We're on the way!

But we haven't been hurrying. Because of Labor Day being late, and our appointment at the Winnebago factory on September 8, we've had time to get sidetracked. When we were looking at the map and planning our route, we realized that Devil's Tower was not far off the highway.

It really does get your attention when you come around the corner and there it is! No space ships were there, but then, we didn't visit at night.

We walked the mile or so around the base of the monument. On the shadowed side there were two climbers about a quarter of the way up, and on the sunny side there was a group of climbers just starting their climb. Before you even get to the sheer side, you have to climb over huge boulders. Wow.

Our next stop was Mt Rushmore. We had been there a few years ago with Glen and Ardyce, but decided to see it again. This time we stayed in Rapid City, South Dakota. When we arrived at the RV park, the owner asked us if we planned on going over for the lighting of the Presidents. We didn't even know they did that! It was a beautiful night. There is a ranger program, a film about the impact each President had on history, and acknowledgment of past and present members of the armed forces. And as the film ends, the mountain is illuminated.

And then, of course, we needed to go back to see the mountain in the morning when the carving looks white. The last time we were there it got cloudy and rained and the mountain disappeared in the fog, so this was great.

As we traveled through South Dakota, we went through Mitchell. Had to stop at the Corn Palace! It's the only one in the world so the billboards say. All the scenes on the two open sides of the building are made of corn and other grains. They had just had the annual festival at the end of August, and there were new murals starting on one corner. That showed it what it looks like before they add the corn. They say it is "corn by number". And they also say it is the biggest bird feeder in the world.

And that brought us to Forest City, Iowa. Home of the Winnebago Industries Factory. We arrived on Labor Day evening, and had been told to pick a spot to park in the lot, hook up to the electricity, and the doors would open at 7:00 on Tuesday morning. There were several RV's when we got there, and more arrived during the evening. Bright and early on Tuesday they took the RV in to fix the jacks and the AC/heat pump, and a few other things that needed their expert attention.

We used the waiting time to visit the Visitor's Center and museum and go on a tour of the factory.

Winnebago is still in production even though there aren't as many being made as there were a few years ago, and they are only building motor homes that are ordered instead of stocking their yards with all kinds. We didn't get to see the very end of the production lines, but watching from the catwalk areas was pretty cool.

The factory is open from 7 to 3:30, so we were happy when our RV was all finished and returned to us before 3:00. But then the waiting started. We have an extended warranty, and we had to wait for an inspector to arrive to check what had been done before they would agree to cover the work that was done.

Now, the receptionists and the technician that worked on the RV were wonderful and helpful. And they were able to fix the AC and now the jacks go up and down just like they are supposed to work. But the Service Supervisor that was in charge of the financial part of the work was not by any means wonderful and helpful! We had to wait around from Tuesday afternoon until Thursday at about noon for things to be settled between the Warranty Company and Winnebago Industries. And waiting is something that comes so easily for us because Sue is a very patient person. (Do I hear snickering? Shame on you!)

Seems that Winnebago went ahead and finished doing the work before taking all the steps that the warranty contract calls for and therefore they don't want to cover everything. That didn't make us very happy, but the way we were treated by the Service Supervisor was what really annoyed us. We went over the problem with them but they seemed rather reluctant to be up front with us about the procedure. It was not a pleasant conversation. Jim said that Sue used her "teacher's voice". Jim doesn't have a teacher's voice, but made his feelings very clear also!

So we packed up and hit the road. And now we are in Angola, Indiana on Friday night, and expect to be home on Sunday afternoon.

The adventure is all but over unless something unexpected happens in the next two days. But we are sort of hoping it won't!

See you all soon!

Sue and Jim

One Great Big Science Lab!

Mr Wizard, Bill Nye, and your favorite science teacher would love Yellowstone! It is so cool! Or maybe your favorite plumber?

We found an RV Park near the western entrance which isn't too far from Old Faithful. Our first evening there, we drove to Firehole River Canyon. The walls of the canyon show the volcanic history of the park, and it is one of the few places in the park that people are allowed to swim in one of the calmer pools.




The next morning we drove further into the park with the idea that we would see some of the Old Faithful area and drive as far as we could. Well that idea didn't last long. The geysers were so interesting that we ended up spending the whole day there.

On our way to Old Faithful we came around a bend in the road and had our first glimpse of the Fountain Paint Pot geyser field. So cool! This is also one of the areas where there are the bubbling mud pools. There is a very distinctive odor to the area however!





We arrived at Old Faithful close to its predicted eruption time, so stayed there to watch it. It puts on quite a show.

But there is so much more to see than just Old Faithful! There is a walkway that winds in and out around the geysers, pools, and fumaroles, which are very noisy steam vents. There is a bulletin board that gives a predicion of when some of the more dependable geysers will erupt and we just wandered around seeing as many as we could. We were really fortunate to see some of the more interesting ones go, including one that goes higher than Old Faithful and has three spouts going at once. There are also beautiful pools that are deep shades of blue in the middle, and browns and yellows on the outside edges where micro organisms can survive the harsh water.

There is a web cam for Old Faithful that our brother-in-law told us about. You can watch it erupt and see the people watching it. Just find the Yellowstone National Park web-site and look for the web cam to click on. We made some phone calls and had a good time waving to family and probably lots of other people.



Unfortunately, part of one of the park roads has been closed for the season for bridge repairs, so driving to some of the interesting places takes longer than it usually would. We headed out to go to the Yellowstone Canyon the next morning. There is quite a hike going down to see the lower falls, but very impressive when you get to the bottom. Those of you that have been to Yellowstone will recognize the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone and those that haven't may be inspired to visit the park.

The Yellowstone area is very unstable, and within the National Forest area is Earthquake Lake. In 1959 there was a huge earthquake that caused the side of a mountain to block off a river and form a lake. Many people lost their lives trying to escape the landslide and flooding. We found a very interesting visitor's center with displays and a movie about the event.

We stopped there on our way out to see some ghost towns that were recommended. We stopped at Virginia City and Nevada City. Virginia City had been the capital of Montana for a short time but when the railroad went through Helena instead of Virginia City, the capitol went with it.

Another morning we took a walk out to Fairy Falls. It was a good walk and the falls were really pretty. The area had been one of the places in the park that had been damaged by fire but is recovering. Someday the trees will be big and shady again.






There is plenty of wildlife in the park also. We saw herds of buffalo and plenty of elk. It's easy to tell when there is something to see because there are cars all pulled off on the side of the road. Unfortunately, some people are taking real chances by getting very close to the animals. One big bull elk was getting very upset with the people getting too close to his herd. We got to hear his opinions on the issue!

But there are also single bison walking on the roads! That really stops traffic. They just amble along the roadway and don't seem to be too disturbed by people slowing down to take pictures.

We did some figuring, and realized that we had some extra time to spend at Yellowstone so we drove around to the other side and got a site in Mammoth Hot Springs campground in the park. This would be one of the first "dry camping" we have tried with the RV. As long as we plan ahead, it works pretty well.

There is one herd of elk that stay around that part of the park and can usually be found on the grass in and around the hotel, the old fort grounds and on the terraces of the hot springs. The park rangers direct traffic and block off sidewalks and roads to keep people and elk safe.

Again with our brother-in-law's recommendation, we drove out the Northeastern entrance of the park toward Cooke City and the Beartooth Mountain Pass. You are really on the top of the world there! The views were just beautiful and driving the twisty winding roads was exciting. There was road work going on and guard rails being installed. Very glad it was just in the Jeep!

We had planned on getting an early start the morning that we were heading east toward South Dakota. Well, we woke up early, with the help of that herd of elk. They were in the campground calling out to each other. It took us a few minutes to figure out what the bleating sounds were. We were able to get all ready to go with the car hooked up, but driving out was tricky. The whole herd, including the bull had made themselves quite comfortable eating grass, resting in the bushes and standing on the roads. There was one doe that seemed to be very interested in a small tent. She rubbed her head on the frame and pawed at the nylon. There wasn't anyone inside, but there must have been something in there she wanted. It took quite a bit of noise, waving, and clapping to get her to leave it alone. But whatever kind of tent it was, it held up to her abuse!

So, we left Yellowstone knowing that we had only scratched the surface of the park. We are heading east to arrive in Forest City, Iowa on September 8. Who knows what we will find on our way!

Jim and Sue

Two Sides of Washington

After Oregon, in order to head to Yellowstone, we decided to go back into Washington. We had stopped at a Visitor's Information Center to get information about the Columbia River Gorge. Because we are traveling with the RV, they suggested that we not try the Historic Route on the Oregon side which turned out to be closed anyway. It was suggested that we go on the Washington side instead of the superhighway on the Oregon side.

And it was really pretty. The river is so wide and the forested hillsides were beautiful. No wonder Washington is the Evergreen State.

We were aiming to stay for a few days near Maryhill, but the campground was full. Seems that something was running at the small streams coming into the Columbia River so all the campgrounds were full of fishermen. So we looked at the map and decided to go north from the river toward Prosser and the Tri City area.








What a surprise! As soon as we turned away from the river the whole landscape changed. If we didn't know where we were, we would have guessed that it was the mid-western high desert! It was really, really hot. The temperature was over 100 degrees for the next few days. If it wasn't near the Yakima River, or irrigated, it was dry sage grass or dirt and dust. And you could really tell where they were using irrigation. There were vineyards, and orchards, and fields of onions, and some viney things that we think were hops.










Lots and lots of vineyards!









































And apples, peaches, pears and plums. The visitor's center supplied us with a map and list of produce stands and we had a good time shopping for peppers, onions, tomatoes and peaches.

But it was a bit tricky out manuvering the residents of the nursing home that arrived with their walkers at the first stand. Seems that they aren't too wild about the food they are given, so their bus takes them shopping weekly!





We once again found it necessary to sample the local wines. We drove out to one winery and had a very pleasant time tasting wine with the owner's son. We had a few more stops on our list and headed down the highway.

And that is when we had the flat tire. Fortunately it was daylight and we had no trouble controlling the car. Jim was able to get off on the shoulder of the highway to see what had happened. Unfortunately it was about 103 degrees, the back of the Jeep was loaded with stuff, and it was a very busy highway! We were able to get the spare tire out, get the Jeep jacked up and the tire changed. We have a whole new empathy for people changing tires on the side of the road!

We carefully drove down to the first exit with services and found Frank's Tire Factory. Even though it was around 4:00 in the afternoon, they were able to take us. We waited in the air conditioned showroom while they repaired the tire which had picked up a nail and checked another tire that had a slow leak. It had a staple in it. They repaired both tires and put the spare back in place. When we were done we were ready to pay the bill and they told us there was no charge but to remember them when we needed new tires! Wow! So, if you are ever in the west, and you need some service on tires, look around for a Tire Factory, and tell them we sent you!

































We went from Yakima to Prosser, Washington. We stayed in Wine Country RV park on Merlot Ave. Are we noticing a theme? It was a very nice town, and might be an area that is a retirement sort of place.




It seemed to have a very active community and had a Farmer's Market on Saturday morning.

One of the wineries that we really wanted to visit was Columbia Crest. It was really nice. It was up on the bluff over the Columbia River with a Tuscany air to it and very nice grounds. Pond and picnic tables and stuff.

One of the interesting things about this area is that there are many wineries that locate their tasting rooms in clusters. The buildings are very new and surround small parking areas. So, you could park and walk from one tasting room to the next. We know that you are going to find this hard to believe, but we didn't do that. The storage place under the bench is getting very full, and we need to go through Canadian customs again.


We are continuing heading east and plan on stopping once or twice in Montana before we get to Yellowstone National Park.

Sue and Jim

We (heart) Oregon!

We have seen beautiful pictures of the Oregon coast, so that was the way we headed. We crossed over the Columbia River at Astoria and found the Fort Stevens State Park. Part of the park is Fort Clatsop, where Lewis and Clark spent the winter waiting to make the return trip to St. Lewis.

This area was also heavily armed with forts during the Civil War and WWI and II. It protects the mouth of the Columbia River. There is a ship that wrecked on the beach and appears at low tide. Very eerie.

Astoria has a tower with interesting carvings around the outside depicting the history of the Northwest. It has recently been refurbished and was ready for its grand reopening. There are 164 steps up to the top. We didn't get very far. It gave us both a very odd tippy feeling, so we mostly enjoyed it from the outside.

And there was another cannery to explore. Not much better than the first one, but it had a better movie. Now you know where Charlie lives.

When we left Warrenton and Fort Stevens, we did drive down the coast, and it is indeed beautiful. We took a turn-off from the scenic drive to a more scenic drive because the lady at the visitor center assured us that they do it "all the time with our trailer and it is no problem" Hmmm, trailer does not equal an RV. It was really pretty, but very narrow with low hanging trees. But the coastline was very pretty, and we stopped and ate our lunch at a very pretty lighthouse. The rocks near the lighthouse are home to several kinds of sea birds. Very noisy place!

This is the Cape Mears Lighthouse. It was much easier to climb to the top of this one, although a bit crowded at the top.

When we got back to the regular scenic drive, we passed the Tillamook Dairy. There were lots of cars and RV's parked in a very big lot, so we turned around to see what there was. Pretty cool!

We went upstairs where you can watch the packaging process. Huge blocks of aged cheese get chopped, weighed, sealed in plastic and boxed right before your very eyes. And then you can go downstairs and taste some of their cheese. And then you can go through the store and buy some! And lots of other cow and cheese related and not so related gifts. A person could get all their Christmas shopping done in one place! Are you all worried?


We stopped in Albany, Oregon. It is indeed named after Albany, New York, except that they sort of pronounce it wrong. The RV park was very nice, but things didn't go very well the first night. More problems with the leveling jacks and noisy neighbors.

After a mobile RV repair did what he could we decided to go in search of some of that Oregon Pinot Noir we have heard about. Oh, yes! It is very, very good. Albany is in the Williamette Valley so we chose just a few of the many, many wineries and really enjoyed ourselves.

This is one that Ben's co-workers liked and we agree! We were in McMinnville and it happened to be the monthly Art and Wine Saturday. We roamed around the historic business area enjoying the shops, the wine, and our dinner.

This area is also know for its covered bridges. We picked up a self guided driving tour of the bridges and enjoyed an afternoon of driving the country roads finding the bridges. It was very hot, in the 90's, so many of the creeks that run under the bridges were also popular swimming holes. As we drove around we expected to see hillsides with the vineyards, but were surprised to see lots of wheat and hay, and lots of really big tree farms, nurserys, berry farms, and rows and rows of nut trees. Hazelnuts. Who knew!

We have made a reservation for an RV park in Yellowstone, and we have some time to make some short stops in towns heading toward Montana, so we just went a little further up the road and stopped in an RV park in McMinnville. More wine!

But it also had the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum within walking distance of the park. It was really something. There were all kinds of planes from several periods of history in one building and the other building was devoted to the Space Program.

The museum is the new home of the Spruce Goose. It really is huge. Too big to be able to get it into one picture!





And, of course, we found more wineries. We needed to go to a bigger shopping area, so went to the outskirts of Portland, and stopped on the way back in two tasting rooms. Everyone has been very friendly, and is very interested in our trip and that we are from New York. We were talking to a couple who were traveling also and were on their way to pick up a cruise to Alaska. Somewhere in the conversation, Jim and the man got to talking about being in the Navy. Turns out they were on the Kittyhawk at the same time. Of course there are about 5000 men on an aircraft carrier, so they didn't know each other then, but it was cool.

Our book of scenic drives will be used again when we leave here. We are headed up to the Columbia River to see the Columbia River Gorge and head east through Washington toward Idaho and Montana.

Jim and Sue

Blooms, Mountains, Big Trees, Misty Beaches, and Vampires!

We're on the Olympic Peninsula, staying in an RV park outside Port Angeles, Washington. We did decide to take a day trip over to Victoria, and were able to find an Express Ferry that leaves fairly early in the morning, and returns in the evening.


From the harbor in Victoria you can take a shuttle bus to the butterfly gardens and then on to Butchart Gardens.

The gardens are beautiful! It was sort of a rainy day, but that doesn't keep the people away during the summer season.

This is the Sunken Garden that once was part of a limestone pit. Shows what a little imagination can do!

The hydranga were really beautiful and had quite a range of color from white, pink pale blue all the way to the deepest blues. Roses were in full bloom as were the dahlia. All kinds of dalhia.

We have heard and read a bit about the Olympic National Park being one of the most diverse of the parks. We spent one day going into the mountains visiting Hurricane Ridge. We made it in time to go on another Ranger led walk and learned about how fierce the winters are. There were black tailed deer close to the Visitor's Center that seemed very used to people. They made it a bit hard for the ranger to keep everyone's attention when they came up on the path right by the group.

Then you have the river valleys in the park that get lots of rain and mist and have a whole other look to them. We went to the Hoh Rainforest and walked the Hall of Mosses Trail, and spent one very rainy afternoon walking up to the falls at the Sol Duc Trail.

This was really beautiful. Quite a few people on the trail but they thinned out as we walked. Many puddles that day!

The Hoh Rainforest had a very eerie feel. It reminded us of something from the Everglades.

And then, there is the beach! We drove down the coast, stopping at Ruby Beach in the morning with the fog rolling in. The tide was out and we roamed around on the beach investigating the tide pools. Huge seastars and urchins.

Lots of the beach is rock that has been beaten and rounded by the surf. Some if it is big round rocks, but near the surf are the small smooth pebbles. Great for skipping over the still pools!


Ruby Beach is named because there is garnet in the sand that gives some areas a very pink color.

We continued down the coast, had lunch in the lodge at Kalaloch and headed back. The change was quite something. The sun had come out, and the tide had come in. Where we had walked in the morning was now covered by crashing waves. Cool!

Now, for those of you who are into the popular "Twilight" series, this is where it is all happening! From the RV park in Port Angeles, we went down to Forks, Washington. That's where Bella lives. We went to dinner in Port Angeles the evening after we were in Victoria. Turns out it is the scene of the first date. There are all kinds of Twilight Tours, and shops selling things from the books, and other spots that are related to the books. They have really embraced the popularity

The Visitor's Center in Forks even had a red truck. There were teenage and not so teenage women all over the place! But we didn't notice anyone that looked a bit unusual. At least we don't think so. Hmmm.







We are planning to continue a bit farther down the coast into Oregon and then eastward.

Jim and Sue