. This was my third time at the dam and it didn’t disappoint! We took the tour and went to the bottom of the Dam. It was very interesting. Unfortunately, Chris was the only kid who enjoyed it. They all thought it was cool to look at, but the tour was a snore.

We then decided to detour off of route 93 south out of Nevada to the West Rim of the Grand Canyon. Most people visit the Canyon on the south rim. We wanted to visit the Hualapai tribe. They have the rights I guess to the west rim. Instead of turning the place into a Casino, they have made a park. The Skywalk is one of the features of the park. It was outstanding. They built this U shaped walkway 15 months ago. It extends over the rim of the Canyon about 40 yards. See this link…..We do not have great pictures because they do not allow you to tale pictures of the thing.
Anyway….I was the brave one in the Family walking straight out on the walkway…..NOT. The thing was creepy. I held the railing for dear life. Cousin Sherrie.....no way…you would of not made it!. Of course the kids & Denise had no issue and they were jumping around trying to further scare me….nice kids. The view was great.
The second part of the park was a hike up to eagle mountain This was UNBELIAVABLE. It was just far enough out into the Canyon that you felt like you were on an island. There was a panoramic view to die for. Check the pictures out!
More on this part of the trip later.

Gluten Free on the road…getting cooler.

Most of you are aware that Chris and Denise are celiac and are intolerant to gluten. We have been dealing with this issue for over ten years and gluten free on the road is getting easier and easier. It was not too long ago, that we could go nowhere without Chris carrying his lunch pail with him.
When it comes to food we kinda spoil Chris. He had always been so good about not be able to join in at eating at restaurants or missing out on a treat. Whenever I find something gluten free, I normally get it for him. It’s usually very expensive…but he puts up with a ton…so we do it.

Well…..now there is more on the market and in fact many restaurants have gluten free menus. Outback, PF Changs and Capitol Grille are just a few….
In Vegas we decide to go out to lunch…Vegas has a Capitol Grille…Denise says let’s go.. I am all in (Vegas term) until I see that the average lunch is $20 a plate….

So I send Chris and Denise on a “date” to have lunch and I bring the girls to the food court. They had Chinese and I had Mexican….everybody was very happy.
So Denise tells me this story about their lunch….
Chris orders the Filet Migeon….$28….He notes that it’s the best steak he has ever had and that he wish he could combine Outback and Capitol Grille….the taste of Capitol Grille and the size of Outback….
Before I left the waiter must of overheard me tell Chris to take care of my girl…treat her right…..so at the end of the meal, the waiter asks Chris if he is responsible for the bill. Chris says “yes” and then turns to Denise and asks for the Visa. He thinks he so funny.
Between King Crab Jessica and Filet Migon Chris….they are going to break me. Thank GOD Shelby still eats off the kid’s menu!

Two days in Vegas...cool!

Vegas is.....Vegas.  Inappropriate signs and people everywhere.  The guys giving out playing card size porno shots....Moving Bill Boards of naked women....some guys...but not many....real comfortable to walk around with your three daughters!

We spent the two days going around and seeing the usual things.  We saw the Bellagio Fountains....the Venetian mall, The tigers at the MGM, The piano sing along place in NYC....

We saw a show tonight....it was like a acrobatic show on ice.  The kids liked it.

The main drag for the family was the heat.  It was about 1o6 degrees.  It was hot.  It really didn't bother me too much....but WHOA Nelly....I had a bunch of whining kids...the heat really took it's toll.

If you can believe it, there is a RV place right on the strip.  It's right behind Circus Circus.  It was just a big parking lot....but it did the trick.

It's late and we have a long day tomorrow.  Off to Hoover Dam and the Grand Canyon!

Drive to Vegas through Death Valley

120 degrees at -235 elevation....that was what it was yesterday in Death Valley.  The drive for the most part is pretty easy.  We were warned by many that the drive into Death Valley is very hard.  It takes you from 4,000 down to 1,000...then back to 4,000 then to -232....the toughest part was the climb back to 4,000.  There were times the beast would not go past 15 mph.  We have seen and driven roads 10 times worse then Route 190 into the valley.

The weirdest thing about the "Furnace" is the wind.  You cannot have air conditioning on and so the windows are open.  The wind coming into my window was HOT.  It felt like someone had a space heater blowing on my face.  By the time we got to the bottom...Denise and the girls had had it.  They were all red faced and a few of them did not feel well.  I was fine and was in fact loving life....bring on the heat baby!.  We stopped for slush's and ice cream and then headed on over to Vegas.  We were suppose to stay at the Furnace Ranch....but the girls vetoed that idea and demanded we get out of the valley.

The drive to Vegas was uneventful....we got there!

Drive to Vegas....very cool!

So after our 2 mile hike we start the drive to Death Valley!  We took Rout 395.  At the top of 395, right outside the park is a Mobil Station.  It's not just any Mobil Station...they had Chefs....a live band....and a trapeze set up (like in the circus, although it was not used when we were there.)

All the rangers told us to stop there for dinner...it was the best food around.  They could of told us it's the ONLY food around....not a thing from there to Bishop 70 miles away.  Anyway...I had the Bison meatloaf at $18.95....(should of been a steak at that price)  It was really , really GOOD...along with garlic mashed potatoes and grilled spaghetti squash.  It came on a REAL plate!

We then drove 70 miles and stopped in Bishop California.  The drive went from 10,000 elevation to about 4,000in about 10 miles....Instead of ll the crazy twisty curves....it was just a gradual slope straight down...it was very enjoyable.  

Bishop California is a city of about 15,000 people.  It was a great little place.  I wish we could of stayed for the day.  It ha a great Bakery...it was huge and packed with stuff.  They had a Rodeo that was scheduled for that night....but the Tour could not be stopped.

Wec are in Vegas....cool.....but HOT

We had a great couple of days of driving.  We drove the Tioga Drive out of Yosemite. The park ends at Tioga pass at the east side of the park.  It is 9,850 in elevation.  We stopped and did a 2 mile hike up to about 10,300.  It brought us to the top of a mountain that overlooked Gray lake.  The view was just OK...but the hike was fun.

Jessica could not make the hike due to an earlier accident.  

We stopped to take pictures at a lake.  There was a big branch that Denise thought would be great if we climbed up there and take a picture.  So Denise jumps up there....this thing is about 3-4 feet off the ground...hanging over the bank of the lake.  I try to climb up on the thing but it's slippery and my fat butt can't make it up there....I finally wedge myself up there and Taylor gets the shot.....Of course Miss Minolta wants a picture of T and  J and herself on the log.  I am telling them be careful....when Jessica slips and ends up falling off the log.  As she falls, she pushes Denise off the log.  Taylor as you can see, finds this funny...so did Denise....Jess didn't.  She had scrapes all over her body. 

When we got back to the beast, Denise went into momma bear mode.  She starts bandaging her up...not much blood...When we packed, we put a small first aid kit on the H.O.W.  It was not supplied for this type of event.  Denise then becomes little miss girl scout and adapted....next thing I know my daughter has Sanitary Napkins taped to her legs...real nice for Chris to see.

Anyway...Jess is fine.

More in the next blog about our drive to Vegas.

2nd day at YNP....COOL

We started out by going to Mariposa Grove.  It is the largest of the groves of Sequoias in the park.  We took another tram ride...they do not allow cars in the park.  It was great.  These trees are HUGE.  OK...I am not a tree hugger...but these trees are really pretty cool.  Here are some facts I picked up

They are the largest trees in the world by Volume.  The redwoods are taller...but skinnier

They have a sap consisting mostly of water...this is why they do not burn in forest fires

They can be up to 5,000 years old

The bark is kinda furry

One of the bigger ones was 28 feet across!!

There was one that fell in the civil war....it still and will not ever...rot away.

The trees never die from infestation or disease like other trees.  The main way that one of these suckers will die....they fall over due to heavy wind and snow.  This does not happen often.  The root system is not very deep.

OK....I am not giving up cables to become a treeologist....OK I know arborist...treeologist sounds better.

Enough of the trees.  The rest of the day we drove out on the Tioga Pass.  This road circles the outskirts of the park and leads you to Tioga Pass and the west entrance of the park.

Too much education on this post...more in a few

Yosemite is more then just COOL!

Yosemite is the best National Park we have been too yet.  It's just awesome.  The pictures will not do it justice.

We started by going into Yosemite Valley.  We took a tram for 2 hours that brought us around the park.  This is much easier then driving around in the beast all day.   After the tour we visited lower Yosemite falls....outstanding.  We inched our way up to the bottom of the falls and were sprayed by the mist.  It was great.  Of course the whole time I am a nervous wreck as my kids jump from rock to slippery rock....Denise hopping along with my digital camera swinging from her neck.  And there I am crab walking up the rocks....it was fun.

We hiked around a Little and went to mirror lake to finish off the day.

Check out the pictures of Yosemite...

We had a campsite in the park......now remember in the park does not mean down the street...Wamoma was 45 minutes from the valley....in the dark....down and up mountains on "s" curves.  Then the space was a parallel parking nightmare.  It was packed with people doubled parked all over the campsite....no lights...and here I am with the beast....lights blaring...getting stuck...Denise had to get out of the beast and help me back it up the hill....what a mess...National Parks are not really RV friendly. $20 gets you a space...no showers...no electricity, no water...no sewer hook ups. 

Drive out to Yosemite...OK

Here I sit in nowheresville California 22 miles outside Yosemite...drinking BIG cans of Bud.... yup cold 24 ouncers....It's finally hot.....I am sweating...and as anyone who knows me...that's a GREAT thing.  I am about to break out my wife beater T-Shirt and white socks and sandals and go visit the folks next store!!

Anyway...we traveled from Monteray to Yosemite....OK the spelling will be bad tonight...the bud is kicking in...so buckle up!

OK  we drove 4-5 hours to the lovely Yosemite Pines...most of the trip is ....dull....the landscape was basically BROWN and farms.  The last hour was the crazy mountain ride gain.  Only climb 3,000 feet....but you do not get tired of this type of driving.....10 and 2 death grip.

The Pines has a pool so the kids are down there yucking it up with the locals.

We are off to Yosemite tomorrow...I expect it to be HOT  YEAH! and very cool.  

Might not see you in a few days...staying inside the park...I would expect no WiFi

Route 1 California....pretty cool!

We wantd to ride down route 1 in Northern California and see what is considered one of he best raods to drive.....it was good....was it better then the climb through the Big Horn on Route 14..not in my estimation.  We started in Pacifica and drove to Big Sur.  OK..... I again must of missed geography class....I thought big Sur was a beach town...didn't I see Peter Fonda in easy rider go through Big Sur??? Guess not.  Big Sur is really ....no town....it's just a bunch of little restaurants...not close together throughout a couple of state parks that Rt 1 winds through....hippyville USA.   The ride was the best from Monteray to just before bif Sur.  Winding between the mountains and the Ocean. Yes...I was death gripping the wheel in the 10 and 2 fashion....one slip and off the edge we would of went.  

A couple of blips.....just as we hit the highest point of the drive and also the windiest  (is that a word?)  the awning started flapping ....it had come apart again......I get out and the wind is blowing like a tornado....the flap flap flap is as loud as  drums....the kids are screaming....Denise is giving me the I told you to fix it face....Then Chris and Taylor think they can hold it down from the inside....here is a kid who is 50 pounds soaking wet reaching out the window to grab it,,,,,the wind is crazy...we are on a ledge that went down a mile straight into the crashing rocks and waves...cripes...what a bunch of nuts....luckily the next pullover was protected by a grove of big fir trees.  We "fixed the thing".....hope it stays put.

We spent part of the day in Monteray.  Pretty cool town...it hasd a fishermans warf....it was pretty lame.  After being at SF and Seattle.....Monteray's was  small town and not that quaint.  We ate ate the end of the pier and then deceided to go for ice cream.  

The kids picked this place and it was gross.....I thought Denie was going to explode when the lady who served us took Taylor's already half eaten cone and tried to put it back in the ice cream carton.  $2.75 for one scoop that was as big as a raisin.  Taylor's was all icey...so I asked for the girl to get her a fresh one.....no problem..she takes the old cone and asks if Taylor as eaten any.  We say no....figuring she meant like did she eat it all and then want a freebie....no she meant did she already lick it....because..... just because  she scooped it and then Taylor touched it...and then Taylor might of breatghed on it...if she had not licked it....she was going to throw it back in with the rest of the ice cream...As she starts to put it BACK...we all kinda go HEY>>>>loser...she licked it.  So she then threw it out...only to have to explain herself to her boss that wanted to save it too......GROSS...BTW the ice cream was lousy....thank God I just had Hot Chocolate.  

Chinatown and Alcatraz were very Cool!

We spent the day Saturday in Chinatown and Sunday we spent most of the day in Alcatraz.  Both were excellent...but Alkatraz was GREAT.  They had a walking tour with a ranger.  This guy had actually swam the channel in 42 minutes.  He also had swam it with x-convicts.  He was a wealth of knowledge.  The prison also had one of those audio tours.  You put earphones in and actual inmates guards direct you through the prison.  They also tell you all sorts of stories.  Lastly they run a movie that is very interesting.  Overall, we spent 3-4 hours at this place...could of been longer...except we were FREEZING.  The Rock is definitely the place to visit when you are in San Fran.

We had a great lunch in Chinatown and we had dinner the next night at Fisherman's Wharf.

We ran out of time at Fisherman's and wish we could spend another day...but the beast is calling and we are off on the road this morning to Big Sur.

It was great catching up with family on this tour.  Mike and Gigi and our three nieces are great.  They moved here less then a year ago and it looks like California is treating them well.  hey were great hosts...we sucked up their whole weekend with our brood.  

This is our last stop with friends or family during the tour.....off we go to the beach.

I hope it's warmer!

San Francisco....cool in more ways then one!

Well we get to Mike and Gigi;s and the kids are running around in bathing suits ready fr a swim.  This is GREAT..my kinda weather right????  So we get up Saturday to go down to SF.  It's 80+ degrees...we put on the shorts, T-shirts and sandals...OK I bring a sweatshirt, Mike says we better....

We had  a great day...but it was freezing.  The pacific wind is cold and SF gets a lot of it. The next day...of course I didn't learn.  It was 85 and hotter so Chris and I change into shorts...again....freezing.  We heard a quote from Mark Twain while we complaining about the cold...." the coldest winter I ever spent was in the summer of San Francisco".  (I could be wrong on the actual quote)

Mike explained that this is pretty normal.  SF is not the warmest town due to the winds....just caught us off guard!

Half way there....cool!

We have been on the road three weeks and I think we are about half way through our trip.  Thanks for all of the people who have hitched aboard the H.O.W. tour.  We have the Hot section of the tour coming up over the next few weeks.  I think river rafting will be the highlight for the kids.

We presently have about 40 hitchhikers that come along each day.  I wonder who you all are....please feel free to leave a comment so we know who is along for the ride!

Pete

Ave. Of The Giants...Cool

More big trees today.  We explored the Avenue of the Giants in Northern CA.  It's a 31 mile stretch that goes through a Redwood Forest State Park.  It's the old Route 101.  The trails were very peaceful and the trees are crazy big.  Hard to explain ....you need to see these honkers.  

We then traveled Route 101 down the coast to Oakland and took a left to my brother-in-laws.  101 is a curvy 2-4 lane Highway through the mountains of California.  It would of been fine except for the Roar of the Redwoods.  This motorcycle festival is happening this weekend.  I must of passed 1,000 motorcycles coming north on 101.  It mad the initial drive a little more serious.  I was doing the death grip on the ten and two of the steering wheel.  We made it to Mike and Gigi's by 6:30 pm.  Not a bad drive day......

We will be exploring San Francisco today and tomorrow.  Denise has about 100 things show wants to see....I think we will hit about 5.

Mike and Gigi live in San Ramon, about 45 minutes from the city.  It's a very nice community built into the hills.  Kids enjoyed the pool last night and the adults caught up.

Doing Laundry....kinda cool

OK ----I have the solution for the laundry issue.  Buy 6 washers and dryers for your home.  2 weeks of laundry done in 2 hours....  We stayed at a campsite last night with 24 hour laundry facilities.  6 washers and 6 dryers...it was so fast that it became annoying...I thought I would get some reading in....but every 2-4 minutes something needed to be checked....moved or taken out.  I am reading a great book right now....The Woods by Harlan Coben.  A murder mystery as usual.  A real page turner.

The Big Redwoods.....cool

We started the morning out at Crescent Beach, CA.  This is where the Redwood National and State Forest begin.  For about 60 miles Route 101 winds through these parks...OK...the tree are just not big...they are CRAZY big.  Really peaceful and really kinda cool.  These trees tower over us by 300 feet and have been around for 500-700 years.  The forest lie right next to the pacific ocean.  We meandered through the 60 miles...had a nice day hiking a bunch of trails and ended up 40 miles south of Eureka for the night.

Today we will see more big trees on the Avenue of the Giants....then we drive down to San Francisco to visit with Denise's brother's family.

Oh I for got the best part of the day....

The Sun Is out...I was in shorts and a T-shirt and was loving life.  Low 70's with a pretty good breeze.

It's going to be another great weather day today.....high 70's and lots of sun!

2nd Day on The Oregon Coast...VERY COOL

We started the day by going to Sea Lion Caves.  From the outside it looked like a tourist trap.  NOT...It is a natural cave where for 100 years seal lions hang out.  They have built an observation deck and cave access area to see the creatures.  You take an elevator down 200 feet in less then a minute.  Nice smell down there!  There were at least 100 sea lions hanging around.  This was a great place.

We were off then to the Dunes National Park in Oregon.  This was outstanding.  We rented a 6 seater sand dune buggy.  At first I thought it would be a little ride in this big buggy.  Nothing to hard....nothing to scary.  They told us the speed limit was 15....  Within minutes I learned the thing went 30 and we were off to the races.  The dunes rise 200-300 feet in the air.  They are like huge piles of sand.  We would drive full throttle up the hill and then....try to get back down.  That was the tricky part.  They were really steep and it gave me the creeps.  There are all my kids chanting go dad go....and I am worrying that this will flip over.  BTW it does flip over...the kid that trained me on the unit told me to be careful whils applying the brakes going down hill...it would flip over..  Kids had a great time...I turned out to be the big Chicken...we made it out without flipping the beast.  The best part of this ride was listening to Denise and the kids giggle and laugh with each bump and turn.  It was great.

Jessica got sick yesterday....looks like strep...we will need to figure this out or we will ll have it in the next few days.  She was a trooper though...she went to the seals and rode in the buggy.  She was glad she did.

We drove into California yesterday....Gas prices jumped 35 cents  OUCH!  Filled up right before we crossed.  We are staying at Crescent beach California.  If you look at the map...it looks like a great spot.  Thought it would be a great place to stay...It's not...it's a dumpy little town on the beach.  The RV site is right across from the bay.

We are off to see Big Trees today.  Redwood National Forest!

Interesting Observations

Driving 10 hours a day allows the mind to wander....

Some thoughts about the Washington and Oregon Coasts.

Hitchhikers.....I ahve not seen the infamous thumb out in years..  I have seen a handful hear.  If i was not with my family, I may have picked one up.  They are all hiker looking people.  Would of been fun to hear their story.

Logging Trucks....Never saw one of these monsters before.  They are big and have tons of logs strapped on them.  And I do mean strapped....everytime one comes barreling down the highay I shudder to thought of the strap breaking and they all roll out.

Stand Alone Coffee Shops.  When I saw the first little coffe hut...I said oh cool...let me get Denise a cup of coffee.  If this is the only thing they sell they must be great at it.....WRONG.  These sheds are 8 ft by 6 ft.  They are everywhere.  I must have seen 200 so far.  They are all drive throughs.  Image being cooped up in that shed for 8 hours a day....in the rain.....in the middle of  nowhere

Deserted beach towns....June must be like January in Nags Head around here.  There are not a lot of beach towns but they were all deserted.  I guess they get 2 months of beach weather tops in this part of the country.

The drive through Oregon had been very good. More on that later

Upper Oregon Coast

The day before yesterday we wake up in Astoria.....guess what...IT' RAINING.  I am done....My PMA is gone.  (Positive Mental Attitude)  I am a pretty positive person...but f I had to live here for 6 months a year in the rain I would hang myself.

The only good thing about that night is that we stayed at a KOA.  Now for all of you non campers...take it from a pro...KOA's are the Hiltons of the camping world.  Most $25 sites are closed at 6 and if you come late....just park somewhere and pay the next day. Coming in late may mean...no bathroom keys or no internet access...but's it's $24.  Now KOA's    they are open until 11 and they have a full grocery store.  The spots are all well maintained...they even have bushes and trees for privacy.....not that you can get much privacy living in a 200 SQ foot box in a 300 SqFt lot.  They had COLD BEER!....was this all worth the $75 they charge....not really...but it was better then that creepy place we stayed where I took my knife with me when I emptied the garbage.

OK so e get up and go to the Astoria Coloumn.  It would of been cool....but it was closed...then off to Fort Clatsop.  This is where Lewis and Clark found the Pacific Ocean.    An ironic coincidence....remember when the roof thing was flapping....no I never fixed it....It just miracoulsy fixed it self....Anyway....We had to pull over in a rest area...the name of the rest area was Dismal Nitch.  I laughed when I saw the name as I was up on the roof of the HOW with winds blowing at 90 mph......If you look back in history....Dismal Nitch is the cove that Lewis and Clark had to hunker down in.  They got stuck in a severe wind storm at Dismal Nitch and were stuck for 6 days....kinda cool...ok not so cool but if you have been on this RV for 3 weeks ...it would be cool to you!

From there we drove onto Cannon Beach Oregon. Great upscale beach town...oh they forgot one thing THE SUN....the water is worse then Maine and it never really gets really warm....great location!

Still raining....but with every storm there is a silver lining...Tillamook Oregon.  Oh Yeah baby...the best ice cream!  There is a cheese factory there...yes cheese....it was cool to see them package the stuff.  Before you start laughing I want to remind all of you visitors to St. Louis to please remember your plees to go see the Bud Factory.  We all had some GREAT Ice Cream.  

We then just stopped at some randon RV site and camped.  Hot dogs over the fire...not me....not enough hotdogs...I had left overs...they were better.

Taylor is 16 today! COOL?

Our baby girl turns 16 today. Happy Birthday Taylor. She is a wonderful young lady. She is smart and beautiful....thank God for my wife's genes...She is also one of the sweetest and caring young people you will meet. We are truely blessed to have her lead the team.

We love you Taylor,

Mom and Daddy

Did I mention she is really funny too?....check out her blog.

Almost Blew away...not cool

As we drive into Oregon...on The Astoria bridge, (At one time this was supposedly one of the longest bridges in the country.) we almost had a big problem.

We just start on the bridge when we hear this big flapping noise...it's the rollout canopy that comes with the beast. We have not used it yet .....no kidding right! I look out and it has unraveled and is flapping in the 90 MPH winds!

This thing is an automatic rollup system and I of course cannot remember how to work it. So we get out the CD that came with te beast and start the generator so we can follow along.....all the while the wind is really whipping up. So i became Johnny fix it and climb up on the top of the HOW with three bungee cords. Yes I have spare bungee cords...I am so prepared....not actually....Denise made me bring them... Of course she reminded me of that when she told me to go get them.

Of course this is the time that the kids start to act up a lillte. ll day Jessica has said nothing...reading quietly....and now Taylor and she must start to squabble about a book. Can we keep it down...while I am scaling the beast!

Anyway...no way to fix it. If I undo it in this wind it will rip right odd....so I decide to try to bungee it up.....almost impossible to do...I think I have it. We start to drive over the bridge and within the first few yards....boing boing boing ....you got it the bungees release. Then there is no flapping....But the wind died down...I figured we are OK....We only have 8 miles to camp.

When we get to camp I go to check the damage...either two things....

It totally ripped off or it managed to right it self and it's rewound back in it's spot. Not sure which it's dark...it's not flapping...there is always tomorrow.

Going out to check it right now!

Washington Coast just OK

We dove the Washington Coast yesterday. We left Seattle about 9 and stopped in Astoria Oregon about 9pm.
The trip started out by crossing over the top of Washington from Seattle to Forks. We needed to take a ferry....80 bucks....Chris, Shelby and I hung out side for the 30 minute commute....it was COLD and of course misting. We then take 101 across to Forks. This might of been in the top 10 drives....unfortunately it was very foggy and it was raining. So foggy that when we were at the base of Mount Renier....we could not see it!!

Twilight is a first in a series of books based on vampires that live in Forks Washington. The little town of 2k is one of the wettest spots in the country. It receives over 130 inches of rain annually....yesterday was no exception. The town was a little dumpy town in the middle of nowhere. We took some pictures of the High School...The girls thought it was great. Then we had lunch and went to the other site that the book is based in...La Push. This is even a smaller town...but it's on the beach. Take a look at the pictures....crazy beach...tons of HUGE logs that have been thrown up on the beach....Cold and rainy....just another great spot along the way!!

We then Hightailed it down the coast to Astoria Oregon. We stopped in Ocean Park Washington....It looked like every other breach town on the coast of New Jersey....except for a few things.....It was a ghost town.....I know it's June but it was really deserted. The town was a full 2-3 beach blocks away fro the beach. Th hotels on the beach looked nice....but it was at least 200 yards to the water from the back edge of all the properties. It looked a lot like Daytone, with people driving their cars on the beach....only with the rain. It was really windy...so windy in fact that the sand stung your eyes.

The ride was pretty uninteresting. The highway system does not ride along he Ocean. It drives through average looking forest. There are a few spots where the ride was cool....but for the most part it was dull.

I was surprised how mountainous the drives was being sop close to the coast.

Thanks to The Johnstons...they are cool

Thanks to our friends the Johnstons. Michael and Mary Beth allowed the Foley clan to invade their space for the past few days. They went ovrboard in addressing the Gluten free thing and were great hosts. We had a lot of laughs. They have a wonderful family and we wish Michael Jr. well in college this coming fall.

They have a great place to live. We really enjoyed Seattle. The area is beautiful with many things to do. We will be back......

Thanks so much!

On The Road Again...Cool???? maybe not!

Our Respite is over and we have had a wonderful time exploring Seattle. Michael and May Beth have really been outstanding hosts. Chris really had a great time with his "little brother" Clayton. Clayton is 5 and Chris really enjoyed being the big brother for the weekend. Sunday they went to the Science Center together.

Taylor came home last night......home is an interesting term....home top the family. Her flight was delayed and then redirected into Salt Lake....so my idea of her having a direct flight did not work out. She finally made it into Seattle at midnight. I need to go and get her out of bed right now.

We are off to Forks Washington today.....why Forks? Have you not read Twilight? Ask your kids...they probably have! Anyway, this is the number #1 spot the kids wanted to go. Forks is the basis for a book that they love. Michael tells me that there is nothing there....but here we go!

We will run the Washington coast today stopping over in Astoria Oregon tonight. Should be a Dr. Pepper day with only 6 1/2 hours asleep and 8 hours to drive!

See you tonight!

Hiram M. Chittenden locks....cool

It's still raining...really misting on and off. We went sightseeing in Seattle today. We first visited the Hiram M. Chittenden locks. Thought it would be a snore....but it was cool. This is where they connect 2 major fresh water lakes to the Puget Sound. The place was kinda empty....no kidding right? We were able to get a private history lesson and tour from one of the rangers. He was very knowledgeable....except for the fact he was very condescending....didn't like questions.....made you feel like an idiot when you asked one and lastly ....kept throwing in political comments on how the present administration is killing the environment.....socialist at heart I figure.

Anyway....It was definitely worth the visit. I would love to go back when the salmon are running. They have this thing called the fish ladder. This is a structure they built to allow the salmon to move up stream without being caught in all the lock issues. Hey have an underwater viewing station and you can see the salmon. You also see them jump up the ladder from the outside....or so they told us!

Next we hit the space needle. This was just ok. For $65 bucks...I say skip it. The space Needle is 603 feet tall. The coolest part is taking the elevator up. It has a glass door that faces the outside....gets to 603 feet in 41 seconds. Being Arch people...the St. Louis Arch is ...in my opinion....a better place. The Space Needle was built for the 1962 Worlds Fair....Unlike the Arch which has a beautiful setting and great landscaping...the Needle looks like it’s surrounded by left over exhibit areas....

Michael and Marybeth have been hanging with us. It's been great. We went to Rays for lunch. I had the fish and chips and of course....my princess Jessica order king Crab....two legs the waitress recommended...and of course Jessica took the reccomendation....I would recommend two too if I was the waitress ...at $15 bucks a throw!

At the end of the day we went to the movies and saw Kung Fu Panda.....Excellent family movie....had my Dr. Pepper too.

Politics...where have I been...not cool

No radio...and no newspapers makes for a tough time on following the campaigns... I had to hear from my mother that Hillary was at Mount Rushmore the same day that we were. We were actually in Montana during the primary. So I hear Hillary has not conceded? that's crazy....Didn't the socialist get enough delegate votes?

Well I guess the next big issue will be Vice Presidents.....I heard Hillary made a last ditch effort and said she would accept the 2nd position....come on Hillary have some self respect...no begging....

McCain better wake up from his nap and get cracking or we will all be paying higher taxes and watching as our country goes down the drain..

Now I have got your attention!!!! My old readers are probably not batting an eyelash right now....However, since the H.O.W. tour I have aquired many new readers that are not use to the right wing propaganda that is written about on this blog.

On another note....I thought that Ron Paul dropped out of the race???? If he did...have the pony express drop off some notes to the people in Montana, Idaho and eastern Washington. There are Ron Paul signs all over the place!

Gotta go and get my City Fix!

Pikes Place Market....REALLY COOL

So we try to go downtown with the beast!....Not the best idea...but not a lot of choices. We wanted to get a space near Pikes Market....no go. We found a space about a 25 minute walk from the market. I had to take up 3-4 spaces...I was not suref I needed to pay for all the spaces??? They had this parking meter that gave out coupons...you put the money in and it gave you a coupon to put on your car. Since the H.O.W. took up 4 spaces....do I get 4 coupons....forget about it...I put one on it and moved on. Figured if they gave me a ticket...I would throw it out. I was more worried about the tow. It was raining of course!

Seattle is a busy city. The metro area has 3.6 million people. Compare that to St Louis at 2.6....I have been to downtown in St Louis many times and never have seen the rowds just milling around as I did in Seattle. The market is the place known for throwing fish....yes we saw them throw fish! It's an indoor market on the water front. Very busy and great food. We sampled and ate some crazy stuff....Lipchens from China...some russian turnovers...I cannot remember how to spell them.... The piercing and grunge market is still holding strong in downtown Seattle. Interesting place.

After about an hour I think Denise and I both renmembered how much we love the city life. Mountains are great...but we really enjoyed the hustle and bustle of the market. Denise mentioned that Seattle would be a great place to live....now realize...we had only been there for an hour...but you get the feel.

Got back to H.O.W. and ......no issues...

We are stayng with friends in Medina. YES we slept in a regular bed last night! Yup....no shower shoes for me this morning....no little pink pail and the long walk to the public showers....we were living Large! It was awsome! Medina is this great little town just across the sound from Seattle. Marybeth and Denise are friends from St Bernards High School. We plan on staying until Monday morning. Taylor gets back Sunday night.

Taylor leaves for St Louis....not so cool!

So Taylor has left to go back to St. Louis for her leadership conference. We will miss her. Denise walked her into the airport and had her figue her way through getting on the plane. She did great. She will be back Sunday night. Unfortanetrly she misses Seattle. She texted me last night to let me know that all is well and she is having a great time. Due to some crazy rules with the frequent flier passes, she flew 1st class. I told her Denise and I have never flown 1st class....these kids just don't get it! She said the food was great...

Again for all of you Brian Reganm fans....she was brought a head of a pig!

A Fond Farewell to a Generation

Yesterday my great Uncle Joe passed away. I think he was 89. It was a sad day for the Caselli family. There were 14 and Uncle Joe was the last one that died. Paul, my grandfather was his older brother. Intersetingly enough, my grandmother Nat Nat, Paul's wife, was one of 12. Do the math....did I have cousins....hundreds and hundreds spread all over the Fairfeild county area.

It was a generation that stayed close to home....where family was first and activities came second. Some of my fondest memories of my childhood was going to my grandparents on Sunday and having manacotti.....for all of you non-italians....we pronounce it mana gat..... Nat Nat made the best....wiuth little tiny meatballs.....It was the best. The house was always full of men playing pinochle and the women cooking and laughng....I can still hear my Aunt Mary's laugh...OK Mary was not an Aunt, but she was to me. And lastly....the kids....all my siblings and cousins running around in this little tiny house on Honeyspot road.

Although a few of my great aunts are still alive all the Caselli siblings have passed.

The last of a generation of a great clan died yesterday. God Bless them all....thanks for all the great memories.

Couer D' Alene...not cool Snoqualime...VERY COOL

We made it through the night at the creepy campground....We thought that we would spend the morning in Couer D' Alene Idaho. We had heard it was a quaint village....nope....it reminded me of Middletown CT...nothing wrong but nothing special. It was raining so we decided to just drive on. We had 4-5 hours to get to Falls City Washington. We wanted to see Snoqualime Falls. This would also leave us about 30 minutes away from the airport. Tomorrow Taylor leaves us for 4 days to go back to St. Louis for a conference.

Pretty straight forward day....I was surprised on how flat and full of farms Washington state was. I expected pine trees and mountains...guess that D in geography is starting to pay off. Once you get near Seattle...the pines and mountains come into view.

We stopped at The Falls. It was a really great park. We hiked down to the base...it was about a mile in total. It was sprinkling of course!

Some Stats....cool!

As many of you know I am a math guy....I love my numbers...so here are a few stats

We have been on the road 11 days
We have been through 6 states Missouri, Iowa, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho
We have driven 2,806 miles
We have averaged 9.06 miles per gallon
We have spent $1,197 in Gas already....OH MY GOD!!!!
We have had countless laughs
We have had a few squabbles
The most we have paid for gas....$4.09 at Yellowstone....
The least $3.65 at 1,026 mile marker...not sure where.
Kids have read countless books.
I have drank at least 64 ounces of CAFFEINATED Diet Dr. Pepper each day.

That's the facts jack.

Glacier National Park....not so cool!

About 3 months ago Denise tells me that we should go to Glacier....that we should fit it in. I take a look at the map....,looks close...right up the road from Yellowstone. We squeeze it in by driving there one day...ride horses in the morning and then drive to Idaho in the next afternoon. This was not the best idea.

Montana voted to day for Clinton/Obama...I want to know how many people voted????....10 or 15 there are no people in Montana

We start our day at 8:40.....that's the driving day.....f course I was up at 7 emptying the waste...filling the water and breaking camp. anyway...at 9 pm we are finally in our spot at Glacier. 12 hours of driving! No breaks...Now to be honest the Kids and Denise were great...I am not sure if I was not driving if I could sit for that long.

The drive was scary....First the roads are just regular roads....with 70-75 mph speed limits. Not that bad of an issue except for the fact that you are going through forests and animals keep jumping out. One other thing....better gas up when you leave Interstate 90 and go north to GNP.....2 1/2 hours driving at 70 mph......NO TOWNS....NO PEOPLE...1 gas station....almost no other cars. If we crashed it would be a new episode of Misery. On one of the roads a storm blew in and the winds were extreme...It was maddening to keep the beast on the road.

The drive there was un impressive....Montana was no big deal....

We get to the site and have a campfire...thank God our house is full of Girl Scouts. Chris, Shelby and I started the gathering of wet wood...then Shelby "finds" some dry wood at the Host site....they should want us to have some dry wood...they are our hosts. Oh calm down...she lifted 4 pieces of wood. Anyway...I look over and the nitwits, in their excitement, have knocked over all the crackers on the table....Did they forget about the BEARS!...

Denise and I start preparing for the "no electricity/water site" We are told that the generator can not be run after 7 pm...
So we start telling the kids top prepare for a cold night....Never said we were the brightest...yup..the heater runs on propane....we were warm and happy

Next morning we go on a Horse ride. 2 hours of watch the horses ass in front of you. 2 hours of freezing weather. 2 hours of riding through a pine forest....wow was that fun. I have to admit that my horse was like a fine tuned machine. He was very responsive and was very cool.

Then we left......it took us another 3 1/2 hours to get back to civilization and onto interstate 90. I must admit the drive down 83 was much better then drive up.

We stopped in Couer D'alene Idaho for the night. Friends told us that we should see this town. So far.....it's really creepy. We are in some guys backyard .....what he calls a RV site. We are the only people that are here except for all the creepy people living in the 12 foot by 12 foot cabins.....never mind all the other broken down RVs that look like they have not moved in years.


We did not have the time to really see Glacier...it was too far....not enough juice for the squeeze.

We are off to Seattle tomorrow

The Uncool things in an RV

It's been a week and this beast does have it's bad points....

The bathroom....can they make it any smaller? I have yet to go the bathroom...if you know what I mean. I cannot fit in there. I just go to the rest area stations. Even quick trips are an issue...the Bowl is so low and you cannot bend to get cose....ok...I think your getting the picture.

Noise...OK the Foley's are not quiet....but we are extra loud in a 10x20 box.

you have to put your stuff away....all the time. Take a look at my office, car or closet, I am not too good at this.

Rocking....when we are sleeping and anytime someone gets up to use the huge bathroom, they shake the place like we are having an earthquake. It feels like we are sleeping on a diving board.

Last complaint is with RV camps. Two things....and again they are about bathrooms....make the stalls bigger! If a grown man wanted his knees to hit the door when he sits, he would use the huge bathroom in the camper. Second....Some of these cheapskates put the toilet paper on a roller that is flat and will not allow the roll to ROLL. OK, maybe some people will use less paper....not me....just drives me crazy and wastes so much time.

Let me end this with.....The RV thing is really cool and is very convenient.....most of the time.

Rodeos are cool!

Went to opening night at Cody WY Nightly Rodeo. It was great. Jessica thought it was the best thing we did so far. Bare back riding was first....Denise liked it until she saw how they had to corral the horse after the cowboy was bucked off. She got back into it after the cowgirls started the racing event. I think Taylor liked the cowboys the best!

Shelb, Chris and I had front row seats. Locals told us to get there early...Not sure why, the stadium was not more 30% full.

Most of our pictures are blurry, Denise will try to post the best of them.
We also visited the Bill Cody Museum....I think Denise is the only one that liked it.

We are off to Glacier National Park tomorrow. We are going via the Chief Joseph parkway...they say it's one of the best drives in the country. We will see....Route 14 will be hard to beat.

YNP....Upper Rim very Cool

We took the upper loop in Yellowstone yesterday. We also decided to leave the park arly and drive back to Cody WY to spend the night. Cody has a nightly rodeo and we wanted to see it. The upper loop ws better then the lower loop. There were a lot more animals. We saw moose, elk and BEARS! You can check out all of the pictures.

I didn't know that Denise was such a mental case about animals. We spot one and she literally screams and jumps out of the truck to get a picture of this Moose. When we saw a bear and it's cubs Denise gets out and I have to leave her there. There is a Bear Jam of about 25 cars on this windy stretch of an uphill mountain road. There was no where to pull over the beast. A park patrol made me drive about 3/4 of a mile. Denise had to walk up to the beast.....she was not a happy camper....the bears had moved and sh did not get her picture. Good thing she is on her game....take a look at some of the photos. Funny though....she was so excited to see a bison...but now that they are like deer in CT....not so excited

Yellowtone is truly a uniquer place. I would not say it is sooo beautiful...just very different. More on that later... I need to upload more images and let Taylor blog

Coincidence cool but scary!!

Written Yesterday


So back to the BadLands….. We are going to hike the Notch trail. At the trail head a family is coming out of the trail. We asked them how it was and of course where they were from. They lived in Missouri…they lived in Wildwood….They are on a 7 week family RV trip across the west and left the 24th…..creepy!

The Grand Tetons….very cool!

Written Yesterday


We spent the day cruising through the Grand Tetons. We started at the north Entrance and went all the way to Jackson Wyoming. Jackson is a Ski Town. About 8,000 people. The town is very upscale. It would be a great place to come back to visit. Skiing looks great. The highlight of the day was Jenny Lake. The mountains behind the lake was magnificent. Check out the pictures. We saw our first bear!
Pretty uneventful overall….we got back about 6pm.
We are going to take the upper circle tomorrow at YNP. We hit 2,000 miles on the beast today. I think we are going to run through our 6,250 allowance we get for the trip.

Wyoming Yellowstone National Park

Written 2 days ago.....


We will be spending the next few days at this great park. The first thing you become aware of in this park ….is it’s size. It’s enormous. It takes 4-5 hours to cross from one side to the other. It set up alike like Epcot. A big Figure 8. The main difference is that Epcot is all fake and everything in YNP is real….and could be very dangerous.
We arrived late morning after taking care of the daily chores in Cody Wyoming. We then had to review all the rules of the park. They mostly had to do with BEARS. These are not nice Yogi Bears…they are real big, smelly, mean and aggressive bears. At least that’s what I heard the lady say at the visitor station.

We spent 5-6 hours touring the lower loop of the park. The one word that comes to mind while looking at the scenery is strange. In one stretch you run through endless pine trees…then you break out into fields of desolate geyser fields. The fields were very strange. It felt like you were on another planet. It’s impossible to describe. Take a look at the photos we posted. Link is on the top left of the blog. The lake in YNP is like an Ocean. Today it was a sheet of ice and snow. That’s right snow…..there was 5-6 foot drifts up against the road. It was mid forties today, snowing, sleeting and raining at times.

Great Day, got back to site about 7…. dinner and a movie and off to bed.

The RV is working out pretty well….cool

Written a say or so ago....finally

I'm sure by now you’re wondering how the RV is working out. Overall it is very good.

We have driven over 1,700 miles and have averaged 9.3 miles per gallon. Sleeping has gotten into a routine and seems to be working fine. Taylor gets the couch pull out, Chris gets the dining room conversion bed, Jess and Shelby are in the overhang and Denise and I share the queen. The heat works great, we have needed it every night so far. The RV itself is just OK. I figure this thing must go for 75k. You would think that for 75k it would be over better quality. The finish is just OK…looks good on the surface but falls apart pretty easily, It has about 15 locks. Most are the most cheaply made locks available with a little key that barely opens the locks. The key almost breaks every time you use them. The bathroom is so small that when you try to bend over to spit the toothpaste out, you smack your head. So you end up trying to spit the toothpaste into this tiny sink from 2 feet away…what a mess.

The best part of the RV is the convenience. There is no in and out of hotel rooms…you’re hungry? Open the fridge and make a sandwich. You’re tired, just pull it over and go to sleep….now I am not ready to become a professional RVer, but it is the best way to travel for a trip like this.

New Pictures....cool!

New pictures are at the H.O.W. link at the top right of the blog.
New posting later today....we are finally back in civiliztion.