RUAKIWI

Saturday Sep 17, Lake Tarawera NZ

2011-09-16T19:34:00.000-07:00

It was a wet welcome back into New Zealand and quite a shock to the system after almost 2 ½ months without rain. Our flights back went without a hitch, we had concerns about travelling on 9/11, but apart from a little bit of extra security there were no issues, and best of all our request for an upgrade with airpoints was granted. We swanned home in Premium Pacific class, just the best with plenty of legroom and space to put all the paraphernalia you seem to take on board. It was just the icing on the cake.

Dean was there to meet us and we were back at his home by 7am to a great welcome from Janine and Aidan and Ella. It is only 3 months that we have been away but they seem to have grown up so much. Aidan had the day off school so that we could spend more time with him. Steve arrived with Molly Dog, who was very excited to see us then it was over to Craig and Nicky’s in time to meet Cody, Tara and Keely when they got home for school. Somehow we kept our eyes open and even went with Keely to see her Jazz Dancing and cheerleading classes, but by 8.30 we were in bed, it had been a very very long day.

Had a great trip back to the lake the next day….and then the job of unpacking.

Great top catch up with friends and neighbours and hear all the local news, but missing the nice warm weather, it has been long trou and jumpers since we have been back!

So will sign off the blog now……until the next trip.
Meg and Ian

Last days in USA

2011-09-10T22:31:00.000-07:00

Have had a busy time over the past few days, but it has all gone smoothly and we have been spoilt by the most superb weather, really warm with a gentle breeze, no humidity and not a cloud in the sky.

Yesterday cleaned out Ruakiwi and packed the bags, seemed to be a lot of stuff. Terry has a set of special digital travel scales which meant that we were able to arrange the heavy stuff and keep all the bags under the 50lb allowance.

She was all set for the winter after having an oil change, then Ian and Terry took Ruakiwi to the storage yard and covered her over…..good bye for another year.

Sherry and I picked wild blackberries which are so abundant throughout Washington, have never seen so many huge berries just hanging off the vines, in no time at all we had filled a very large bowl which Sherry used to make a blackberry cobbler…so spoilt.

Dinner tonight at a Mexican restaurant was really good and we came home to a late desert of blackberry cobbler, amazing flavour.

Ian and Terry had a boys day today at Terry’s motorcycle club meeting and a visit to a vintage steam machine open day while Sherry and I had a great girls day with the Farmers Market and some retail therapy in some local stores. What a relaxing day. As always we have been so well looked after here in Anacortes, Sherry and Terry have just been so helpful and make the job of ending our trip so easy.

It has been three wonderful months of summer just cruising, a lifestyle we both enjoy but looking forward now to getting back to NZ and catching up with the family and our friends. We fly tomorrow from Seattle to San Francisco and then it is on the flight back to Auckland at 9.30 pm. With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 expecting heightened security through the airports, but guess it will be a very safe day to travel.

So no more blogs for awhile until we get back to Lake Tarawera,

Thursday September 8, Anacortes WA

2011-09-09T17:41:00.000-07:00

It was time this morning to strip the bed and put things away for the last time this trip. Another stunning day, this really is the best time of the year, can’t believe that we have not had a drop of rain for over 8 weeks and by the look of the weather it will continue like this until we leave on Sunday. Such a comparison to last years trip to Alaska where we had so many grey days and quite a bit of rain.

The half hour ferry trip across the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Whidbey Island is surprisingly inexpensive, it was only $35 for Ruakiwi and Ian and I. It was just a short hop then to the picturesque little seaside village of Coupeville, have been before with Sherry and just love the atmosphere. We had a light lunch in café overlooking the water and wandered down to the end of the wharf before heading north for the final drive to Sherry and Terry’s.

Ruakiwi seems to know her way here, it felt like coming home. Lots of chatting this afternoon and catching up with the summer holidays. Sherry cooked Ian’s salmon with onions, lemon and dill on the barbecue it was superb, amazing flavours.

Tomorrow it will be time to pack our bags and put Ruakiwi with bed.

Wednesday September 7, Port Townsend

2011-09-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day and a great place for our last full day on the road. I woke before 6, looked out the window half expecting to see a foggy view but the colour was amazing, a bright orange sky. Very quickly dressed and grabbed my camera and tripod and spent an hour soaking up the beautiful light as the sun rose. The marina was quiet and the water calm, just so peaceful and picturesque, what a way to start the day.

The marina soon came to life especially with preparations for the wooden boat festival, a marquee was getting erected and portable loos kept appearing.

After breakfast Ian set off to check out the boats and the harbour and “his shops”, and I meandered around the gallery’s and shops. This is not your normal tacky souvenirs but quality items and really good art and craftwork. I enjoyed photographer Stephen Cunliffe’s work (www.admiraltyimages.com) in a co-op and had a long chat with him as he was working in the gallery for the day.

The day just disappeared in a very leisurely fashion, couldn’t be more perfect. The evenings are so unbelievably balmy and we sat out on the waterfront table with our dinner tonight, watching boats coming and going, then wandered into town as the sun finally set….just perfect.

Tuesday September 6, Port Townsend

2011-09-07T09:35:00.000-07:00

After 5 days in Chinook it was quite hard to say goodbye this morning to everyone, we have been made so welcome in the camp and made lots of friends. But time to move on.

It was a 200 mile trip north to Port Townsend where we decided to spend a couple of nights before finishing up with Terry and Sherry in Anacortes, and homeward bound on Sunday. Where has the time gone to.

The roads seemed much quieter today with children all back in school after the holiday weekend. A very easy drive mainly following 101, bypassing Olympia the capital of Washington.

The drive following the Hood Canal was particularly beautiful, the sun was shining and the water was so clear. Seems to be a popular holiday place with the water lined with little cottages.

Last year we had spent several hours in Port Townsend before catching the ferry to Anacortes and fell in love with the place. The downtown is lined with a real mix of arty stores and quality crafts and souvenirs in old brick historic buildings. We found a great campsite in the marina right in downtown with amazing views over the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Mount Baker and all the boating activity. Also there is a wooden boat festival starting here this weekend, which we will miss, but there are a number of boats already here and lots of pre festival activity….plenty of things to keep Ian occupied with!

Dick and Witta came across from Sequim to catch up with us again, such fun as we had spent a few days with them in Victoria at the start of the trip. While the guys sat in the sun watching the boats and having a beer, Witta took me out to Fort Worden, a few miles along the coast where there are some amazing bunkers. Had a play with our cameras, certainly a very interesting place and could imagine spending some time there.

Then off into town for a meal before they headed back home….a great finish to the day.

Looking forward to exploring around the town tomorrow…and some retail therapy!

Monday September 5, …yep still at Chinook!

2011-09-06T08:12:00.000-07:00

Ian was up early and off with the guys at 7.00 am….I enjoyed a bit of a sleep in. Went for a good walk up to the little village of Chinook and wondered around the port area where small boats were coming and going. Called back into the market again and got chatting to Linda and her granddaughter Marika who were selling hand knitted socks and other beautiful hand knitted and dyed accessories. We got discussing the differences between traditional and continental knitting so Linda gave me a lesson, very interesting. Came back to camp and tried it out…persevering, it is different but really a lot quicker, must keep trying!

Had a very relaxed afternoon chatting with some of the other campers The guys arrived back about five, they had a great day and Ian came home with a really nice Chinook salmon and a coho salmon, and they also got 4 dungeness crabs. These are huge. We have a nice piece of salmon vacuumed packed to take to Anacortes with us, and tonight after they were cooked I had the most wonderful meal of crab, straight out of the shell. Just couldn’t be fresher. The flavour was so good.

Sunday September 4, Chinook

2011-09-05T10:19:00.000-07:00

Somehow today has been like a holiday, within a holiday. Ian did a bit of work on Ruakiwi this morning, but I just lazed the day away, chatting, reading (have my nose in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and finally finished joining up some more squares on the blanket.

Plans had been to head off tomorrow, but Ian was asked to go fishing tomorrow with Doug and Mitch from the camp. He is absolutely delighted. The Chinook fishing season had been closed but they were just informed on the weekend that they were opening it again, so they will be heading out through the bar of the river and fishing in the ocean.

Thought I would include a couple of pics of the inside of Ruakiwi, after she was spruced up!!!

Saturday September 3, Chinook

2011-09-04T12:37:00.000-07:00

A bit of a slow start this morning, and only did a few bits and pieces. Chatted with other campers and Mitch arrived with some vacuumed packed smoked salmon for us. We won’t want to leave!

Needed a few things so decided to wander over the 4 mile bridge across the Columbia to Astoria and have a look around. The weather is really hot today, although not like out east, can cope with this heat, more like a wonderful NZ summers day.

Drove right out to the state park where the Columbia meets the Pacific, amazing views. Will be on the other side of the ocean in less than 10 days! Meandered around the roads and followed the river back into town.

Astoria was established 200 years ago and has some wonderful old buildings. It was established 200 years ago and was a major seaport with the river servicing towns so far inland. Wound up to the high point in town to the Astoria Column which was built in 1926. It was decorated with a frieze of 22 significant events that occurred in the region. 15 years ago it was restored and brought back to its former glory, truly amazing. I didn’t bother climbing the 150 odd steps to the top…..just too many people up there…..nothing to do with the fact that it would have been quite a climb!

Back in time to join the other campers for drinks…..its a tough life! Better make the most of it though, back to routine before long!

…Later. There appeared to be smoke haze in the sky and just before sunset the sky turned orange as the sun dropped lower, what an amazing light for photography!

Friday September 2, Chinook

2011-09-03T17:11:00.000-07:00

Another great day, the temperatures are just so pleasant, warm with a gentle breeze and blue skies. Ian has finished polishing the van and I have finished my chores, just little bits and pieces left to do. Everyone around is so friendly and people pop in and say hi and check out how the job is going!

Took some photos of Herman, the Rotten-doodle. He really is quite the man.

Thursday Sep 1…..sorry, it is actually River’s End Campground in Chinook, Washington

2011-09-02T08:35:00.000-07:00

Mileage travelled today….zero! It has been a cleaning and polishing day, Ian has been on the outside and I have been on the inside. Did about 3 loads of washing as well. A great day for this sort of thing with a gentle breeze and temperatures in the low 20’s. We are just pottering away with our jobs, thoroughly enjoying the atmosphere of this camp. Ian borrowed a ladder from the camp owners to get up higher on the rig. Not rushing, more to do tomorrow.

The camp has a lot of regulars, mainly people who come for the fishing. Anyway many of them gather late afternoon for a few drinks, and we joined in. Made very welcome and met lots of people including Jane who owns the most glorious “Rotten-doodle”, a cross between a rotweiller and a poodle. He is the so well behaved, will try and get a photo of him for the blog over the next few days.

Also got talking with Jenny who is a knitter, spinner and photographer….guess you would have to say we have a lot in common! Anyway she is into hand knitting beautiful socks and also has an antique sock making machine, a bit like a more modern day knitting machine but it is circular. “Heatherbelle, you would have been very interested in what she was doing”! Jenny also has a small electric spinning machine to use when she is in their motor home, a great little machine. Brought back many memories of spinning on the farm.

All in all a very pleasant way to end the day.

Wedneday August 31, Riverbend Campground, Chinook, WA

2011-09-01T08:47:00.000-07:00

Slept well surprisingly as we were right near the highway. Ian wandered out this morning to chat with some of the guys that were fishing. Two native Americans had been out in a canoe and anchored in the channel, and they came back with two very nice 30lb Chinook Salmon. A couple of the guys on the shore had caught steelheads, a sea run trout and they were well over 10lb, the fish were running. Had a long chat with Jim, a really friendly and happy guy, who was proud of his nice steelhead. He lives not too far away and often comes to the camp when the fish are running.

We continued west along the River stopping at some of the old ports that had been the main method of transport in the early years before the roads were built. Even now logs are barged down from Alaska and come into some of these ports.

The river widened out considerably and in fact the last bridge across to Astoria, Oregon before the ocean is over 4 miles long. This weekend is Labour Day weekend, the last long one of summer and we were well aware of the difficulty of finding a good campsite, especially as we were keen to give Ruakiwi a good clean and to sort things out in readiness for the end of our trip next week. So decided that we would get a place and spend the next 5 nights and have a real clean up …. and a bit of a lazy time!!!! Checked out a few campgrounds along the road but most look pretty rough, then we found a really good one at Chinook, it is right on the river but looking out on the river and is not too crowded. Also there is a laundry on site so will be able to give everything a good wash. They had some spare spaces so we booked it.

It was only midday so decided to continue out and explore the Long Beach Peninsula, a big spit on the ocean. We stopped for some lunch in town….and Terry, I had razor clams as you recommended. Really enjoyed them, great flavour. But Long Beach is just a beachside town with amusement arcades and carnivals and lots of souvenir shops. Also as we found last year it is very hard to even see the coast, there are only a few roads that lead out onto it and most people drive along the beach, it is a public road. So in fact we didn’t even get to really see the Ocean.

On the harbour side though we stopped at the wharf area where there is a big oyster operation, they harvest pacific oysters and in fact create beds for then to grow on with the old oyster shells. Chatted to a few commercial fisherman and they are all complaining about how few days they are allowed to fish…it just seems to get harder and harder.

Before going back to camp we took the van into a carwash and gave her a good clean, ready for a polish over the next few days.

Tuesday August 30, County Line Park, near Stella WA

2011-08-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

A quieter today, and so far haven’t taken a photo. The day has been quite cloudy so maybe that has been the problem, but the temperatures have been much more pleasant!

Slept well in our little forest camp last night, returned back down the St Helen’s road then it was west down 503 to the Columbia River. It was a very pretty drive through tree lined roads, many deciduous trees. Often think what this would be like in the Autumn. The road followed several lakes and a dam for power generation. Pottered around the small town of Woodland, found a nice market with fresh farm produce, the peaches are soooo good at the moment, and they had field tomatoes, something which you don’t get in the Supermarkets. Noticed all the Mexican restaraunts and multi lingual signs in town so guess this is another centre for orchard workers.

We try to stay off the freeways, Ian prefers to mooch along so that he can see more, but today there was no other alternative so took the I5 north to Longview for about 10 miles.

Then back onto the highway that follows the Columbia River to the coast. Seems to be a lot of industry around the river, but finally it cleared and found a nice little County Park right on the river, only a few spots left so grabbed one. Both feeling a bit jaded after quite a bit of driving over the past few days so enjoyed putting out feet up this afternoon.

…Later. Put the camera on the tripod and got some shots down by the river as evening came in and the wind had settled. Lots of people out fishing but no one seems to be having any luck.

Monday August 29, …somewhere near St Helens!!!!!

2011-08-30T13:21:00.000-07:00

Tonight we are “dispersed camping”, as they call freedom camping in Washington, we are actually parked in a forestry metal quarry on the road south from St Helens.. but more of that later.

This morning we had a great chat with Leah and Rob before leaving, so enjoyed their company and hope to see them in NZ one day. Gathered a few supplies in Hood River before heading north over the very narrow bridge across the Columbia. We were a bit more prepared this time, but met a truck half way over….pulled our mirrors in and held our breathe and just made it. Extremely pleased to get to the other side.

The wind had been blowing at camp this morning, but over the river it was a howling gale and the wind surfers were out having a blast. Stopped on the north side of the river and watched them for ages, truly amazing the speed they would get up and do 360 degree flips in the air. Had great fun with the camera capturing them. Didn’t see many kite surfers though as I think the wind may have been too strong for them.

Terry had recommended a route up to see Mt Helens from the East side. Turned north from the Columbia at Carson, not far from Hood River then wound up into the mountains, and finally it turned cooler as we left the desert and the valley behind.

Thoroughly enjoyed the drive and stopped at the Forest Info Centre for more detailed maps of the area before a rather windy climb up to the mountain on a road that is closed during the winter. The destruction that the eruption of St Helens wrought on the landscape 30 years ago is still really visible. This area was previously forested and the blast just blew the trees down, you could see the direction of it as all the trees lay in the same direction with the root balls exposed. This area has been kept as a National Volcanic Monument and the natural re-establishment of the forest can be viewed. One side of the road though has been reforested, 4 million trees were planted 2 – 6 years after the explosion so you can very easily see the difference. Kept thinking about the eruption of our Mt Tarawera 125 years ago and that this was probably what it looked like.

Spirit Lake at the base of the mountain had been a very popular holiday destination in the woods, but now it has rafts of floating logs slowly sinking to the bottom.

Terry, thanks for the tip, we thoroughly enjoyed seeing all this. It was getting very late in the afternoon and didn’t feel like driving back down the road again so found a gravel dump half way back down the road in the trees where we camped the night. Great quiet spot….and so pleasantly cool.

Sunday August 28, Hood River OR

2011-08-29T11:24:00.000-07:00

The girls saw us before we left this morning and invited us over to try some of their “grits” that they had cooked up to go with their breakfast……like a porridge but much nice, really enjoyed it. Stopped at an orchard nearby and bought fresh peaches and field tomatoes, they are so good. This area grows so much of the countries peaches, pears and apples, there are orchards everywhere.

Then onto the Maryhill Museum, not far down the road. It looks so bizarre to see this huge Georgian designed building sitting in the dry arid hills overlooking the river. Sam Hill who owned 6000 acres surrounding the house built it as his residence, but never ever came to live in it. He turned it over as a museum in the late 1920’s and it houses some quite diverse collections including those of the Queen of Romania, miniature fashions from French designers displayed on wire frames and the arts of the Native Americans. The surrounding land is now leased out to ranchers and farmers.

Continued West and the dry arid desert hills started to be replaced with more trees and the temperatures were a little cooler. We crossed back over the river to Oregon and the town of Hood River on a very long and rather narrow bridge….Ian pulled the wing mirrors in when he met a truck coming in the opposite direction. Rather pleased to get to the other side. This part of the gorge is an extremely popular spot for kite surfers who come from all around the world to enjoy the waves and wind created by a strong westerly backing up a swiftly flowing river.

There was a really strong wind blowing today and the surfers were out in huge numbers. Sat on the bank and watched for ages, at times wondering why there weren’t some serious accidents as they seemed to be going in all directions.

Enjoyed a meander around the town, had a great atmosphere and stopped at a little café for a late lunch. Evidently the Chinook salmon are starting to run and the local fishing shop gave Ian a link to some local guides but they were booked for days, quite disappointing.

Had read about Lost Lake at the foot of Mt Hood, a 45 minutes drive from town. Supposed to be a great place with views of the mountain across the lake with a campground which sounded perfect. Drove up and the temperatures cooled considerably, but felt really disappointed when we got there as firstly the campground was in the forest some distance from the lake which was really choppy and quite busy. Not at all what we pictured, so decided to head back towards town where there was a County Campground on the Hood River. It turned out to be just fine, nice open sites and not many people here.

Had a really enjoyable evening with fellow campers, Leah and Rob from Seattle who had come down here for the kite surfing. Leah designs jewellery and Rick designs websites, and they were married 3 months ago, so had a good chat about wedding photographers!

Saturday August 27, Maryhill State Park, on the Columbia River, WA

2011-08-28T14:01:00.000-07:00

After collecting a few supplies in town this morning, we headed south, rose up from the river to another very large cropped plateau, with some of the biggest circular irrigators we had seen. It was really refreshing when we dropped down to the Columbia River Valley at Plymouth, and were really surprised at how fresh and blue the river looked. We really enjoyed the drive West that took us right beside the river on the Washington side, the road was surprisingly quiet in comparison to the freeway that followed the river on the Oregon side. The railway ran right beside us which was very busy, with trains going east and west. We passed a number of vineyards looking so green nestled in the dry arid hills above us, while fruit orchards were in pockets on flats near the river. Also saw the first barges on the river being pushed along by tugs, and enjoyed watching one coming through a lock when we stopped at the John Day dam for lunch. Obviously by the number of wind farms all along the hills on either side of the river, this can really be a windy place, although today there was just a gentle breeze not doing much to reduce the heat.

We stopped at the Stonehenge Monument on the hills above the river just before Maryhill having read quite a bit about it and its builder. Eccentric Sam Hill built this on his land as a memorial to the local soldiers killed in WW1. It is a replica of the English Stonehenge although this one is intact. Quite a sight. Tomorrow will visit the Museum of Art which he also built, it is a little further West.

With the temperatures approaching 40 by 2.30 pulled in the Maryhill State Park on the river, only to find the camp full sign was out…drat. Then the girl in the office spotted us and said there was one site left which we grabbed. Really nice camp with lots of trees and views out over the water, and it has electricity…yeah air conditioning!

Went for a walk around the camp once it cooled down a little, it was full of families having a great time. Saw a group of girls from Portland cooking up their supper over a campfire, and it looked really good. Once a month over the summer they go camping and always cook up special food and tonight they were having lemon chicken with potatoes and fried green beans followed by a peach and blackberry cobbler. They had bought the peaches at a farm market just down the road and picked the blackberries near their campsite and were cooking them up in a camp oven, then mixed a packet cake mix to put on top.

We were eating our dinner a little later and they popped over and asked if we would like to see the finished cooked result….it looked amazing, and they sent us home with some for our dessert. Wow, what a treat, they had flavoured it with a little vanilla and cinnamon and it was superb….have to say Ian licked the plate!

We joined them around the campfire after dinner and had a great evening. Thanks girls. These are the things that make our holidays so special.

Friday August 26, Benton City, WA

2011-08-26T21:52:00.000-07:00

Today has probably not been one of the highlights of our trip, but still enjoyed travelling through some pretty intensive agriculture areas. The heat though has been rather challenging this afternoon, it was well over 40 degrees when we parked for awhile…..whew, just too hot to do anything but sit with the air conditioner going. The weather forecast is for cooler weather in a few days which will be pretty welcome. We are watching the news at the moment with the story of Hurricane Irene’s progress up the East Coast, with millions of people evacuating, and much of New Yorks transit systems shutting down from tomorrow. Here’s hoping that it is not as bad as they are forecasting.

This morning heading south west, we were back in wheat country although most has been harvested and a lot of the country was already being replanted. We had a bit of a look around Moses Lake, an agriculture centre for this area. Surprised to see a large 747B circling around town as we arrived and felt a bit concerned as to what was happening, but found out that this town has an old Air Force Base which has one of the longest runways in the States, Boeing have a base and do a lot of testing here, especially as Moses Lake has about 300 days of sunshine a year.

Much more irrigation now, with many canals as part of the Columbia irrigation scheme. A huge variety of crops being grown as we headed on into Tri Cities, apples, cherries, grapes, potatoes, corn and lots of hay. Noticed that the small towns have large Mexican populations, who are employed in the fields.The store signs are in Mexican and saw many Mexican food stalls on the roadsides.

Stopped for awhile in Kennewick, one of the Tri Cities, spent some time in air conditioned stores to cool down. Found this small campground about 15 minutes out of town on the Yakima River, hooked up and turned on the air…bliss!

I received an email today from the lady we met at Steptoe Butte yesterday, and she sent details of the photography workshop that her husband Narinder is doing in the Palousse. Photographers might be interested in following a link to their blog.. www.podas.info

Thursday August 25, Sprague Lake, WA

2011-08-26T07:45:00.000-07:00

Have had a great day, meandering through the roads “less travelled” in the wheat fields of the Palousse. Harvest is in full swing, with combines working everywhere and grain carrying trucks busy on the roads. And finally there are some puffy white clouds breaking up the clear blue skies!

Soon after leaving camp this morning we travelled through the new Snake River Wind Project where 150 turbines are currently being built…they will provide enough energy for over 100,000 houses.

Crossed over the Snake River again at Central Ferry where there were two large grain complexes and trucks everywhere. From here they distribute the wheat either by barge on the river or by train. As we drove the 20 miles north towards Colfax, 25 truck units passed us heading for the river. This is peak season.

And everywhere the rolling hills are yellow with wheat or the straw after harvest. Spoke to a truckie at the gas station and he suggested we drive up the Steptoe Butte, a real steep little hill in the middle of the Palousse. The road circled the butte about 3 times as we wound up to the top, the view was amazing with 360 degrees vistas, and everywhere you looked there were wheat fields, making a real patchwork golden carpet.

Met a very pleasant lady at the top of the butte from Nevada, her husband was on a week long photography workshop with 24 students based in Pullman, photographing the wheat harvest in the area. Although Sue wasn’t part of the workshop she was driving around to some of the locations they had been too. Evidently they had been here for a sunset shoot, can just imagine how magnificent it would look.

We meandered along the back roads and finally came out of the wheat growing area as we arrived in Sprague, a very small country town. Temperatures were once again in the mid 30’s. Stopped for the day at a small campground on the edge of Sprague Lake with quite a pleasant outlook.

Wednesday August 24, Tucannon RV Park…..again!

2011-08-25T08:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are still here but spent the day out and about.
When a town has the name of Starbuck, felt that we needed to check it out. This very, very small township was not far from camp, we decided that it came first as it was settled in the late 1880’s! Not a lot happening in town and only a handful of businesses were still running.

Drove out to the Little Goose Dam and lock on the Snake River, fascinating place. Stopped first at a little park and campground on the river and had a chat with a couple of regular campers, and got some “local” information. Boats come inland up the Columbia then the Snake as far as Lewiston, and evidently there are 3 or 4 barges a day as well as other boats, although only saw small fishing boats today. This is the furtherest navigatable waters in the US.

The Little Goose Dam has a fish ladder with a visitors centre. Walked down underground and could see the fish in the windows swimming up the ladder. Got chatting with the employee who has a little tiny room with a window where she counts the fish swimming through, by species, noting their sizes and if they have been damaged. She had been doing the job for the past 11 years and sits in the room for 50 mins of each hour for an 8 hour stretch from April through to October each year. That would take some doing. Apart from that, she was most interesting and we spent quite some time chatting with her. During the Spring when there are large numbers coming through they can count upwards of 10,000 fish.

Stopped at Lyons Ferry for lunch, where the Palousse River joins the Snake, then onto Palousse Falls. Absolutely arid country with not an animal to be seen, and these huge falls in the middle of this are quite an amazing site. Heard about a guy who kayaked over them…and survived!

By mid afternoon the heat was back into the high 30’s, so headed back to camp for a lazy afternoon.

Tuesday August 23, Tucannon River RV Park, Near Dayton WA

2011-08-24T08:26:00.000-07:00

Last night we met our neighbour, John Red Horse and had a long and very interesting chat. Really enjoyed his company and hearing about his culture. John who is a native Sioux from South Dakota is the Project Engineer for plumbing and air conditioning at the new Casino Hotel that is presently being built near the camp. The 200 room multi floor hotel was started last October and we were surprised to hear that hand over was September 2 and first guests were already booked for that night. As you can see from the photo it appears a long way from being finished, with windows on the upper floors yet to be installed, but John said that many rooms are already carpeted and furnished and he expects the target to be met….and guess it has to be!

It has been a good few days in Pendalton, this morning it was on the road again and north east to the Washington Border and Walla Walla. We weren’t far along the road before we came into a huge wheat growing area that was well into harvest, in fact not many areas yet to be done. Just love all the shapes and patterns that the crops and rolling hills bring, sorry though that the sky was cloudless….photographers need clouds!

Walla Walla is like an oasis in the valley, and following the growth of the wine industry in the region, the town has become much more upmarket with many of the wineries having bars and associated restaurants in the down town area. The streets are lined with trees, really enjoyed wandering around.

Bought a loaf of hand made sourdough bread and stopped for a lunch with fresh field tomatoes and camembert….the flavours were fabulous….guess a glass of wine with it would have been even better but a bit early in the day for that.

Continuing along HW 12 we were soon back into the wheat growing areas, where I was itching to take photos but the road was too busy. Found a back road and wound through some real rural areas and finally came across a place to stop where the harvesters were working. Watched for ages, Ian was most impressed watching how the harvesters could self level on quite steep hills….must admit that I didn’t really notice, but just enjoyed taking photos!

On our way to Palousse Falls when we came across this really nice campground with shade trees, big sites and nice green lawns…..and electricity and water for $16!! Unbelievable. (Also discovered a bit later that there was free high speed wifi!!!)

Very pleasant this evening sitting under the trees with a nice breeze blowing….and a beer. As Ian would say….It would be “Rude Not To”!

Monday August 22, Pendleton OR

2011-08-22T22:08:00.000-07:00

We have been doing a bit of the tourist thing in town today. Heard about a tour of an Underground network that was dug in the late 1800’s by Chinese labourers and housed secret card rooms, opium dens, and Speakeasy’s during the Prohibition Days. It was a fascinating 90 minute tour with a great guide and also included a tour of some of the brothels that were running until the 1950’s. These had been shut down and the rooms were left as is until they were re-entered about 20 years ago. A real insight into what this western town was like during another era, when working men wanted to be enteretained.

The central part of town had many old buildings and after reading about the Rainbow Café which has been operating continuously in the same building for 125 years, seemed like a good place for lunch. Felt like we had stepped back in time, the walls were lined with old photos from the Rodeos that had taken place in town for the last 100 years, and seating was in booths or on bar stools. It was obviously the place where locals gather, and they were really friendly, checking out where we were from. And the food was traditional but pretty good too.

The town has a number of top quality Western wear stores, including the most famous… Hamley and Co. Could not believe that amount of really expensive gear they had from Western boots in many designs and colours to solid silver spurs. And more cowboy hats than you could ever believe.

Finished the day off with a few chores, saw a place where you could take your vehicle in and shampoo and vacuum the carpets, something that badly needed doing, then back home to do the laundry at camp.

With a pretty strong wind blowing today is a bit cooler then yesterday.

Sunday August 21, Pendleton OR

2011-08-21T21:17:00.000-07:00

After such an amazing day with so much variety yesterday, today has been far more humdrum, as we drove North East to Pendleton.

Before we left camp this morning the lads from the next camp arrived to show us the bass they had caught using worms on a hand line, they were pretty excited. Really nice kids.

Picked up some fresh peaches and nectarines from an orchard not far from camp, and drove down 207 to Heppner through forest land. Fuelled up and found a tree where we parked for a lunch stop, it was already pretty warm. Not a lot happening in the town, although it was settled back in the late 1800’s and is now a rural service centre.

The 60 mile drive to Pendleton was through masses of big open rolling country, no trees, dry and arid and although we saw a number of ranches, hardly saw an animal. Can’t understand why as there was plenty of rough dry feed, water may have been the problem.

It was close to 40 degrees when we arrived in Pendleton and not a cloud in the sky. This town is famous for its huge rodeo in mid September, and all things Western. Drove through town but not much happening on a Sunday.

Decided that we really needed to camp with electricity tonight for some air conditioning, although we can run the generator, we don’t like running it for hours. The Casino, about 6 miles out of town has a very good camp ground and even a few shade trees, nice to relax in the cool tonight. Don’t think we will get to the Casino though!

Saturday August 20, John Day River, Kimberly

2011-08-21T17:11:00.000-07:00

Days don’t get much better than today, from driving through the most spectacular scenery on surprisingly quiet roads, and ending up camping right beside the river and swimming with temperatures in the high 30’s.

Right from when we left the camp we were into open dry ranch country. First stop was at the Painted Hills of the John Day National Monument. We had read about it in tour books, and often when you get to a place it isn’t quite as magnificent as it makes it….well we were just in awe. The eroded hills are banded in a multitude of colours, the result of a series of eruptions, and are just stunning. Ideally the best time to see them would be at sunset, or even after rain, but we were there late morning and they were pretty special. Couldn’t stop taking photos as we walked up into the hills.

Back on the road again and came across the Old West town of Mitchell, with a few eating places and some interesting old buildings. While we were there a dozen classic Morgan cars arrived for a lunch stop. They had come from the Salem area on a rally, quite a sight.

Continued east through what would be a geologists dream. Every corner we turned was another breathtaking view, At one stage we had to stop and turn around for photo….a dead tree on the side of the road with hundreds of pairs of sneakers hanging on it…..the mind boggles!

The John Day area is famous for its fossil beds and we stopped at the interpretive centre of paleontology….a fascinating place with a museum packed with fossilised skulls, skeletons and leaves found in the area.

Continuing north on Hwy 19 the road followed the John Day River, with a number of huge ranches. The flats beside the river were all irrigated, but the hills were dry and arid and covered with sage bush.

Had read in Lonely Planet about a BLM camp on a fork of the John Day river a few miles east of Kimbelry.

It was mid afternoon and getting pretty warm, and decided that the little campspot under a tree overlooking the river was pretty inviting….and only $5 for the night. There were several other campers and everyone was in the river having fun…..and we joined them. Just the right temperature and a lot of fun as it was quite swift flowing with a smooth stone bottom. A great end to what was probably one of the most spectacular days of our trip this year.

Thursday August 18, Olallie Forest Camp

2011-08-19T15:17:00.000-07:00

Mileage covered today……nil!!!! We stayed put, it’s such a wonderful spot, and no mosquitoes, felt that we could do with a catch up day. And it has been really good. Wandered down the road to the boat ramp this morning where they launch rafts but no action, guess that will happen in the weekend when this whole camp is booked out.

This bit is for photographers……. (!) I spent time reading my new Photoshop book that I bought the other day, learning about doing HDR with CS5. Wandered off with the camera on the tripod and took some suitable photos then played. I don’t like the really overdone look that some HDR photos have so it is a technique that I will have to work on, but included some on the blog.

Also just finished a really good book that Sherry lent me….”Water for Elephants” by Sarah Gruen. One of those reads that you can’t get your nose out of. Thanks Sherry.

Wednesday August 17, Ollalie Forest Camp on the McKenzie River, OR

2011-08-19T15:15:00.000-07:00

Worked out this morning that we have had 5 ½ weeks without rain, and interestingly the forest fire risk is only classed as medium. And I think that all bar one day has been blue skies with the odd cloud. Jim was saying that in Bend they average 7 inches a year rainfall, mind you they also get snow! People know that if they want to grow a lawn or garden they just need to water it.

The best thing about the camp last night was the amount of firewood around. Ever the hunter and gatherer Ian battled the mosquitoes this morning and loaded the bin and the rack on the back with wood…..guess we look a bit like the Hillbillies carting our wood around but have enjoyed having a fire in the evenings as the temperatures do drop to single figures (Celsius) overnight.

We dropped 4500 feet very quickly this morning before arriving in the smallish town of Oakridge, fuelled up, topped up on supplies and went online to ring grand daughter Keely for her 7th birthday…this is the 4th year we have been away for her birthday!

Then it was back into the mountains to take the very scenic Robert Aufderheide Memorial Drive North. Just out of town was a covered bridge built in the 1940’s to get workers across the river to the timber mill. The mill has long gone but the bridge has been maintained for vehicles to drive across to a park.

The road north is just spectacular and with many deciduous trees must be stunning in the autumn. It wound up into the hills following the North Fork of the Willamette River, a very pretty river and so clear. In many places the road was like a tunnel going through the trees, and very little traffic.

There were many little riverside forest service campgrounds all the way through and in many of them, the choice riverside spots had been taken, but finally found a really nice one on the swift moving McKenzie River and slept really well to the sound of the water

2011-08-17T11:37:00.000-07:00

The scenery today has been the best in Oregon as we took a scenic route through the Cascade Mountains in perfect weather with blue skies and puffy clouds.

Woke this morning to 5 degrees so somehow were in no hurry to get up!. After breakfast enjoyed a walk around the lake edge and campground, it is a really pretty place and can see why people enjoy staying here. Realised that there are a lot of hotsprings coming up into the lake as a result of the eruption and is probably why the lake is warmer than many, and the kids enjoy swimming here.

Hiked a short distance to one of the big lava flows not far from camp. Somehow felt like a lunar landscape with large heaves of obsidian and scoria type material. As we continued on there were many similar type areas, amazed to see pine trees actually growing in it, mind you they were pretty sparse stunted specimens.

We followed a scenic route from a Lonely Planet Guide book that meandered through some pretty spectacular scenery at quite a high altitude. Mt Bachelor still had a huge amount of snow on it, and surprised to see a lot of packed snow in the valleys around.

Lakes are dotted everywhere with one or two campgrounds on each of them. Surprisingly the traffic was very light making driving much more enjoyable. It was a slow leisurely day as we stopped and checked out the different lakes.

Honor had mentioned Waldo Lake as being really nice, decided that would make a good camp for the night and found a really nice spot beside the lake. Noticed a few mosquitoes but sitting down at the lake edge with a breeze blowing they didn’t worry us. But by the time we were cooking a meal and eating they came in droves, probably as bad as we have had in all our travels….even in Alaska!!. Ended up giving up on the fire and into the van for the rest of the evening.

Monday August 15, Cinder Hill Campground, East Lake, OR

2011-08-16T14:14:00.000-07:00

Enjoyed a cup of coffee and one of Honor’s fruit and seed scones for breakfast, before they headed off for work and we went to an RV repair place that Jim had used and recommended. Jerry’s RV were really good, and although the were very busy, sent a guy out straight away to check out what was going on and see if it was an easy fix. Thankfully it was, and after checking all the things Ian had, they pulled the batteries out and Ian saw a break in the wire well back from the clip. So within 15 minutes we were all done and back on the road again.

As it was only an hours drive to tonight’s destination, thought a good opportunity to do some shopping for the grandies, and a new suitcase! Bend really is a great town, easy to get around and a good selection of stores, can see why people like living here.

Two lakes, Paulinna and East were formed following an eruption when the volcano collapsed forming a caldera, very similar to Crater Lake that we visited several weeks ago, although the lakes are very accessible. The area surrounding this has many lava flows making an interesting landscape.

Ended up finding a really nice campground at the end of the road, with a site right on the lake. The sun was pouring in and people were swimming and boating on the lake, surprised at how warm the water was but didn’t get tempted to have a swim! Gathered a bit of fire wood on the way to the camp so had a really good fire tonight, mind you we are at 6000 feet and the temperatures dropped pretty quickly one the sun went down.

Sunday August 14, Bend, Or

2011-08-15T13:29:00.000-07:00

Realised this morning that the two batteries that run all the lights etc in the living part of the van were just about flat. They are normally charged up when the truck runs and have never had any problems. Bend is a town of about 80,000 and knew there would be somewhere we could get it sorted out.

It was a really pretty drive from camp following the river on HW 20. As we approached the town of Sisters, the road became really busy, this is a big area for outdoor activities and people were out and about doing things.

Sisters is a tourist town, with the mountains close by, and has been done out in a Western theme. Stretched our legs and walked through town, but not very inspiring.

Several weeks ago in central Idaho we met a couple from Bend, Honor and Jim who were parked in a forest camp not far from ours. All trip Ian had been joking about needing his chainsaw to get plenty of wood for campfires, so when he heard Jim start his up, he needed to have a chat…with a real man!!! Had quite a chat, especially when we found out Honor had spent time in NZ. She is a surfer and both of them are mountain bikers (Honor has been a west coast champion for a number of years), so super fit outdoors people. Jim has a company constructing houses, some amazing places… www.timberlinebend.com

Anyway they were keen for us to call in to see them, made contact by phone when we got to Bend and when they heard we needed to stay in town overnight and to have electricity to charge the batteries, they were adamant that we should park at their place and hook up to power.

Bend has a really great feel to it, the Deschutes River runs through the centre of town, and snow capped mountains for a great backdrop. What was the old timber mill on the river in the heart of town has now been developed into a great upmarket shopping area with lots of cafes and apartments. Spent time looking around the area and were amazed to see heaps of people lying on air beds and tubes rafting down the river enjoying a really warm Sunday afternoon. Evidently this is a favourite pastime on hot days and there is a shuttle that takes people back to where they started.

Arrived at Honor and Jim’s late afternoon just in time to enjoy the last of the afternoon sun with a beer … or two. Neighbours joined us and it turned into a great afternoon. Got lots of information about places to visit on the rest of our trip through Oregon. Just around the corner is a brew pub, a good place for pizzas and more beer to finish off the evening..

Saturday August 13, Trout River Forest Camp, near Sweet Home, Or

2011-08-14T13:46:00.000-07:00

Needed to put our jumpers on this morning when we woke to 10 degrees, but are not complaining about the cooler weather! The drive East to Corvallis on HW 20 was really beautiful as we wound up a gorge with deciduous trees creating tunnels on the road, can just imagine what it looks like in the Autumn. It opened up into small block farming, and many were growing trees for the Xmas market, rows of beautifully pruned spruces all ready for their xmas lights.

Corvallis is a university town, and we have really noticed how different these towns are. The main street area was tree lined with lots of book stores and cafes. First stop as usual was the info centre, our Lonely Planet guide has them listed so no problem to Jilly! The guy was most helpful, and even suggested we leave Ruakiwi parked in their grounds while we wandered around the centre of town, especially as the Saturday market was happening on the edge of the Willamette River. On with the walking shoes and off downtown, and the market would be the best we have come across. It was full of the great produce stalls with all sorts of fruits and vegetables, although I guess this is peak season for everyone. Even saw one stall that was like a coop for people that liked growing things in their back yards and were able to share with others to sell their excess.

There was music everywhere with some really good buskers. The whole atmosphere was so relaxed with people just wandering along at a very leisurely pace with children and dogs everywhere.

On into town and found a nice café for lunch. I had a combo with a bowl of fresh tomato and lentil soup followed by half a Panini filled with thick slices of beef and onion marmalade. All made on the premises and so fresh, one of the best lunches we have had. They had store made gelato ice creams but we resisted.

Heard that Borders the bookstore was closing down in town and there were huge discounts….needless to say I found a great book on the latest Photoshop with 30% off, another thing to bring home in the suitcase.

The info guy gave us the location of the Laundromat, probably the most modern I have been in, for once I didn’t have to feed the machine with loads of quarters. They had a machine where you got a card (like a credit card) and you loaded the money onto that..it took notes. Then it was a simple job of swiping it in the machines.

Topped up on fresh supplies and headed east through Lebanon and Sweet Home on HW 20 and up into the Willamette Forest where we found a really nice spot, once again beside a river. Most surprised as the camp was pretty full being a Saturday night. It was 6pm and getting quite cool so Ian lit the fire while I organised a meal.

Friday August 12, Blackberry Forest Camp, on Alsea River

2011-08-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

Guess the fun of travelling with no set directions or bookings is that you can change plans at will. Initially thought we would drive the length of the Oregon Coast but decided this morning with a busy weekend especially on the coast with everyone making the most of summer, that we would change direction and head inland, initially to Corvallis then follow a scenic route through the Cascade Mountains that we read about in Lonely Planet….but guess that can still change!

We thoroughly enjoyed our overnight stop in Winchester Bay, lots of boating activity, and a really nice spot. This morning for the first time we woke to an overcast grey day and very chilly with fog around, but by midday the sun was shining…and the wind was blowing.

We have been dry camping for the past 3 days, which meant queueing this morning at the Sani-station to empty our tanks and refill with fresh water. Able to utilise the boat washing bay to give Ruakiwi a bit of a clean up, she was looking quite dusty.

Then we meandered up the coast to Waldport stopping at viewing areas and the many small coastal communities, mind you with all the traffic on the road stopping wasn’t always easy. This is still peak holiday time as Oregon children are still on summer holidays until the beginning of September.

Our first stop this morning was at The Honeyman State Park on the Oregon sand dunes just south of Florence. We walked up to a high point on the dunes Terry, can feel our calf muscles tonight! Interesting, the campground was already full.

Stopped in the old port area of Florence and meandered around the marina. There was a wonderful elderly couple, Joy and Duane loading chicken carcasses into their crabpots and fishing from the pier. We spent quite some time chatting with them, evidently the Dungeness Crabs they get are huge. Joy designed and makes the sunhats they were wearing and sells them at craft markets. The old town area is a real tourist haunt with more tacky shops as well as some really nice ones.

It was nice to leave the rush and bustle of the coast highway when we turned off at Waldport onto HW 34 and followed the Alsea River up into the hills. Found a really nice forestry camp beside the river for the night, this really is a busy time of the year as there were only 2 empty sites when we arrived

2011-08-12T08:50:00.000-07:00

Thursday August 11, Winchester Bay, OR

Have had a really relaxing few days, feel like the batteries have been recharged. Quite a slow start this morning, interesting there was sea fog around the coast a bit further south, but as the wind got up it disappeared. The clear cloudless blue skies continue, can’t remember when we last had rain.

First stop was Bandon, a little community at the mouth of the Coquille River, with a number of quite new homes built on the cliff overlooking the coast with really spectacular views from a number of coastal viewing spots. The old town by the wharf has been developed into a quaint tourist area, with lots of tacky gift shops but in amongst them are a few really nice stores and galleries. Nice place to amble around in the sun.

The coastal areas remind us a lot of NZ especially places like the Coromandel, with windy roads and little pockets of marginal land being farmed.

We meandered up the coast through to Coos Bay and North Bend, stopping at some of the beaches, then on through the Dunes. This is a very popular area for OHV’s ( Off Road Vehicles….took us awhile to figure it out when we saw the signs!), and the State campgrounds were full with campers and heaps of these vehicles that ride all over the dunes.

It was getting later in the afternoon when we arrived at Winchester Bay at the mouth of the Umpqua River and were just amazed to see RV’s everywhere. This a big fishing area as well as close to the dunes for the OHV’s so they have made large parts of the paved area around the marina primitive RV campsites. There was also an RV resort which had an overflow camping area out on a spit overlooking the marina with no facilities but a prime area as far as we were concerned. Met Janey and Mike, the only other campers here, and they were like us, far preferred to be here than in a side by side resort style camp. Joined them for a few drinks before dinner tonight.

Walked around the main resort camp this evening after sunset and were really impressed, some of the sites had great views down the river and out to the coast. I guess many of these are here for the summer, escaping the heat of further south, and their rigs are the size of small houses.

I had a surprise today with a comment on my blog entry several weeks ago in Preston, Idaho. It was from an English person who has been following the blog, her family live in Preston and she knew the name of the Samoan lady that we met in town. Can’t believe what a small world we live in, and would love to know who the person is and how they came to be following my blog.

Wednesday August 10, Port Orford OR

2011-08-10T20:21:00.000-07:00

Really liked this area and a good camp spot on the water, seemed like a good idea to stay on and have a catch up day. The blue skies continue with really pleasant temperatures. It is a very windy area and every afternoon the northerlies get up and blow right in.

I woke before seven this morning and could see they were lifting fishing boats into the water, quickly dressed and out with the camera. Quite fascinating how it is all done.

Just south of here we had passed a place called “Prehistoric Gardens” and outside there was a huge dinosaur. Knew grandson Aidan would be pretty impressed if we visited and took some photos. It really was amazing as they had made lifesize replicas of a number of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals and they were nestled in a little pocket of rain forest. It was extremely well done and gave the idea of the size of these creatures. So Aidan we have a lot of photos to show you when we get home.

Had lunch at Arizona Beach, but didn’t get out as the wind was really driving in. Back to Port Orford to have a look at a number of galleries in the small town, one in particular had some amazing work including some very big pieces. www.hawthornegallery.com

There are a number of brown pelicans around the wharf and spotted a few not far from where we are parked. They are such huge ungainly creatures and take a bit of getting out of the water, then they glide around and just plummet into the sea to catch fish in their huge bills. Also spotted some Turkey Vultures on the edge of the water. There have been grey whales in the area by the wharf in the last few days, have kept our eyes out for them but no luck.

Tuesday Aug 9, Port Orford, OR

2011-08-09T22:12:00.000-07:00

It has been quite a busy week and both of us were feeling quite jaded this morning. Decided we needed some rest time and set off up the coast this morning to find a campsite where we could relax and enjoy ocean views.

A very clear blue sky and about 20 degrees, suits us perfectly.

It is an absolutely beautiful coastline, wild and rugged with rocky islands jutting out of the sea. Much of the coastline is in state parks so the wilderness has been preserved but there is still plenty of access to the coast.

An onshore wind got up and the ocean was full of white caps, the wind was making driving a bit testing. Stopped at Gold Beach where the Rogue River joins the Pacific, there was quite a large marina in a very sheltered harbour.

We checked out a number of campsites and State Parks, but they seemed to be away from the coast and didn’t feel like you were on the coast.

Drove out to Cape Blanco, the most westerly point in the Lower 49 US, it was really exposed but an amazing view, a good lunch stop.

When we got fuel in Port Orford we commented on the wind, the girl said that was normal, else you got fog! Also interesting, you are by law not allowed to pour your own fuel in Oregon. You have to wait for the attendant to swipe your card and pump the gas….the only state we have found to be like this.

Drove down to the port as Ian had read that is was one of only 6 “dolly” ports in the world where boats are hoisted in and out of the water daily. Fascinating to see all the fishing boats on trailers on a concrete wharf with two cranes used to lower them into the sea.

As we drove in there was a parking area with a sign that you could overnight park without facilities for $10. It overlooked the port and the ocean with a nice sandy beach and very quiet. Seemed like a great place to stay, and so far can’t find anyone to pay!

There is a quaint little fish café on the wharf called Grif’s on The Dock, seemed to be a good idea to visit for a meal tonight. It was really tiny, but had great atmosphere, only 3 other guys there and they all chatted with us suggesting places we should visit on the Oregon Coast. Really simple but good fresh fish, and loved watching the last of the sun set over the ocean. We meandered through the boats on the wharf back to Ruakiwi tonight, feeling really laid back. One other camper is staying here tonight.

I have to add that I spent close on two hours this afternoon organising our flights back to San Francisco from Seattle for our return in September. I always book the internal flights online with Travelocity and have had no trouble previously, but for some reason I tried twice to book the flight but got the message back that it could not confirm and to redo. So I rang the online number….wrong move. Got an Indian “Gentleman” and spent an hour trying to get him to do the booking….I couldn’t understand him, and he couldn’t understand me. I had to pay an extra fee to use him as an agent rather than online, but we finally got through and booked the flights. But after 2 hours, still no confirmation email of the flights. He had given me the flight confirmation numbers so rang again, and finally spoke to someone speaking “close to English”, our flights were booked, but he had written the wrong email address for me! Got it changed and while I was still talking to a “person” I checked the details only to find that he had given me two middle names…Anne Anne!!! Hard to believe. As it wouldn’t agree with my passport, we had to cancel those flights (they couldn’t just change the details!) and get the money refunded to the credit card, then rebook….only to find after another 30 minutes on the phone, the flight was completely booked out!!!! I was trying hard to be patient, Ian said that it is not one of my strong points!!!. The guy was very good and said they would deduct their booking fee and finally he got us on a slightly earlier flight! I needed a drink tonight! All the while Ian was quietly reading his book.

Monday August 8, Harris Beach State Park, Brookings, OR

2011-08-09T10:23:00.000-07:00

We have reached the west coast of Oregon tonight, and some cooler weather. Seemed strange tonight to have to put a sweater on to walk on the beach.

Walked through the camp this morning before breakfast, the huge trees with light filtering through and campers with fires going getting their morning coffee’s made was such a peaceful atmosphere. These primitive forest camps are great for families wanting to get a real camping experience in great locations.

Decided this morning that I just had to get a hair cut, Grants Pass a town of 30,000 was on our route to the coast and seemed like a good place to get try. It was an hour and a half’s drive which initially drove through the forest following the Rogue River, stunning scenery. Out of the forest and the road was lined with little cottages beside the river, this is a very good trout fishing river and saw lots of fishermen out and about.

First stop at Grants Pass was the info centre for info on hairdressers. Found one just a few blocks away, and only had to wait 30 minutes for a cut, just time to have lunch at the nearby café. Ashley the hairdresser did a great job, feels so much better.

Stopped in town for a bit of shopping and supplies, the temperature was up to 35 degrees by mid afternoon, so decided to drive on west and get to the Oregon Coast, via a short loop into northern California. It was a great drive down through the mountains on a very windy road in a gorge following the Smith River. Surprised to be stopped at the California Border for a fruit and vegetable check, and had to give up my cherries, a bit tough as we were only in the state for 30 minutes and then back into Oregon, but guess they are only trying to protect their state.

Tonight the state park is right on the coast although can’t see it from camp, it is a short walk down a hill to the beach. After dinner tonight we walked to the beach just in time to see the sunset, with a vibrant orange sky.

Sunday August 7, Natural Bridge Forestry Camp, Union Creek, OR

2011-08-08T12:09:00.000-07:00

Today could not have been more different to yesterday’s drive through the desert. We spent most of the day at Crater Lake National Park climbing to 8000 feet as we drove around the rim of the lake, with snow still lining many of the roads, and some of the hiking tracks closed because of snow.

The Park was only about 1 ½ hours drive north west of our camp, and it is the only National Park in Oregon. It was formed centuries ago when a huge volcano erupted forming a huge caldera, and the lake is the deepest in USA at close to 2000 feet. It is the most amazing deep blue colour, which just takes your breathe away.

We drove the 33 mile Rim Road right around the crater, and there were numerous places to view the lake all the way around. At only one spot you could walk down to the lake, but with the equivalent of climbing 65 flights of stairs ( 65 floors!) we felt our bodies weren’t up to it!.

Lots of wildflowers lined the roads and we did a hike into a wildflower area, although not as many as we expected.

The camp in the park held 200 campers and looked pretty ordinary, no views, really just a place to park. Saw forestry campsites showing on the Rogue River about 20 miles west which we felt were much more appealing, and sure enough have a great little campsite with it’s own wee sandy beach right on the river.

Saturday August 6, Lofton Lake Campground, Freemont National Forest

2011-08-07T10:41:00.000-07:00

Today, I think we have travelled through the biggest most arid country of our all our travels in North America, the roads have been so good and so little traffic, and the temperatures have stayed below 30 degrees..what more could we ask!

The first section was the 60 mile drive to Fields, and the road opened out into some vast Ranch country, the largest being Roaring Springs Ranch which we understand is owned by an Oregon Forestry Company. It went on for miles, and rose up into the mountains. Would love to know how much stock they carry.

We had a very important stop in Fields…..especially for Terry. He had heard from his motocycle buddies that they make the best milk shakes in the country, we checked them out and would have to agree…. Not that we have tried any others, try to avoid them to help the waistline!!! Anyway we shared a chocolate shake and it was so thick the spoons stood up in it. I think the whole country knows of its reputation as they keep a tally of the number of shakes made each year..so far this year they have sold 2688…and growing! Enjoyed a long chat with Sandy the owner and found out quite a bit about the surrounding area.

Have decided to head west to the coast, and some cooler weather for the next few weeks before exploring more of the centre of Oregon. So took Route 140 which took us through a bit of Nevada for a short while, then it was back into Oregon and huge high country desert at about 5000 feet elevation. It really was quite magnificent although wouldn’t want to spend too many days driving in it.

Continued on through Lakeview and up into the forest. Had seen a campground noted on the mp near Quartz Mountain mentioned on the map, it was about 10 miles off the main highway, but the road was sealed so decided to check it out as were both feeling a bit jaded and it was getting later in the afternoon. It was such a surprise to find this great little campground on a small but very deep clean lake, surrounded by trees. A number of people were camping and we managed a really nice spot right beside the lake, complete with table and firepit for $6, and a wonderful breeze….just perfect to relax at the end of a longish day.

Friday August 5, Frenchglen, Or

2011-08-05T22:12:00.000-07:00

After a big day yesterday had a rather slow start, the air was so pleasantly cool and we dawdled around, even managed to do the laundry in the campground before we left about 10.30. Somehow these days, the temperature does play quite a part in our days, so this morning we did enjoy walking around the small town of Burns before we left.

We popped into The Book Parlor in the main street, a great little shop full of really good quality books and other interesting bits and pieces. Turned out to be a coffee shop as well and two ladies started chatting with us. On finding out that we were from New Zealand they said the coffee was really good and why not join them. An offer to good to refuse! And they were right about the coffee too. So we sat and chatted with Linda and Virginia for some time, they were both long time residents of the area and were able to give us some good info about the roads and the highlights. It was a very pleasant way to relax. The owner Maranda was delightful and asked could she take our photo as we were the people that had come the most distance to visit her shop. Quite an honour, and she kindly sent us on our way with some of her great coffee ground ready for us to use in the van.

Called into the Information Centre and met another really friendly girl (sorry have mislaid her card with her name on it!) and left with a heap of maps and information.

After picking up supplies at the local grocery store we headed south. We rose up into the high desert into country that I know geologists would delight in. The rock formations and the old lava flows created quite an interesting landscape. Stopped at a round wooden barn that was built in the 1880’s by a rancher to break and train horses during the winter. It is now being preserved by the state and is quite amazing.

It was late afternoon when we arrived in the small settlement of Frenchglen…read that it has a population of 12, and an historic old pub. Read about the Page Springs BLM campground on a small river, 3 miles up a gravel road, which sounded like a good camp for the night…and it is. Enough trees for shade and huge sites and only $8 for the night. Couldn’t believe it that we could also use the Verizon Modem and get wifi, a good chance to chat with the family in NZ on Skype.

Thursday August 4, Burns, Oregon

2011-08-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

With 300 miles on the trip meter for today, it has been the longest so far. Hadn’t planned such a big day but couldn’t find a decent place to camp any earlier.

Left Glenn’s Ferry after having a bit of a look around town, but nothing to really excite. Noticed most of the towns we saw today seemed to have a big Mexican population, but suspect it is because of the intensive cropping area needing a lot of manual labour.

We headed north west on HW78 to the Oregon border which proved to be a very interesting drive. The amount of irrigation in the southern part of Idaho is amazing, there are water races, canals and pumps everywhere feeding all sorts of different types of irrigation.

Gradually we left the green and drove through real desert with interesting rock formations. The skies had been stormy all morning with a lot of lightning and as we drove on we saw a lot of smoke in the distance, and the closer we got we could see the flames. Stopped on a high point and watched with the binoculars as planes were spraying the fire with what looked to be a red fire retardant. By the time we got to Murphy there were helicopters and BLM staff loading fire fighting gear into them. Not sure what the outcome was as we continued on with our drive, but saw later on the news that there was a number of lighting strike fires in the area. It is so arid and the brush is tinder dry and ignites quite easily.

Back to civilisation and stopped in Caldwell for supplies before crossing into Oregon and taking HW 20 to Burns. More irrigation and cropping and even some fruit growing areas, before starting to climb into the desert. The temperatures were in the low 30’s, a bit better than yesterday, let’s hope it continues for awhile.

It was an interesting drive through the gorge then up onto a plateau. We changed back into Pacific Time zone putting our watches back an hour, so not as late getting in as it seemed!!!! Arriving in Burns another thunderstorm was starting with dark skies and lightning and by the time we had parked the RV and hooked up it was blowing a huge gale. Strangely though there was very little rain and after about an hour the wind eased and all was normal again.

Wednesday August 3, Glenn’s Ferry ID

2011-08-04T07:15:00.000-07:00

Our first stop this morning was out to see Shoshone Falls, about 4 miles out of town on the Snake River. We had been told that they were amazing but have to admit to being blown away by the sheer size of them. They are called the Niagara of the West and would have to agree. The peak flow is in the spring with the snow melt but at the moment the flow was medium and this will reduce over the rest of the summer as more and more water is taken off for irrigation.

By the time we had walked all around the heat was building. Had a bit of retail therapy in some air conditioned stores before leaving town and heading west. More irrigated cropping land and dairy farms.

We stopped in the small town of Buhl this afternoon where I had read about a store that sells ice cream made from the 90 cows on their own farm. The Cloverleaf Creamery not only sells 24 flavours of ice cream, all made at the store, but their own milk sold in glass bottles and butter. A chap came in while we were there with a milk bottle holder and returned 2 empty bottles and bought 2 more…..can’t remember when I last saw milk sold in bottles. …and the ice cream was superb, and the single scoop just huge, can’t imagine how many calories in it!

Passed through a number of small towns before having to take the freeway for a distance to get to Glenn’s Ferry. This town was an historic point in the Oregon Trail where pioneers had to make the choice of crossing the Snake River for a shorter route west and better feed or the safer longer route with less feed and water. About half chose to cross at this point and many wagons, stock and people were lost. There is an excellent Interpretive Centre in the State Park explaining the area, thoroughly enjoyed it and especially the airconditioning, as by 4 oclock our thermometer was reading 42 degrees! We found a campsite in the park and sat outside under the trees as a breeze was blowing and tried to keep as cool as we could.

It had cooled a little by 8 o’clock so wandered through the park to the river and were most surprised to find a laden apricot tree and the ground underneath was thick with sweet ripe fruit, will go back in the morning and get some more!

We will be into Oregon tomorrow and decided we need to go somewhere a little cooler. Had an email from a chap we met a few weeks ago who lives in Bend Oregon, and he suggested that the Steens Mountain area in South East Oregon was a great place to visit, and would be cooler. So the plan tomorrow is to go west, then turn south and see what we find.

Tuesday August 2, Twin Falls, ID

2011-08-03T08:13:00.000-07:00

Not far from camp this morning we stopped at Register Rock which has been well preserved. The names and dates of some of the people travelling on the Oregon Trail have been carved into the rock.

We are now travelling on the Oregon Trail which between 1840 and 1869, 500,000 pioneers travelled west from Missouri on the 2000 mile trail to start new lives in Oregon. It invokes a real sense of history as we travel west along the banks of the Snake River. Unfortunately the watering system at the Rock, meant that I couldn’t get out to take photos as both me and the camera would have received a fair dousing.

We managed a back road through to Twin Rivers which at times meant we were driving right beside the freeway! This area was a desert until the early 1900’s when a dam was built on the Snake River enabling 360,000 acres to be irrigated by gravity fed canals. There are endless areas growing quite a variety of crops including the famous Idaho potatoes.

We passed a number of huge factory farmed dairy farms. I have to say that I found it hard seeing all the animals easting, sleeping and feeding on dirt yards, and that smell was something else. Seeing dairy cows grazing on fresh green grass all year round like in NZ is perhaps what we expect, but guess to get enough milk for the population of US, these sorts of operations are a necessity. I hope we never get them in NZ. The surrounding fields were cropped with lucerne and maize to provide some of the feed needed for these animals.

We could see some really stormy skies around us, and drove through areas where it appeared there had been huge rain storms, but luckily we missed it all. It has been quite humid with heat showers for a few days, and guess that is why there has been no harvesting of the wheat and barley which look really golden and ripe.

First stop in Twin Falls, a city of about 50,000 was at Walmart for a restock of the pantry, then it was off to find somewhere to get a 3,000 mile service for Ruakiwi. Came across a suitable garage quite quickly and we only had a wait of about an hour before they could fit us in. It was after 5 before we were all finished, thought it a good chance to check out the bridge over the Snake River Canyon which sits almost 500 feet above the water. It really was a breathtaking view, and we were able to walk over it as well, must admit to feeling a bit odd when the big semis drove over and everything seemed to move! Had heard that BASE jumpers take off from the centre of the bridge and hoped we might see one, but no luck….maybe have to check it out again tomorrow.

The historic centre of town is a very pretty tree lined area, but as seems to be happening in so many towns, the opening of all the “box” stores further out has taken the trade away and many of them were empty.

Decided to stay the night at Walmart, so had a meal out and called in the Barnes and Noble bookstore for a wander around afterwards, they are open until 10pm!

Joined a number of other RV’s in the carpark for an uneventful evening.

Monday August 1, Massacre Rock State Park, ID

2011-08-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

Have had a wonderful lazy day, and such a great spot to be in. Woke to some light drizzle and a very grey day.Went hiking this morning, doing some of the trails around the river and up into the rocks.

Met up with Tammy, a photographer from Washington, so Ian headed back to the RV and Tammy and I had a lot of fun exploring around the rocks. By the time I got back for a late lunch the clouds had lifted and the sun came out…very hot! The afternoon seemed to just drift by, and this evening we ended up having a few drinks with Tammy and her husband Jim. Two guesses what Tammy and I chatted about!

Sunday July 31, Massacre Rock State Park, ID

2011-08-01T15:14:00.000-07:00

Great thumbs up for this place Terry and Sherry, just wonderful, have a site overlooking the Snake River as it winds through a bit of a gorge….but more later.

We don’t like driving on the Interstates and Freeways, firstly Ian doesn’t enjoy all the traffic, and also I can’t stop to take photos! So we worked out a route east that took us on some great roads, which at time even dropped down into Utah. A really interesting slice of rural Idaho that took us through dairy farms, ranches and cropping lands as well as vast miles of sage covered desert land.

We realised we were in a Mormon region being so close to Salt Lake City, and this morning there seemed to hardly be a car on the road, the many churches had very full car parks, and towns were all closed including supermarkets and many eating places.

The weather has been really pleasant today, in the low 20’s, and the skies quite cloudy with a bit of rain. We didn’t complain, seemed to have had nothing but blue skies and high temps for several weeks.

We finally had to join the freeway to get to Massacre Rock State Park though, but well worth it as this really is a great place, with huge rocky outcrops and the Snake River swirling through. Were very lucky to get a campsite with a great view as well, and decided that we will stay here for two nights, a really good place to relax.

I took my camera and went for a wander along some of the trails and ended up on a rocky area overlooking the river, just spectacular scenery. It has been much more interesting today taking landscape photos with the cloud cover, after several weeks of clear blue sky.

Saturday July 30, Preston ID

2011-07-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

It’s been a very relaxing day, an enforced rest in a way, which has been quite nice. Great spot that we have been camping in on the road side, no noise or traffic much and in fact after our late night had quite a late sleep in.

For the first time in quite a few days it had been overcast and although the temps were not as hot, there was more humidity. Had our chairs outside on the grass under the trees and it was very pleasant. Apart from wandering around town and grabbing a few supplies, we just lazed around. There were heaps of people in town for the 6.30 parade and the park nearby had music going with a karaoke…..rather interesting at times!

We had got talking to a couple from Salt Lake City yesterday who had a stall selling jewellery. Christie was an agent for the company and her husband John and two girls were with them. So we watched the parade again tonight with them, enjoyed their company. Also met a lady and her daughter who in fact was from Samoa…sorry but have forgotten her name.

Tonights parade was huge, it took over an hour to pass through and all the floats threw lollies, and passed out iceblocks, chocolate milk and cold water. Quite amazing and the kids loved it, imagine having a lolly scramble that lasted an hour!!! Goodness knows what they were going to do with all their lollies. We also met up with Steve who had helped us yesterday, he was keen to see what we had been up to and what we thought of the rodeo. Somehow we have felt very welcomed in Preston.

Then it was off on the bus out to the rodeo again, much wiser this time as we packed our cushions! Tonight was the big night and it was jam packed. Our seats tonight were down the end and didn’t manage the photos the same, but found it good as we were very near where the roping shoots. Once again it was a great atmosphere and enjoyed every minute of the whole show. It has been a great few days in Preston.

Thursday July 29, Preston ID

2011-07-30T14:27:00.000-07:00

Howdy everyone!!!! Tonight we are off to the Famous Preston Night Rodeo, and shortly are going to watch the All Horse Parade through the main street. Also have got tickets for tomorrow nights event as well, so we are really going to have a Western Fix! Thought I would write a bit now while we are sitting in Ruakiwi under some trees on a side street where we are parked for the next two days, before we head off.

After a long day yesterday it was quite a slow start but knew it wasn’t far to Preston. Very refreshing being up in the mountains and so nice to have warm days and really cool evenings. Our first stop was in Soda Springs which Heidi, the Camp Hosts suggested we check out. In the late 1800’s they drilled trying to get hot water but they struck underground pressure that was unsuitable for a spring as it had too many minerals in it, and it soon turned cold. It was sealed over but now they have an automatic release valve that releases a huge geyser on the hour every hour. Anyone it was fun to see and all the kids had a great time playing underneath it.

Then it was further south to Preston passing through more highly irrigated, cropped land and even some dairying.

We arrived in town, and already there were seats lining the streets for tonight’s parade. Tried to find the Information Centre to see about tickets and also where we could stay, but drove right through town and no sign of one. Pulled into a grain and feed supplies store and hit the jackpot when we met the manager Steve. He was so helpful, rang the ticket sales to check if there were any still available, and lucky enough could still get them. Also told us where there was a tree line street just behind the shops, and suggested that would be a great place to park for a few days. So within a short time we had bought tickets for both tonight and tomorrow nights show and were parked under the trees. It’s very warm, in the mid 30’s, but we are managing, maybe getting used to it.

Will finish later, evidently the rodeo doesn’t finish until 11pm.

…Later. Well what a fantastic evening, starting with the all horse parade down Main Street at 6.30. People were lining the street, sitting on their chairs, and children were everywhere with their bags waiting for the heaps of sweets that were thrown out. There were old stage coaches and buggy’s and all the Rodeo Queens from the surrounding districts dressed in their outfits rode through. The school band was there as well, along with many other horse groups. A great show. The first day of the 3 day rodeo was yesterday, and each day there is a parade through town, as well as street stalls and other entertainment including music in the park.

We caught the shuttle bus for the short trip out to the rodeo and there was action everywhere. A huge carnival was in action adjoining the grounds with all the thrill rides of the fair, and everywhere were families out enjoying themselves.

The arena probably held close to 4000 people and most of the seats were full, we had great seats. The program started at 8.15 with a parade of the Rodeo Queens on horseback, looking really glam with all their bling on, then the entertainment started with the saddle broncs and continued on through the evening and finishing with the bull riding. Excitement the whole time….with some nasty spills and some great rides. The cowboys were from all over the states so they were top riders. The commentator and the clown along with great music created a real party atmosphere. Sorry to see the night end, although will take a cushion with us tomorrow night, the metal seats got a bit hard! I struggled a bit with photos once the light dropped and after the first few events, I had to give up. Got quite a surprise when during the evening the commentator welcomed the people visiting from New Zealand and would they please stand up…all a bit embarrassing but got lots of welcomes. Evidently someone earlier had asked us about our accents, and passed the message on!!!

Wednesday July 28, Blackfoot Reservoir Camp, Near Soda Springs ID

2011-07-29T12:59:00.000-07:00

After driving up the hill from the camp this morning, couldn’t believe how the view just opened out and we were in irrigated cropping land that went on for miles. Even a field of linseed just starting to turn blue as well as yellow canola. Idaho is famous for its potatoes and for the first time saw acres of them, just coming into flower. And everywhere there was wheat ripening, really enjoyed driving through it as we headed through the small rural town of Ashton to Driggs at the base of the Teton Mountains. They were so hazy this morning which was such a shame. Spent some time in Riggs sorting out some documents that needed to be printed and emailed back to NZ…..thank goodness we did not leave it to do in Jackson, but more of that later!!!

Then we wound up and over the Teton Pass at 8500 feet, a real test for Ruakiwi, but no problems. The wildflowers were just wonderful, but the traffic was pretty busy so no chance to stop.

And onto Jackson. Two years ago on our mid west trip we visited Jackson, coming in from the East, and it was a pretty busy tourist town, but as we were so close thought we should revisit. Mistake. It was frantically busy, even worse than last time and trying to find a park anywhere near town was near impossible. The only good thing was lunch, found a great little café a bit back from the centre and were able to sit out on the verandah with a cold beer and lunch and relax a little. Have to admit that we have never seen so many shops selling the same tshirts, hats and sweaters with Jackson on them somewhere….all pretty tacky.

Back out of town and time for the weekly laundry, remembered the Laundromat from last trip! It was 4.30 before we set off south down 89, the scenic highway following the Snake River. Not an easy drive for Ian as the traffic was really thick all the way and everyone seemed to be in a great hurry. So with relief we turned West on 34 and much easier driving. We were looking for a campsite all the way, and finally read in a book about a BLM site on a lake, and although it was not signposted very well, we took a 4 mile drive on a side road and were just delighted. There was this great camp right on the side of a hill overlooking the lake with views around the hills, and the sites had electricity, and only about 6 other campers were here. Even passed a moose and calf on the road. Another great wilderness spot!

Wednesday July 27, Near Ashton ID

2011-07-28T13:59:00.000-07:00

After two days and one night in Montana we are back in Idaho, quite sorry to leave Montana though. We saw many huge ranches and farmland with views that went on forever, only stopped by huge snow topped mountain ranges. Crossing the border into Idaho this afternoon the change was immediate, we were in forested country and the farmlands had vanished. It has been a really great day, have seen a number a small extremely interesting towns and tonight are staying in a wonderful Forestry Camp on Warm Creek, a side road not far from Ashton. The gently flowing stream is right beside our big mown camp area and it has a concrete pad….all for $13! There are lots of family groups camping here and children are playing in the stream….a real happy place.

Had thought we would have a look around Dillon before we left this morning, but sadly not much to see, this really is a service centre for the ranches, with quite a number of farm supply stores and machinery suppliers and not much else.

Came through some old gold mining areas with piles of untidy tailings and then we arrived at Nevada City, an unexpected surprise. What a fascinating little place, a true authentic old gold mining village, everything was preserved and not restored. The museum gave us a chance to walk through the old streets and check out the homes and businesses that were operating in the late 1800’s during the gold rush. Inside the museum they had a collection of more than 20 Wurlitzer style organs…not quite your style Dr Deano!! Probably one of the better museums we have been in, it is run by the state. Interestingly about a mile up the road was the town of Virginia City, another gold mining town but it has been over commercialised with lots of tourist shops and entertainment. Thankfully we stopped at the previous one.

Just before leaving Montana we arrived at the town of Ennis….wondering what it was with a strange name like that. Highly surprised to find that it was a thriving little town in the centre of a huge fly fishing area on the world famous Madison River. There were lots of sports stores as well as plenty of shops for those not interested in fishing! Even some really good galleries which I enjoyed browsing through. In fact this whole area right up to the border and through to Idaho has many rivers full of fishermen. We were on the edge of West Yellowstone but as we had been through there in 2009 decided not to revisit. As we came south we could see the Grand Tetons in the distance, we have been on the east side and tomorrow looking forward to seeing them from this side. The road was pretty busy so we detoured around a loop side road, great scenery and finding this wonderful campspot.

Tuesday July 26, Dillon MT

2011-07-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are back in Montana again…can’t seem to get enough of this Big Sky Country! Actually we are taking the Scenic Routes South on a circuit that will hopefully bring us to Preston in South East Idaho by Friday. There is a night rodeo over the weekend and for the past trips we have been looking out for one that will tie in with where we are travelling, fingers crossed that we might be able to make it happen. Not quite sure of all the routes yet, but guess it will all evolve and will try and stay off the interstates where possible.

We left Salmon this morning and after following the river for some distance we climbed up to over 7000 feet and over Chief Joseph Pass, quite a drive as it wound up the mountains fairly steeply but no problems to Ruakiwi and the road was great.

Then it was over the other side and into Montana and big rangeland country as far as the eye could see. Huge ranches grazing beef on grass, great to see. It was hard to take photos that could portray the vastness of this area. We stopped at a lookout over the Big Hole basin and tried to do a panorama with about 7 shots, will see how it looks. We drove for several hours through this area and only passed a couple of very small towns.

Decided to have a shorter day after a few big ones and have stopped the night in the town of Dillon. Staying in a “proper” camp tonight with all facilities including cable TV, makes a change from all the dry camping we have been doing. Looks to be a interesting town to have a look around in the morning, but at the moment we are enjoying sitting outside under a tree with very pleasant temperatures in the mid 20’s…a real change from the last few days.

Monday July 25, Near Salmon ID

2011-07-26T07:49:00.000-07:00

We are just loving our travels in Idaho, and really feel that it would rate up there with one of the best states we have visited. The scenery is truly majestic and there is a real wilderness feel to it.

This morning we continued East and climbed the Banner Summit at 7000 feet, the country just opened up into beautiful meadow plains. Rivers wound through the pasture and the Sawtooth mountain range, still with snow rose up above. Enough to take your breathe away. There were quite large numbers of cattle grazing, obviously brought up in the summer as this area is covered in snow for many many months.

The very small town of Stanley sits in the centre of the area, in the summer a centre for mountain biking, and white water rafting and then a winter sport venue. It sort of had a wild west feel to it, the town streets unsealed and boardwalks in front of the handful of shops. Speaking to the lady in the information centre and she said that it is one of the coldest places in USA and interestingly reading the newspaper today, on Saturday it had the coldest low in the country, which was below freezing.

Talking about temperatures, it seems the whole country is in a heat wave and we are really noticing it. After very pleasant morning temps they just climb in the afternoons and once again today it was in the high 30’s, which is higher than usual for this area. They had twice the amount of snow over the winter and it really didn’t start to warm up until early July, about a month later than normal…and now this. Strange weather patterns.

Leaving Stanley we followed the upper reaches of the Salmon River winding through the fields for some distance but then we hit real desert like areas with dramatic moonlike landscape. We wound through the valley with huge spectacular rock mountains rising up. Around every corner I was going WOW.

We passed through the small town of Challis that was an early mining town, and now is just a service centre for the vast surrounding area. It was almost 6pm when we found a Bureau of Land Management Campsite (BLM) on the river. There was a bit of road noise but at least we could park under trees to feel a little cooler. Ended up running the generator for the air conditioner, as even too hot to sit outside.

Sunday July 24, Near Lowman ID

2011-07-25T17:51:00.000-07:00

Today has been a super hot one, reaching just under 40 degrees. Up till now our air conditioning while driving has been the open window, but this afternoon we had to wind up the windows and turn on the airconditioner.

But the 230 miles we have travelled took us along some really scenic roads, and realise how many wonderful rivers flow through Idaho.

Meant to add to yesterdays log, last night while we were sitting down by the river, we watched a beaver on the far side of the river taking a branch down under some rocks, obviously building a dam in the corner. Later he emerged and was surprised to see how big he was as he swam around. It was too dark to get a photo though.

We left camp reasonably early in the cool and after a quick stop in Grangeville to get onto wifi and load the blog, it was back onto Highway 95 and busy roads as we headed south. It was time to put our clocks forward and hour as we moved into Pacific Time.

After passing through some big open country we wound down to Riggins a huge white water rafting centre on the Salmon River. With a very hot Sunday, there were rafts floating along most of the rivers, a great sport. Had trouble working out what river we were on at times as there are so many of them, but they are all so scenic and the water is extremely clear.

From 95 we turned on 55 at New Meadows and the roads seemed to get busy until we got to the holiday town of McCall on Payette Lake. It is a real summer holiday destination and we could hardly move, there were boats and people everywhere. No chance at all of finding a parking spot near the lake, so after picking up some fresh bread at the market for lunch we continued on and found a spot under a tree for lunch where it was a little cooler. The traffic was getting really heavy as we were now on the main road back to Boise and people were returning from their weekends.

We were relieved to finally turn off the main road at Banks and head East on a road that followed the swiftly flowing South Fork of the Payette River. As we wound up the gorge we came around a corner and got an awful shock to find a group of people standing around a motorbike rider, he and his bike were on the ground and blood was pouring from his head, he was very still. It was scorching hot and they were all in the full sun. We stopped but they said someone had gone for help as there was no cell phone coverage, so we moved on. There seems to be no law in this state for wearing helmets and we see so many bikers with their hair flowing, it is an accident waiting to happen. It was very sobering.

It was getting onto 5pm and after checking out a few campgrounds finally found this unserviced free Forest Camp right beside the river with a gentle breeze blowing and some shade trees…a perfect spot. I even got my togs on and sat in the river for awhile which really cooled me down…in a hurry as it was pretty fresh.

A cold beer seemed the next best thing to do, guess dinner will be a bit later tonight as it just seems too hot to eat.

Saturday July 23, South Fork Forest Camp on the road to Elk City, ID

2011-07-24T09:29:00.000-07:00

We have had a great day exploring the remote areas of central Idaho. We so enjoyed the campsite that we booked it for another night. It’s such a small campground with only 8 campsites, but just delightful.

We headed for Elk City 30 miles further on up the road following the river, and we had heard from one of the campers that they were celebrating “Elk City Days’ this weekend which sounded like a bit of fun and entertainment and perhaps a chance to meet some of the local characters. The road was great, gently winding and climbing, and so picturesque following the river. There were little campsites dotted along the road, motor biking on the forestry tracks is a real popular pastime.

We emerged from the forest and arrived in Elk City but no Elk City Days…they are in the middle of August! It was quite an “interesting” little place, only one store and a post office still operating with lots of empty buildings. There had been a gold rush in this area in the late 1800’s and as with many of these small towns they have just died. There was quite a bit of open prairie land around the town with a number of cabins and small blocks with quite new houses, seems to be a popular weekend destination.

It was a glorious day, not a cloud in the sky and temps in the mid 20’s, which was so pleasant. They had been predicting temps in the high 30’s in Lewiston for the weekend, so pleased that we are in the mountains.

We had heard about another small community 30 miles further on called Dixie and it seemed like a good idea to see what was there. We climbed further up in the mountains now following the Red River, but it was a great road until the final 4 miles of gravel.

It wasn’t long and a female moose ran across the road in front of us, she had been in the river and was heading up into the woods so didn’t get a very good picture, but still great to see. Saw the remnants old mining camps and lots of tailings beside the river.

Had a chat with a young guy working for Fish and Game, they had a fish catching wheel to catch the small fingerling salmon and steelheads as they head downstream and out to the ocean. Each day he would weigh, tag and record these little fish that were less than 2 inches long. Quite a job.

We climbed to 6000 feet before we dropped down a little into Dixie and were so surprised to find a lot of well looked after and newish cabins and homes, it had a great feeling to it. 12 people live there permanently over the winter, but it is a great recreation area.

We were turning around in front of a very nice looking Hunting Lodge when the couple sitting on the deck came out to have a chat. Rick and Debbie were so friendly and invited us in to have a look around their wonderful log building which has 9 bedrooms and a restaurant. This time of the year is their quiet time, but the autumn brings the hunting season, where they guide clients into 250,000 acres of wilderness on horseback and mules. Winter is also busy with backcountry skiers and snowmobilers. They have been here for 11 years and it is a busy but fun lifestyle for them. Provisions have to be brought in from 3 1/2hours away, an amazing amount of organisation. Have a look at their website, www.silverspurlodge.com

Then it was a 2 hour drive back down the road to the camp, just in time to catch the last of the sun and get the campfire going. A really good day.

Friday July 22, South Fork Forest Camp on the road to Elk City, ID

2011-07-24T09:23:00.000-07:00

Thank you, thank you to B & Photoraphy ad UPS….yes my new lens arrived as scheduled 24 hours after ordering. Felt so relieved, and Ian did to as new we would have to wait around for it to arrive.

Had a good walk this morning before breakfast along the river, a chance for some exercise before it got too hot.

By the time we left camp at 10 it was almost 30 degrees, sleeveless tops and a cool skirt were the dress for the day. We meandered around town waiting for the parcel to arrive, and by early afternoon we were heading south on Hwy 95, towards Elk City. When we were in Missoula we met Tas, a friend of Richards who works for the forest service surveying areas for harvest. He had been working n the Elk City area and suggested we take the drive which follows the south fork of the Clearwater River up into the mountains. It seemed like a great idea especially as it was the start of the weekend and always know that it is much more difficult to find campsites during the summer. This drive is up in the mountains and has small forestry campgrounds as well as the opportunity to camp on the side of the road.

We climbed well up from Lewiston and the road opened up into vast prairie land, cropped for as far as you could see. It was such a contrast to arid dry hills around Lewiston. Grangeville is the centre for all the grain growing area, and from here we turned off the main road and headed to Elk City. The name conjures up a real wild west feeling, should be really interesting, We wound steeply down to the bottom of the gorge and joined the river, and it was another great drive as the road slowly wound upwards following the river.

It was getting later in the afternoon and found a really nice Forest Service Camp with a spot that opened down to the river…..blissful. There was even a sandy beach and surprised that the water wasn’t too cold, although don’t think I would like to swim.

We got chatting with a couple from nearby Grangeville and he told us about the issues they are having in the area with wolves. About 15 years ago, against much public opinion, 20 wolves were released back into this county and all hunting of wolves was banned. Now official figures say there are 1500 wolves in the county but locals estimate there are two to three times that number. The elk and moose that were in abundance in the area are now very scarce and the wolves are coming into the small towns and killing animals including dogs and even horses.

Ian has had the axe out and attacked the rings of firewood left at the campsite and as the sun dropped down behind the hill and the temperatures dropped he had a great fire going. A pretty good way to spend an evening, along with a glass of wine!

Thursday July 21, Lewiston ID

2011-07-22T11:53:00.000-07:00

It’s been quite a frustrating day in lots of ways and nothing really exciting seems to have happened. Made a decision to buy a replacement lens, firstly the cost is so much cheaper here in the states with our exchange rate so good at the moment, compared to NZ, and somehow the next half of the trip would be frustrating without it!

Googled and ound a great camera store in Boise our next big town and thought I could get it there. While searching found that there was a camera store in Moscow, but the Mall didn’t open until 10. Hung around waiting for it to open, only to find that the store had closed down. Checked out with a some guys in the Radio Shack store, and they were most helpful and suggested a store in Clarkston, across the river from Lewiston.

Put the address in Jilly and headed south for the 45 minute drive, through more cropping land.

Dropped down quickly from the high country into a very arid area. The neighbouring towns of Lewiston and Clarkston sit on either sides of the confluence of the Clearwater and Snake Rivers, the bridge is on the boundary of Idaho and Washington. Interesting bit of trivia, Clarkston is in fact the most inland port in USA with ships coming up the Columbia River and then into the Snake River.

Found the store but no joy, so got on the phone and rang the large store in Boise. They were most helpful, but as the result of the Tsunami in Japan, a lot of these products are in short supply. He thought it would be several weeks before they got any in and didn’t know where else to get one as they were the biggest store in the region.

As a last resort I rang B&H photography in New York, a big mail order company that I have dealt with previously. They had the lens in stock and could ship it to me overnight, but I needed an address to send it to, and needed to get back to them within an hour so that it could get away.

Found the information centre, they were most helpful and were more than happy to have the parcel sent there.

So finally got it all together and organised and with fingers crossed it should arrive tomorrow, as long as UPS don’t muck it up!!!

The weather was starting to heat up and was quite humid so by mid afternoon headed out to a State Park on the rivers edge, and got a nice spot under some trees. While we were at the check in, a chap spotted the New Zealand sign…. Jim and Pauline Morrison were both from NZ but have been living in Victoria, Canada for much of their life. Jim had grown up in Papakura and Pauline in Takapau, and not surprisingly we knew friends of there’s in NZ. It is a small world.

Not many photos today…sorry!

Wednesday July 20, Moscow ID

2011-07-20T21:36:00.000-07:00

A bit of a low key slower day, time to catch up on a few chores after 3 fairly busy days. Ruakiwi had a bath at a great little car wash in Palouse and also used our brush and gave her a good wax, so looking pretty smart. Problem is we don’t want to take her on any dusty roads for awhile!

The drive through to Pullman meandered along through the same rolling hills, they say that by next month when the oats have ripened, the hills turn to gold. Must be quite a sight. We wondered what the crop was with little plants that looked a bit like peas with white flowers and heard today that they are lentils, a crop that this area grows heaps of.

Drove through Pullman and back into Idaho and the neighbouring city of Moscow, home of the University of Idaho. A real uni town with tree covered streets and old brick buildings, and a population of about 20,000. Parked the van and explored the town, but didn’t really excite us. After stopping at a café for lunch found a good Laundromat and caught up on the washing.

We enjoyed a good walk through the University Arboretum, a chance to stretch the legs, but had a real hiccup trying to take photos. For my photog friends, my Canon 24 – 105 lens malfunctioned again….the same thing happened on our first trip and cost $400 to fix. Feel a bit gutted about it and not sure what I will do as this is my real workhorse lens, use it 90% of the time especially for weddings. Can’t get if fixed until we get back to NZ and thinking that maybe I will need to replace it….!!!!!! Anyway guess will sort that out tomorrow but feels a bit expensive!

We called into the info centre in town to ask about RV camping places and she mentioned the normal wall to wall RV Resort type places, then said that there were camping spots at the County Fairgrounds. Sounded good to us and what a wonderful place to park the night. We could hook up to electricity etc at a cost or just park for no cost….two guesses what we are doing tonight! Anyway very pleasant and quiet, and sat under a tree while dinner was cooking on the barbecue.

Tuesday July 19, Palousse WA

2011-07-19T21:07:00.000-07:00

Thankfully the heat of yesterday has left us and tonight a very pleasant 22 degrees although a strong wind and very overcast. Maybe in for some rain.

Have had quite a big day today as we set off heading on a northern loop to explore what they call the Palousse, a large area between Idaho and Washington. I had seen pictures of this area, wonderful landscapes of rolling hills which are all cropped and was keen to take a look.

It was a very pleasant drive meandering along initially through forested lands and the towns of Kendrick, Deary and St Maries before coming to the cropping areas of Plummer, Oakesdale and Palousse. Such a contrast to the country we passed through yesterday. The small old towns with their wonderful brick buildings at times looking as though the world has left them behind. Found a good brochure at an information centre that included a map of a route to take through the area, and also bought a book called Off the Beaten Path Idaho…a guide to unique places which gave us some good ideas.

Found a little bit of interesting wildlife as well, spotted an Osprey nest at the top of a bridge support and saw what looked to be Mum and a couple of chicks. Then as we came out of the White Pine Forest area a young moose was grazing on the side of the road, able to drive reasonably close to get a photo out the window. Rather surprised as not expecting to see them in this area.

Ian was feeling a bit weary after driving almost 200 miles, many of which were pretty windy and narrow when we spotted this little Lions Club RV Camp beside the Palousse River. Electricity laid on as well as firewood, and a $7 donation which we paid at the store in town. Brilliant.

Monday July 18, Orofino, ID

2011-07-18T17:58:00.000-07:00

It is hard to describe the trip we did today following the Lochsa River, absolutely stunningly beautiful. It just seemed around every corner there was another magnificent vista. Don’t think we have ever travelled on a road that had the river as the edge for over 125 miles, and all the way along new streams joined in. It truly was breathtaking and one of the best we have been on in our travels.

We slept like logs last night with the river pouring over boulders beside our camp. Knowing that it was going to be a really hot day we set off reasonably early for us…about 8.30 as we planned a hike up to Warm Creek Falls and wanted to do it in the cooler part of the day. It was a great hike, about 1 ½ miles each way in the trees following the creek. It opened out into an area where hot water emerged from the ground and flowed over boulders into a number of pools before it reached the creek. There was also one pool out in a meadow that seemed to be full of minerals and made me feel really buoyant. The closer you got to the creek the cooler the pools got, just a wonderful way to start the day. There were only a handful of others there, just loved that fact that you could enjoy nature without having to pay for it.

Had a bit of a holdup on the road with an accident, a huge semi had rolled and evidently there had been a fatality. Not sure when it happened but the wreckers were there pulling it out.

Continued on down the road and found a good spot in the shade beside the river for lunch. Gradually the river widened out and we left the forest and the hills became far more open and rocky. Passed through a few small towns and it felt quite sad to have left behind all that beauty and wilderness.

We are camped in a Bureau of Land Management Camp beside the river tonight, although no views. Put the awning up and sitting with a nice breeze blowing. It is over 36 degrees….

Sunday July 17, Clearwater National Forest, ID

2011-07-18T15:46:00.000-07:00

Farewells again to the Massey’s late this morning but not for long, they will be in NZ for six weeks during the world cup.

Last night we had a good chat with those at the barbecue and got some great ideas about travelling in the northern part of Idaho, quite excited as everyone said that we will love this state. So we set out on Route 12 on the scenic highway from Lolo and over the Lolo Pass. Summer is really here today, hazy blue skies, a gentle breeze, cicadas in the trees and the temperatures reaching 34 degrees.

It has been a really nice drive and the roads haven’t been too busy either considering it is a Sunday. We stopped at the top of the pass at the National Forest Information Centre just through the border into Idaho, a really nice log construction building. Lots of information to read about this area especially as it is part of the Lewis and Clark Trail, who pioneered the route through to the West in the 1800’s. They recommended we take a look at the Packer Meadows not far from the centre. During the early summer it is covered in blue when the purple camas are in bloom, but these had just about finished although there was a yellow wild flower in bloom.

The road dropped down following the Lochsa River, quite stunning as it rushed down over the rocks and the forest rose above.

Found a really nice spot to camp in the Whitehouse Forest Service Campground right beside the river and lightly shaded by trees…..and only $8 for the night! A good place to spend the last part of a very hot afternoon.

Saturday July 16, Missoula MT

2011-07-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

An early start for Ian this morning….he and Richard met up with our other kiwi friend Matthew and his brother in law for 9 holes of golf. Ian was the caddy!!!!

Casey and Richard live very close to town, so when the guys got back we all walked downtown to the Saturday Market. Lots of stalls and people getting their weekly supplies. Moana had never had her face painted, so when we spotted the lady painting faces it was a good late birthday treat for her…she turned 4 last week. Such fun. Bought some lunch and coffee and sat beside the river having a picnic a lovely relaxed way to spend the day.

Then off to another family do….Matthew was having an early birthday barbecue and we drove over to his home, about 10 minutes away. Casey made his birthday present….a real NZ bacon and egg pie, he was delighted. Matthew has a Big Green Egg barbecue/smoker and he cooked a leg of lamb and some beef, wow it was so good, amazing flavour and very moist. The lamb was a real treat for all the Kiwis.

Matthew is rebuilding a little old classic caravan for family camping adventures, it is a cutie and looking really good. Thoroughly enjoyed our evening, and good to catch up with everyone.

Friday July 15, Missoula MT

2011-07-16T08:19:00.000-07:00

Big Sky Montana, here we come!

Set off East this morning under grey skies and quite cool, but as we left the tree covered hills and valleys and the land opened up, so did the temperatures. A beautiful warm dry day in the mid to high 20’s. Such a sight as we followed the glacial blue Clark Fork River, it is still very high with a touch a snow still showing on the mountain tops.

Had a lunch stop in the small town of Plains before arriving in Missoula mid afternoon, felt like returning home as we pulled up outside Casey and Richard’s…..again!!! But we were too close not to do a slight detour to catch up with them all. Delightful Moana is now four and she was pretty pleased to see “The Ratbag’s” again….her name for us. And wee Opehlia who was just a small baby last year is now walking everywhere, one cute little girl.

We had a great night catching up although Casey had tickets to a concert in town. A treat after dinner was a walk around the block to The Big Dipper, the favourite ice cream spot in town, where it is all made locally. Such a balmy beautiful evening to be out walking, as the sun was setting on the hills. The crowds of people getting their evening treats was amazing. My coconut ice cream was superb and Ian enjoyed his licorice. Perfect end to another great day.

Thursday July 14, Noxon, MT

2011-07-15T10:37:00.000-07:00

A quiet start to the day, decided not to rush as seemed to have had a longer day yesterday. Able to get online so easily now with the Verizon Modem and prepaid plan, so caught up on emails and blog over breakfast. Had a chat with all the grandies last night, we do enjoy keeping in touch with them on Skype and hearing what they have been up to.

Quite a cold start, only 14 degrees when we set out and had a few showers, but pleased we are not in NZ as hear they have had quite a bit of snow and cold, wet weather.

Today we have been following the Pend Oreille River and then onto the Pend Oreille Lake. Quite confused as the river flows north before joining the Columbia, felt it was going the wrong way! The river has many cabins dotted along the shores, and there are small clearings with little farmlets and old barns, probably settled in the late 1800’s. Stopped for a wander around in Newport and gathered a few supplies then a lunch stop and walk at the Albeni Falls Dam.

Over the border into Idaho, and the panhandle, a narrow piece of country between Washington and Montana. Stopped in the main town of Sandpoint, a rather nice older town with some little galleries, before continuing on. Had planned to find a camp on the shore of the lake but nothing really appealed so continued west and before long we had crossed into Montana and time to put the clocks forward an hour as we cross into Mountain Time.

Came across this fantastic little National Forest Camp just west of Noxon, with sites right beside a slow moving river, and seemed to be the right place to stop for the night, especially at $10 for the night and free firewood. These are dry camping spots with no facilities except for a campfire and camp table and seats.

Wednesday July 13, Blueslide, Pend Oreille, WA

2011-07-14T09:09:00.000-07:00

Woke at 4.30 this morning with a start to the sound a plane directly overhead, about 20 feet above the RV…well it sounded like that. For about an hour the plane kept making sweeps over the area and it wasn’t till we were leaving that we found out that it was spraying for moquitoes. The huge snowfalls over the winter have meant that there are large areas still under water and now that the warm weather is here the mosquitoes are breeding prolifically. They certainly found me last night!

We were driving through Riverside and noticed a Western Shop that we initially thought was closed. Heard western music so investigated and discovered one of the biggest western outfitting stores we have seen, just so surprised to see it in this town that probably only had another 5 shops in it. They had racks of western boots, all colours, patterns and designs and more western shirts and jeans than you could imagine. Evidently people come from all over to shop there, even coming down from Canada. You never know what you might find in these small towns off the highway.

We meandered our way north to the old town of Republic, stopping just out of town at a farmside stall selling cherries and noticed another Born Free RV stopped there. There are so few of these in the US that we all like to meet the people driving them and find out the history of their van. They were a lovely couple from Burlington, not far from Sherry and Terry’s and had owned theirs for 5 years and like us, just love it. After a long chat with them we bought a huge pack of cherries, quite a bit bigger than our 2 litre ice cream container for $6. These are the Rainier variety, one of the early ones and they are a yellowy red colour and have such great flavour. Washington is known across the states for growing great cherries.

We took the Sherman Pass east across to Kettle Falls, an excellent road climbing to 5575 feet through the forest. It was quite open though as a huge fire had devastated the area 20 years ago.

Stopped in Kettle Falls which is on the Northern End of the Grand Coulee Dam on the Columbia River. Saw a number of house boats tied up and ended up having a long chat with the lady running the rental operation. She took us aboard one which was 5 metres wide and 20 metres long, with a great living area and 3 bedrooms downstairs and a great deck upstairs. Impressed with the slide from the upper deck into the water….maybe Wakarua needs one! There were about 5 boats at the dock and she said 10 were out on hire.

Continued on east through the Colville National Forest and intended staying in one of their parks on a lake, but found them to have a large population of mosquitoes. Continued on and found a wonderful spot on the wide Pend Oreille, a river that flows into the Columbia. Very peaceful and no sign of mossies. Drinks tonight with neighouring campers Jan and Mark, from Seattle, sitting around the campfire.

Tuesday July 12, Riverbend, WA

2011-07-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

It rained from early morning but by the time we left it had cleared and apart from a few showers we had a reasonable day weather wise, but thoroughly enjoyed the drive and the towns we passed through this morning.

Not far from camp was the town of Winthrop, an excellent case of a small town that had been close to dying in the 60’s after the mines closed. They reinvented themselves as a western town, and although it sounds tacky it in fact looks realistic with wooden side walks and all the commercial buildings in the whole town have the western theme. It really draws the crowds and we thoroughly enjoyed meandering through the town. Had a great chat with a photographer in a gallery, and we had to have a coffee and cinnamon bun at a neat outdoor café called Sherri’s. Shared the bun, but took one with us, a supper treat!

Continued south following the very pretty Methow River, with small acreages and orchards using the river for irrigation. The hills are very dry and arid, and before long came to Twisp, another small delightful town. I discovered a wonderful gallery and studio of jeweller Nancy Hubert called Peligro ( www.peligrostudio.com), who was a neat person to talk to and did some wonderful work. She also stocked other metal artists works and unfortunately I found a hand crafted watch and strap from a New York artist that I fell in love with. Will say no more!!!

Loved the rest of the drive south as we dropped down to Pateros following the river all the way until it joined the Okanogan. It reminded me so much of Central Otago with terraced irrigated orchards. We followed the scenic Route 97 north now following the Okanogan River with sage bush covered hills and found a nice little campground in Riverside, just north of Omak. I am so enjoying the bundle of fresh herbs that Sherry sent me off with, just makes such a difference to a salad.

Monday July 11, West of Winthrop in the Cascade Mountains

2011-07-12T15:18:00.000-07:00

Enjoyed breakfast with Sherry and Terry this morning and sorted out some bits and pieces. I had bought a Verizon pay as you go Broadband modem and for the last 3 days have been trying unsuccessfully to activate it. So had to resort to phoning the company, surprisingly got a really nice guy who spoke English who sorted it out for me in no time at all. Evidently they have been doing things to the online system over the last few days and they were having issues, so it wasn’t me! Hopefully will have much more access to the net, although this evening we are camped in a Forest Service Camp in the middle of the mountains and no hope of service!

After another farewell to the Barbers our first stop was Burlington for some fresh supplies in what was probably one of the best supermarkets we have been in. The produce was so fresh, everything was clean, and they had some amazing displays. Wouldn’t want to bring the Grandies into the confectionary section.

Also called into Wholesale Sports for Ian to drool around…it is an enormous store, I had been with Sherry at the start of the trip to get my walking shoes.

Then it was East over the North Cascade Highway. What a fabulous drive. The road followed the very clear glacial Skagit River and initially wound through some old farming communities with small holdings. The lush green trees hung over the road and the white daisies and pink foxgloves grew abundantly on the roadsides. As we climbed higher in to the mountains the snow was still in patches amongst the trees and on the side of the road, and finally reached the Washington Pass Peak at 5500 feet. Everyone told us about the amazing lookout, but sadly it was closed. Can’t believe how good the road is considering it is closed for 6 months of the year with snow.

Tonight we are staying in a very nice Forest Service Campground at Klipchuck, at $12 a night it is really good value and there are a number of campers here although there is plenty of distance between the sites.

Sunday July 10, Anacortes

2011-07-11T07:35:00.000-07:00

Three weeks after setting off we have completed our first leg, somehow couldn’t pass by catching up with Terry and Sherry before we head off East tomorrow.

Have had another leisurely (or maybe should say lazy) day, the weather is just perfect, warm and sunny and in the low 20’s. It was such a great spot to camp last night, very peaceful and quiet, and Ian was able to wander around the grounds again, checking out the sawmills…again!!!

Meandered back into Bellingham to do the weeks laundry. I find Laundromats quite intriguing places with the range and ethnicity of the people using them. Everyone is friendly but just get on with the job to be done, and they sit around waiting, reading old magazines, texting or looking just plain bored.

Just so happened that Barnes and Noble (the huge book sellers) had a store just over the road….seemed a shame not to pay a visit. Such well laid out stores with books on everything you could every imagine.

By mid afternoon we were on the I5 motorway south to Burlington, the turnoff to Anacortes. Called in to a store to get a few things to take out to the Barber’s and as we were leaving heard a siren behind us, and no they weren’t wanting to pass but wanted us to pull over!!!! I nice very young officer came around to the window and asked did we know why he had pulled us over. We had no idea, and he said that we had run a red light!!!! Knew we had gone through an orange but definitely not a red. Obviously he liked us and after checking out Ian’s licence and our certificate of insurance said he wouldn’t issue a ticket. Thank you, thank you Sir! I felt it wasn’t appropriate to ask for his photo.

Lots of catching up with Sherry and Terry about our travels and odd hiccups. We joined them at their friends for a wonderful evening of Pizza’s and wine, a good end to another good day.

Saturday July 9, Deming

2011-07-10T11:40:00.000-07:00

It’s been a most relaxing day, and the weather has been warm and sunny. Had a look at a few of the shops in Fairhaven before we left, especially a fantastic gallery featuring original quality work from artists and craftspeople from all over the US. Probably one of the best we have been in.

Then it was onto the Farmers Market in the centre of town and it was great, lots of stalls and people everywhere. Picked up some good fresh produce and some yummy ciabatta bread for lunch.

More supplies and chores at the supermarket before heading about 10 miles out of town to the Logging Show Grounds where they were having a weekend of wood carving, saw mills and associated stalls. Heard about it yesterday at the information centre, and as you can imagine Ian was delighted. They also had and onsite camping ground in a wonderful mown area, very sunny and open, and not many people staying, a great place for us for the night.

They had a number of small sawmills working, which kept Ian occupied for some time! The chainsaw carvers were really skilled and one guy in particular was producing spectacular work. Then all the carvings were put up for auction, fascinating what people were paying for them, and some really went very cheaply.

So pleasant this evening sitting in the sun and have been invited to join the neighbours after dinner.

Friday July 8, Bellingham, WA…USA

2011-07-10T11:36:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are back in USA tonight, and it has been a very good day. This morning we woke to rain on the roof, and 11 degrees. Time to put the jeans back on and put the heater on for awhile.

It was still raining when we left, heading west along the motorway but as the mountains opened out, the sky lightened and the sun came out. We drove through a wide fertile valley with all sorts of cropping and the occasional dairy farm.

Then it was a 45 min stop start process as we queued at border control at Abbotsford to return to the States. Unfortunately they took our 3 oranges bought in Canada….even though they were grown in USA…..can’t quite work that one out!

Picked up a few bread rolls just through the border and took a scenic route into Bellingham, stopping for some lunch on the way. Then onto the info centre in town to see where we could hopefully get the windscreen replaced. Delightful lady got out the yellow pages and put me onto the company “ that she uses”, and it was a goodie. Louies Auto Glass Company had been in business for 80 years and can understand why with the service they gave. They had racks of windscreens in stock and they helped us organise with our insurance company to deal with the claim, then we drove into the workshop and before long 2 guys were dealing with it while we had a cup of coffee in the van and caught up on emails on their wifi. Heard about a good State Park on the coast just out of town, but rang them while we were waiting and they were completely booked out for the weekend. Maybe it will have to be Walmart! It was after 5 by the time the glue had set and we left with such a bright clean windscreen.

Headed out to Fairhaven, the historic part of town which we had read about, a really good call. A really thriving area with old multi story red brick buildings and a thriving retail area with a multitude of eating places. First call was Village Books, a three storied book store which we had read about in Lonely Planet, and it was great, could have spent hours in there. I was really happy as found a great photography book! The late sun was shining as we sauntered around, such a shame that most of the shops were closed.

Found a nice seafood restaurant and I enjoyed a clam chowder followed by crab cakes, and Ian had halibut.

We were walking back to the van, thinking about where we might park for the night when we noticed two young guys with a football. On checking them out they were rugby players, and Tito was a 16 year old Samoan lad, born in USA and now playing for the national U19’s. He is off to Sth Africa with the National Team on Monday. They were talking to an older guy, Craig, and when we mentioned that we looking for somewhere to park for the night, he said park here. He is a sports therapy doctor and in fact his carpark was just behind us. So here we are, a great spot for the night.

Thursday July 7, Hope BC

2011-07-08T09:56:00.000-07:00

Suprisingly we slept really well last night, heard the trains at times but just back to sleep again. It was such a hot night but turned the ceiling extractor fan on and left the window beside our bed open and it provided a really nice breeze.

By the time we left camp at 9.30 the temperature was already up to 24 degrees, obviously another hot day on the way. Today we were on Highway 1 following the Thompson River and then the Fraser River Canyons after the two rivers joined in Lytton. It was a stunning drive, especially the Thomson River section where the granite mountains rose so majestically from the road on both sides. Initially the mountains were very bare and dry but the further south we got they became thickly forested. Although this was Highway 1, most traffic now takes the newer Highway 5 to Kamploops so we found the traffic volume to be really good.

The Railway system fascinated my with the two competing lines running on either side of the river and then in Lytton they both cross the river and then run on the opposite sides, quite bizarre. We followed a huge train with over a hundred 50 foot wagons each loaded with 2 double stacked containers, impressive sight watching them winding around the canyon clinging to the side.

The road travels through mainly First Nation Lands and the small towns are not that prosperous and many of the businesses on the highway are closed.

This afternoon we are in Hope and are camped in a Native camp right on the banks of the Fraser River, an extremely pleasant spot looking across the huge expanse of the river which is in flood at the moment, with tree covered mountains rising up and still some snow hanging on.

As we travelled further south the temperatures dropped and during a rain storm it even was down to 16 degrees, and tonight it is a pleasant 20 degrees, are far cry from last night.

Wednesday July 6, Ashcroft, BC

2011-07-07T14:46:00.000-07:00

Wow….temperatures have soared today, got to 34 degrees! - Such a change after needing another pair of jeans at the start of the trip, now it is singlets!

So enjoyed our stay at the Provincial Park at Nairn Falls on Green River, it was just so peaceful. Sort of sad to leave there this morning.

Nearby Pemberton is a ski town with lots of apartments and hotels, with the mountains all around it has a good feel.

Took the road to Liloeet, initially passing through the valley and enjoyed seeing cropping and some livestock, before it wound very steeply up into the mountains. Absolutely stunning drive. Near the top we stopped at a Park where there were a number of trails into some alpine lakes, we took the very short 5 minute trek into the first lake through the forest and the snow was still lying on the ground. Met Pat from Taupo who was staying with her friend Jan in Pemberton and they were heading off on a much longer hike. Enjoyed meeting them both.

The road continued through the mountains beside small rivers, and there were a number of small free campgrounds dotted through the area, they looked delightful but too early in the day to stop for the night although had a lunch stop at one of them. Saw another bear grazing the fresh green grass on the side of the road but no place to stop for photos.

The mountains became less forested and more rocky, and the temperatures started to rise. Liloeet is a really hot and dry town and has a large native population, it was sad to see some young ones walking through town drinking and staggering.

By the time we got to the next town of Cache Creek there was more grazing land, although the temps were still high and the hillsides were drying off. Ended up just off the highway in the old town of Ashcroft and camping beside the Thompson River. We are sitting outside under a tree with a cold beer and a nice breeze which is cooling us down a little. Have just realised that we are camped between two major trans Canada Railway Lines, the one behind us is owned by CPR and the one over the river belongs to CNR, and already there has been quite a bit of movement….could be an interesting night!

Also heard that Ashcroft has the hottest temperature in British Columbia today and also yesterday…no wonder we are feeling the heat.

Tuesday July 5, Pemberton

2011-07-07T14:42:00.000-07:00

A sad and sobering start to the day with an email from Pam, a San Francisco friend we had made in Alaska last year. Her and husband Gary were travelling around Alaska on much the same routes as we were and we kept bumping into them, had lots of laughs and a few drinks along the way. Sadly Gary passed away yesterday after a short battle with cancer. We don’t know what is around the corner and makes us realise that doing what we are when we can is so important.

We were up this morning bright and early and at the glass company by 8 am, only to find that they didn’t actually have the right windscreen for our vehicle, despite telling us that they did. It would be tomorrow before they had it in! So flagged that, the screen is not too bad yet so we will continue on until we can find a place that has one in stock.

So then we had a wait until the 12.30 service appointment at Canadian Tire. Just mooched around feeling quite frustrated. All well with the brakes so felt quite excited to be back on the road again.

Retraced our steps back up through Whistler, the traffic is really busy but guess it is holiday time and the weather has finally come right. The temperatures are well up in the 20’s and the skies are blue with hardly a cloud to be seen.

Left the throngs behind and continued through some spectacular scenery of mountains and sheer rock faces to Pemberton. It was mid afternoon and we called into the Nairn Falls Provincial Park, a really beautiful spot. Drove around the campground and saw a spot overlooking the fast flowing river with a scattering of trees. Above us, a snow capped mountain. Although we had planned to drive further today, it just felt too good to leave without spending a night!

After a sit and a cold drink we took the 2km hike out to the falls, great walk and very spectacular. The cold beer was good when we got back to camp.

Monday July 4, Squamish BC

2011-07-05T08:16:00.000-07:00

This morning we drove to Shannon Falls, the third largest in BC and really spectacular. Surprising to see so many people taking a look reasonably early in the morning. Just before we got there, we were following a logging truck which was slowly turning down a side road, and as he did so a stone flicked up and pinged my side of the front window, it was a huge bang but luckily it didn’t shatter the whole window, just one nasty stone chip the size of a large thumbnail and a crack extending across the window. Can’t believe we drove all those gravel roads in Alaska last year without even a chip. Guess it is another issue to deal with!

Heading out to Whistler we spotted a Canadian Tire store that had service bays…and they serviced RV’s. Called in to see about getting our brakes checked as well as a lube and they could fit us in…tomorrow at 12.30. On the spot decided to change plans and take the booking. It is only a 45 minute drive to Whistler so continued up there and returned to Squamish tonight ready for the booking.

A fabulous drive up and couldn’t have got a better day, the skies were clear blue with odd puffy clouds, and the snow on the mountains just glowed. Driving was so easy with the new road, and not too much climbing as Whistler is only about 830m above sea level.

Had a good map of the area and went straight to an RV parking area. The centre of Whistler is a really great “people” space with shops opening onto an open car free area with trees and plenty of seats. Such a great atmosphere, everyone was out enjoying the sun, sitting at cafés, listening to live music and browsing in the shops. And everywhere there are mountain bikes, this is a huge centre for mountain biking in the summer, with trails everywhere.

Headed back to the van to change our shoes to go for a hike to a lake in behind the town centre….but noticed the headlights still on and barely glowing. Number 2 issue for the day. Ian has everything in the van for an emergency…except jumper leads! A mountain biker was sitting beside his vehicle nearby having a break, and luckily he had some leads and was very happy to drive around and start us up…oh the relief!

Needed to keep the engine going to charge the batteries which meant hiking was out of the question, so it was back to Squamish, although we did detour up to the Olympic Ski Jump site. Had been told that there were many bears in the area. With the huge winter snowfall and the late spring thaw, the bears have come down lower to get new grass. Noticed large amounts of bear skat on the road and before long had seen two of them, one quite a brown colour and the other very black. A real thrill.

The first thing Ian did when we got back to town was stop and buy a set of jumper leads. We are camping again at Walmart, it was such a good spot last night and hardly any noise, we both slept very well. He went and saw the guys in the service centre and they were able to put him onto a place in town who will replace our front windscreen, need to be there at 8 in the morning. So hopefully we will get all the issues sorted tomorrow before we head back up the mountains and on towards Lilooet.

Sunday July 3, Squamish BC

2011-07-04T17:14:00.000-07:00

Plans certainly change. This morning we decided to head south to Langley where there were a number of RV Centres. Thought it would be a good chance to see how the brakes went, and if we had problems maybe it was the right sort of area to get them fixed. It ended up quite an interesting drive especially further out in the market gardening area, and was not nearly as busy as yesterday.

The brakes caused no further problems, Ian could only put it down to the stop start heavy traffic city driving yesterday. Will get them checked before long but ended up heading out of Vancouver to Squamish on the road to Whistler. The traffic was pretty heavy with holidaymakers returning to the city from the long weekend. The road winding around the hills had been upgraded for the 2010 Winter Olympics and was excellent, double lanes most of the way.

Squamish sits in a valley surrounded by steep mountains and rocky faces, a real outdoors area. Spotted a Walmart and there were a number of campers all ready set up for the night in the carpark, seemed like a good spot to overnight.

Saturday July 2, Vancouver BC

2011-07-03T09:41:00.000-07:00

Today has been a great one, although finished on a bit of a flat note.

We both slept really well, maybe a bit to do with the wine and the grappa we drank last night! Breakfasted then up to say goodbye to our wonderful new friends, they made us so welcome and we really enjoyed their company. And finally the sun was shining and it was really warm…think the weather may be changing.

Headed south, through Sechelt and onto Morgans, the last town before the ferry. First stop was the Laundromat for the weekly chores, then noticed signs for a quilt show. Ian was very patient and read his book while I took a look. It was a great show held in an ice hockey rink. Lots of trade stalls as well as fantastic work from patchworkers of the Sunshine Coast. There was also an exhibition of work from other parts of Canada. Jennifer you would have just loved it. So enjoyed chatting with people, and could have come home with quite a few bags of supplies.

Continued on downtown to the harbour, and we were overwhelmed by the town, probably one of the nicest we have been into. It had a great laid back feeling, lots of colour and flowers, people wandering around, musicians playing and lots of little galleries full of wonderful “stuff”. And the views down the harbour and onto the snow capped mountains were pretty special. Parked the RV and spent 3 hours poking around, and found a nice spot to have lunch, people watching. Ian enjoyed the marina while I poked around the galleries. There was one exhibition by a photographer, and just loved her impressionist work. www.hilarystephensphotography.ca They looked so good printed big on art paper and framed.

Finally dragged ourselves away and down to the ferry terminal, in time to catch the 3.30 crossing to Vancouver. We were talking last night about where we should head, and got a few ideas, one of which was to stay on the north side and take a ferry across to the city tomorrow. Well that was the plan and we were heading that way until I sent Ian into the wrong lane and before we knew it we were over the bridge and into the centre of town. Oh boy. And it was a Saturday, sort of expecting it to be a bit quieter but there were cars everywhere. Then the brakes started making a noise which added to the tension. Had an address for a Walmart reasonably close to town so headed there, right through town, and then through a rather rough part with homeless people laying around the streets everywhere.

By the time we got to Walmart the brakes were feeling a bit odd and pulling to one side, and the smell wasn’t good. We let them cool down and found there was a campground not too far away, so made our way there pretty carefully and it was with relief that we finally parked in a campsite….mind you at over $60 it was the most expensive we have ever been in, and it is wall to wall campers with no atmosphere.

Realise that we need to sort the brakes out before we head up into the mountains and Whistler, so will have to wait until Monday. Somehow after our experience in the city today, we don’t feel like trying again tomorrow!!

Friday July1, Half Moon Bay, BC…..Canada Day

2011-07-02T00:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday when we were watching the kayakers at the rapids we got talking to two young couples from Calgary. They were staying at their parents cabin a bit further down the coast and offered us a park for the night in their driveway, so that is where we are.

It rained during the night and was still raining this morning and quite cold. It seems the locals don’t know what is happening with their summer either.

The drive south to Sechelt was really pretty, but the coast looked uninviting with very heavy grey skies and a cold wind blowing. Didn’t feel inclined to go walking along any of the beaches.

Had heard that there was a Canada Day parade in Sechelt, but by the time we arrived it was just finishing, the town was packed to overflowing and not a car park available anywhere. Decided to continue on a bit further and ended up stopping at Davis Bay, can imagine it being a really nice area on a fine day. Enjoyed a lunch stop at a café overlooking the beach.

Returned back into Sechelt later in the afternoon and most of the crowds had gone. They had live music playing in the street and a bouncy climbing tower for the children, but there were very few people around, I think the cold weather had sent them home. Most of the shops were open so had a good leisurely look around before heading back to our “campsite” in Half Moon Bay.

We had a great evening chatting and sharing stories and wine with Pierre and Dayna and Wills and Megan….and also some grappa made by a great friend of Pierre’s father, who died last week. Pierre’s father is Italian and settled in Calgary but he and some mates bought plots of land in this area for their holiday homes. It is a 12 hour drive from Calgary. Awesome young couples.

Thursday June 30, Egmont, BC

2011-07-01T14:38:00.000-07:00

When you wake up in the morning while on the road, you never know what the day will bring, and today was truly one of those. After a great sleep I decided that the body needed some exercise before breakfast so took the beach/forest walk from camp. It was only about 30 minutes return, and meandered along the shoreline but through some really old forest. It was a sort of a museum walk as there were many pieces of old forestry equipment under the trees, all with signs explaining what they had been used for. A great start to the day.

The weather was fine, but quite overcast after rain overnight, we really haven’t had a lot of sunny days on this trip yet, and thought the Sunshine Coast might produce them but no joy.

Packed up and parked in town, Ian went one direction to check out the marine and sports stores while I had a wonderful time in the galleries in town. The co-op gallery featured work from over 20 local artists, the quality was fantastic. Happened upon a little café/gallery and met Stacey the chef, a delightful lady, full of life and was quite happy to have her photo taken. The artist ( sorry can’t remember her name) was doing wonderful felting with silk and wool and other fibres, and making it into garments. Felt quite inspired.

Then meandered south along the main road to the next ferry taking us south, the whole area has a low key, no rush feeling to it, wonderful. Got to the ferry landing at Saltery Bay and found there was a 2 hour wait, so back a short distance to a park beside the water. It was low tide and we walked along the beach, surprised to see the vivid purple starfish attached to the rocks in big colonies. The sun even came out for a short time and felt pretty special.

Had lunch then back to the ferry where it was only a short wait until we boarded. The cost was $120 but included the next ferry crossing to Vancouver as well.

Just loved the 45 minute trip in inside waters to Earls Cove, sort of reminded me of a cruise out of Mitre Peak in NZ, with misty snow capped mountains rising from the water and huge waterfalls.

As we drove out from the terminal we passed the turnoff to Skookumchick Rapids and remembered that the girl in the chocolate shop in Campbell River had recommended we go there…she used to live in the area. It wasn’t easy finding a place to turn around, but managed and headed down the 7 kms to the town of Egmont. Spoke to a guy at the museum who could tell us all about the rapids, at high tide the force of the water funnelling down the channel forms huge pressure waves at one point, really spectacular, and there was an especially high tide at 6pm. The bush hike to the lookout was about 50 minutes each way. He also recommended a very small camp, right on the water run by an old gentleman of 98 and his daughter. Sounded like a lot of fun, so made a booking at the camp and after a coffee we set off through the bush.

The hike was great, really wide pathway through old forests with trees dripping with lichens. I had my camera on my back but didn’t stop to take any photos as new I would never make it to the lookout.

What a spectacular site when we got there, huge waves as the sea poured through at huge speed…and guys in kayaks braving the waves and doing amazing flips in them. Well worth the hike.

It was 7.30pm before we got back to Ruakiwi, both feeling pretty shattered but thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

Onto West’s resort, not sure what we would find…but a real classic. It is in the most amazing spot right on the water, with mountains towering above us, but no frills or fancies. Just the sort of place we love. The misty rain came in again but hopefully in the morning can explore a bit before we leave.

Wednesday June29, Powell River BC

2011-06-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

We had an earlier start this morning as needed to be at the garage before 9 to get the parts of the generator fitted. Great guys and they got straight onto it and in less than 2 hours were on the road with a new fuel pump and filter for the generator. Seems like it is finally all sorted, have given it a good test run and works like a new one.

Stopped in town for supplies at one of the better Walmart stores we have been to. It was very new and really well stocked with a full supermarket including excellent fresh fruit and vegetables. Have some nice looking asparagus and bok choy for dinner tonight.

Took the express way south to Comox for the ferry across to Powell River on the mainland. Had to queue for over an hour and a half but a good chance for a late lunch as we waited.

Then on the ferry for the 1 ½ hour trip across the Strait of Georgia. We have really enjoyed the past 12 days exploring the island, a really interesting place with lots of quaint and quirky communities.

They call this the sunshine coast and we will need to take 2 more ferries over the next few days as we head south to Vancouver. Hear that it is a very “artsy” area so we will see. Found a very good municipal campsite right in town with a great site only a few metres from the beach, a good spot to boat watch. Quite windy tonight and the sky looks a bit stormy. And for once, being over 60 had its advantages as they deducted $3 off the price of the site!

…Later. Had a really interesting sun set and had a lot of fun with a large blue heron as he was fishing in the shallows. The wind has dropped, hopefully the weather is settling.

Tuesday Jun 28, Campbell River

2011-06-28T18:08:00.000-07:00

Have had a real low key day checking out the town. Left the van in camp and walked, I think we both needed the exercise although all dead flat so no real challenges. It was so nice not to have any plans today and I really enjoyed browsing in the stores and the little galleries, while Ian found a number of marine stores.

Had a coffee and sandwich at a Tim Hortons shop, as a chain they always have freshly made food and good coffee.

Called into a chocolate store..just investigating on your behalf Nicky! Anyway it was great watching them make the chocolates and the girls were so helpful. Joanne used to live on the Sunshine Coast where we are going tomorrow and was so helpful with lots of ideas of places to visit.

Quadra Island is just across the Strait from town and it was interesting to see the ribbon like wisp of sea fog hanging just above the water line of the island.

It was a long walk back to camp along the shoreline and stumbled across the pub where we ate last night, felt we needed a beer while we had a rest!