Travels With Miranda

The Move is Now Official!

2008-12-23T23:14:00.001-08:00

Well, the worst of the blog move is over, so I've decided that I will no longer be updating travelswithmiranda.blogspot.com. All future updates will be at travelswithmiranda.uskeba.ca. I'll leave the Blogger version up for now, but everything on it is available at the WordPress site, including comments.

What is left for me to do is finish uploading all my photo albums. You might therefore encounter broken links within old posts. Please take a moment to leave a comment if you encounter such a link.

I'm very, very excited about this move. While WordPress has tested my patience (and will continue to do so), I am happy to be moving to the freedom of hosting my blog at my own domain and having full control over the design. I hope that this blog/website hybrid will be both useful and entertaining.

Miranda and I hit the road again in just a little over a week!

If Not the Weather, the... Cats

2008-12-23T15:59:00.001-08:00

I had water at 6:30 this morning, but not at 8:30. I got the heat gun, set it up, opened the tap in the bathroom sink, and went out to open the guest facilities. I wound up getting tied up there and didn't get back home for twenty minutes.

That was just long enough for:

-the heat gun to work its magic;
-water to start gushing out of the bathroom tap;
-one of the cats (probably Neelix) to leap up onto the counter to get at all that fresh, yummy water, and;
-knock a washcloth into the basin where it stopped the drain.

*sighs*

I suppose that's one way to wash the floors. I used a heater to dry out everything and the room looks okay. I hope that the water didn't have time to infiltrate.

In other dismal news, I believe that my overhead cab is now leaking. I've got a nice chunk of ice in one corner. Inside. I'm going to get the heater up there next, but I'm sure the damage is done. Caulking will have to wait until the weather warms up.

In happier news, it was SUNNY today!!! I went out to do the cleaning this afternoon and switched to a light sweater and a kerchief, instead of the sweater, coat, and tuque I've been living in. Sure, it was a tad 'brisk' (-11) walking around the park like that, but it felt sooooo nice to be unencumbered by a million layers of clothing. Of course, the sun is already setting (can't believe it's four, where does the day go?!), but I definitely got my vitamin D quota for the day.

This afternoon, I managed to run my errands in preparation for Thursday's dinner with the guests. My contribution is mashed turnip (rutabaga for you purists) with brown sugar, which I will have the pleasure of serving in a bowl that belonged to my dad. I couldn't tell you the number of times I served mashed root vegetables in that bowl over the past twenty years and I am very happy to bring a piece of my father with me to this traditional Christmas meal he would have enjoyed so much.

Introductions

2008-12-22T12:45:00.000-08:00

If you like Travels With Miranda, then I'd like to invite you to check out the brand new blog by my new friend Donna (aka 'Gypsy'), Life On Our Ark! Donna and her husband are, like me, complete RVing (and full-timing!) newbies, as well as Canadians. Donna's just getting started, but her first few posts will have you in stitches as she recounts her own experiences with our current climate crisis. Welcome to the RVing cyber family Donna! I look forward to following your adventures when we part ways!

Such Naïveté

2008-12-22T09:45:00.001-08:00

Gee, Rae thinks, it's pretty warm out there (minus six). The tanks need dumping! Why don't I just thaw out the dump valves. There! All thawed! Waitaminute, nothing's coming out!

Yes, my full black tank is actually a solid block of ice. As a friend would write--:headdesk:

Goings On Behind the Scenes

2008-12-21T18:28:00.000-08:00

I am in the process of moving Travels With Miranda to not only WordPress, but also my own site. In doing so, I will gain greater control over the format of the blog and will be able to integrate both the blog and the website into a seamless whole (at least, I hope so). I have therefore removed the website, so you may encounter broken links within blog posts. All of this will be fixed in good time. This is a major endeavour on my part as I need to learn new types of coding languages and how WordPress works (or, rather, doesn't). It is a fine adventure and has been, and will be, keeping me busy for months.

For a sneak peek, you can check out the new blog at travelswithmiranda.uskeba.ca. I will make an announcement when the new blog becomes the official Travels With Miranda. This won't be for quite some time as there is much for me to do with the new blog:

-cleaning up all the posts by fixing links, reuploading pictures, categorizing, and tagging;

-tweaking the design;

-uploading all my travel pics and doing all the coding for the pages;

-transferring information from TWM:TW to the new WordPress site.

Thank you to all my readers; you make me feel that this effort on my part is worth my time!

Trying to Lull Us Again...

2008-12-21T10:51:00.001-08:00

At 7PM last night, it was minus twenty-one. My water froze again in a matter of minutes and it took forever to get it going. I was chilled to the bone and miserable; I hadn't felt my feet in two days and the night promised to be brutal. When I got the water running again and was able to take a very long and extremely hot shower, I felt better. By the time I went to bed at 10:30, it was minus seventeen. Yes, the temperature was going up...

I had a fantastic night. When I woke up around 5:30, my first thought was that the bedroom was very cozy!

I rose to minus sixteen and about six inches of snow, which I just spent two hours moving out of the way in areas where people walk. Apparently, a snow plow is on its way.

It's supposedly cold out there, but a dry minus sixteen with no wind is perfectly bearable.

The Fighting Resumes

2008-12-20T11:06:00.001-08:00

Yesterday evening, I suddenly found myself without water once again. It's presently -16 and we're looking at another long stretch of deep freeze. The forecast continues to change and while we're looking once again at a long period of sub-zero weather, they are no longer announcing nights at twenty below. Small blessings, I suppose.

I'm trying to figure out where the water is frozen. My compartment is well heated and my heat tape is working. All I can fathom is that the problem is once again in the pedestal, but that was insulated. So, perhaps the problem is underground...

At times like these, I start to dream of Las Vegas, but Las Vegas got more snow than we did this week, so I am starting to wonder if there are any warm havens left!

A Really False Sense of Security

2008-12-18T17:20:00.001-08:00

My toilet has decided to start working again.

Lulling Us Into a False Sense of Security...

2008-12-18T16:42:00.001-08:00

This morning was, again, my favourite kind of day--bright, warm(ish), and snowy. I spent over an hour digging myself and my neighbour out from our two day snowstorm and it was perfect shoveling weather; I soon removed my winter coat and laboured away in just a sweater, gloves, and tuque (and jeans and boots and socks!). But it wasn't long before the sun vanished and the cold began to seep in again as the wind picked up. We went from a minus six without windchill to a minus seven that feels like minus fourteen. At least, the forecast continues to be more and more optimistic; we're supposed to hit zero on the 25th!

A glimpse of our snowy world:

Red Herrings

2008-12-17T15:11:00.001-08:00

As it turns out, my plumbing problem with the shower wasn't a plumbing problem after all, but an electrical one.

I've made a mental note to check on the basement heater twice a day from now on... to make sure that the breaker hasn't tripped.

*bangs head on desk*

Reprieve, But at a Cost

2008-12-17T12:45:00.001-08:00

The long term forecast is improving... so much so that we're now in the middle of a snowstorm. As fellow winterites know, it can't snow when it's bitter cold out. So, snow is good in terms of temperatures. We're supposed to hit a high of minus four today, which would be awesome!

That said, the forecast still doesn't think we're going to go above freezing until about the 27th or 28th and... my shower drain is frozen.

A Single Battle Won, If Not the War

2008-12-16T10:11:00.001-08:00

Last night was much better than the previous one.

I concluded that sleeping in the study would bring about the same issues as doing so in the upstairs bedroom because of how COLD it is by the big picture window. Since the bedroom is a much smaller space, I figured that it would be easier to insulate. I grabbed whatever I had; leftover pieces of styrofoam insulation, towels, extra bedding, and suitcases to create as much of a barrier as possible between the windows and myself. Also, before going to bed I set a cookie sheet on the mattress to create a flat and fireproof surface and then stuck the heater up there for about forty minutes. Finally, I didn't skimp on clothes, doubling up on all layers. I was still feeling pretty cozy when I got up at 6:30 to open the park gates, but when I went back to bed after, cold had seeped in.

Another thing I did overnight was leave the water running in the bathroom sink. I hate doing this as it is so wasteful, but environmentalists have obviously never fought this climate. Leaving the tap on meant that I had water this morning and no burst pipes.

When I showered just before bed at eleven last night, the pipes were just starting to freeze. I had water, but the temperature and pressure were uneven. I had to let the shower run for about five minutes before I could even think of getting into it, but the water finally reached optimum pressure and temperature.

This morning, it is -12C (10F), but it feels like -20C (-4F) with the windchill. And what a wind it is. Miranda is thankfully buffered between a house and a huge class A, but she is still being tossed about 35kph (22mph) winds.

Getting up this morning to face the weather wasn't as tough as some people might think. I'm used to this weather, grew up in it, worked in it, camped in it, lived in it. Which all means that I've earned the right to be sick of it.

That said, if it wasn't windy, these would be the best kinds of days. Bracing, sunny, with an air so fresh and crisp that it wipes the soul clean; the kind of day that beats a 'feels like 40 with humidity' summer day.

I suppose I have a love/hate relationship with winter.

Don't Forget About Starting Batteries in Cold Weather

2008-12-15T14:27:00.001-08:00

My house batteries have been handling this cold snap without blinking (knocks on wood), but my coach battery went from 100% charge to 60% overnight. 60%, I discovered, isn't enough to crank the engine. For the first time, I pulled out my trusty charger and used it to trickle charge (at 2A) the starting battery. This took less than 10 minutes. I'll do this once a day until the cold snap passes. I nice it was to have the tool to do this! My neighbours have been boosting their trucks to get them going each day and I know this is not good for a battery.

The car started fine this morning and I have the option of trickle charging it, too, should I have an issue with it at some point.

The charger has a 100A 'jump start' mode for boosting using the charger rather than another vehicle, but I can't use it for obvious reasons! In a pinch, I could use the 15A 'fast charge' mode, but trickle charging is definitely the better battery maintenance option.

There is so much to think about!

Propane Usage

2008-12-15T13:05:00.001-08:00

I filled my propane tank today (thankfully, the place in Oliver, two blocks away, was open!). Exactly 44 hours elapsed between the time when I plugged in the tank on Saturday and the time when I did so today. In that time, I used 20lbs of propane, or 2/3s of a tank. Based on that usage, I would have made it to tomorrow morning on my tank. I have been using an average of .5lbs of propane per hour, or 12lbs per 24 hours. I'll fill up again Wednesday morning and do the math again. My power usage is also apparently through the roof, but what can I do? I feel like I'm trying to survive an ice age in a cardboard box!!!

At least, there is a wonderful bright sun out there and it's making a significant difference in the comfort level in here.

Happier News

2008-12-15T11:36:00.001-08:00

A colleague's husband came by and determined that the water was frozen not at the inlet, but right at the faucet! And this despite the fact that the faucet has heat tape on it and so does my hose! He applied a heat gun to the area for about two minutes and then I had water! Okay, I still don't have water in the toilet room, but this is a vast improvement over my situation this morning and it's good to know that, except for whatever is going on with the toilet hose, Miranda's holding together.

The propane tank still feels quite heavy, but I'm not taking a chance. :-) Soon as the noon day sun has time to work its magic on the roads, I'm going to risk my life and go into Osoyoos to fill up on propane.

Sitting here last night, I wondered why I shouldn't just get a second auxiliary tank and then I remembered why I debated getting a single one in the first place. It's nice to have them when you're parked... but where, praytell, would I store them when I hit the road again?! My vague plan is to just store the empty tank in the trunk of the car, but I doubt that's a very good plan. :-S

An Unpleasant Night

2008-12-15T10:23:00.001-08:00

Boy, the manufacturer wasn't kidding about minus ten being the magic number!

The bedroom was unbearably cold last night and woke me up at 3AM. Additional clothing and bedding weren't sufficient to make me comfortable. I'm not sure what I can do to insulate the windows, what with all the condensation and moisture up there, so I think I will be sleeping in the study this week.

I had water for a few minutes at 3AM, and then none. This makes me suspect that the water intake, not the whole system, is frozen. I aimed a hair dryer at it for about ten minutes this morning, removing a very thick covering of ice. I hope that full sun will help it further thaw. I've asked for advice as to whether I should leave the water connection on or close it and am awaiting a response.

Two winters ago, I sat shivering in a metal box on wheels without water and swore I'd never go through that again. I've, yet again, failed to keep a promise to myself. I'm trying to decide if that failure is mitigated by due diligence in picking a suitable Canadian climate for passing the winter (even though said climate has betrayed me) and, well, being on the road.

At least, water and hot showers are just a hop, skip, and a jump across the compound. This sure beats driving into the city to use the gym showers, schleppiung to the village spring for drinking water, and melting snow for non-potable use!

I will get through this, but after surviving the Ice Storm and four winters in the mobile house I've earned the right to do so while stomping my feet and jumping up and down shrieking hysterically "IT'S NOT FAIR!" At least, inside my head. On the outside, I'm still trying appear graceful and full of humour. :-)

Next year, I'm going south. Budget be damned.

Thinking Outside the Question

2008-12-14T21:34:00.001-08:00

I asked the Escapees forum tonight if there was some way for me to tap into the 50A outlet on my power pedestal so I could run my heater. The answer I got was that it was possible, dangerous, and expensive. The solution became more and more complicated until someone suggested that I get a heater with a lower amp draw.

Which made me pull out my manual, whereby I discovered that by using a lower setting, I can reduce both of the heaters' draws from 12.5 to 7.5A!!! Talk about a DOH moment that had me both blushing and laughing. Even at a lower setting, I'm still getting more heat from the two of them than I would from just the big one on its own.

I continue to be humbled.

And so it begins...

2008-12-14T16:16:00.001-08:00

It went down to about -8 last night. Everything was hunky dory this morning, not that I was stressed seeing as the magic number is -10.

Today's high was about -8 and it's all been downhill from there.

This morning was my favourite weather, the one in which I could live pretty much year round except for two weeks of swimming weather--coldish, dry, and sunny, perfect for wearing a light coat while doing some brisk exercise... like shoveling. But the weather has now degenerated to the 'bitterly cold' stage.

Everything is no longer hunky dory. The line from the main part of the plumbing to the toilet room appears to be frozen solid.

I traced the line and realised that, DOH, it's actually located in a compartment, one that I so seldom use that I tend to forget I even have it. So, I went out to the hardware store and picked up the cheapest heater they had. The clerk tried to 'upsell' me to a fancier and pricier model but I made it clear that I had the heaters I needed for inside and I was just looking for something for the basement. He confirmed that the cheapie should work fine.

So, I got the heater installed in the compartment, but there is a problem: I had to use the 15A connection that was running the space heater in the cab. I therefore can no longer run that space heater as I'm out of amperage!

I purchased potable antifreeze, which I'll add to my pipes periodically (yes, I know it's not the most efficient way of using the product). I also bought some desiccant crystals to absorb some of the moisture in here.

A reader asked a very pertinent question: why don't I just leave and escape the weather? The only way out of here is through some pretty bad snow and icy road conditions. It's safer to make my stand right here.

I'm desperately trying to keep some perspective here. A few days of personal discomfort really won't matter if I can at least keep my plumbing and other systems from suffering damage. I can wear more clothes, wrap myself in a blanket, or spend the day at the clubhouse.

In January 1998, I lived through what we call THE Ice storm. 21 days without power, living as refugees, and learning to 'do without.' A cold snap where I have access to supermarkets, hot showers, and the internet pales in comparison to that event. So, don't worry about me, but pray for my Miranda!

Propane Provides an Important Lesson

2008-12-13T17:10:00.001-08:00

At 4PM today, I ran out of propane. Lesson learned? That an empty tank of propane weighs a lot!!!

Thankfully, there is one propane place in this area that has excellent hours for propane service: the Shell station in Osoyoos. They're open 6AM to 10:30PM seven days a week during the winter. Of course, the 40 minute round trip wound up being closer to a full hour since I was driving slooooooowly. But what a relief it was to run out at 4PM instead of the middle of the night!

I had no problem getting the tank hooked up this time around. Thankfully!

Into the Breach

2008-12-13T12:28:00.001-08:00

Oh, it's getting cold out there. It's also very slippery. There is no way I am going into Penticton to get anything. So, I'll be making my stand with what I have here.

I went out for about a half hour and tried to shake as much snow off of Miranda as possible. It was hard because a lot of it is crusted ice. My first priority when the thaw comes will be to get rid of all the ice and snow before it melts. If it melts, it will infiltrate and I will have major problems on my hands. I'm keeping particularly close watch on the upstairs bedroom. I wanted to climb up onto the roof, but it was much too slippery to do so.

One conclusion I've come to is that I simply cannot skimp on inside heat. Even if I have to go through a container of propane a day, I need to keep her insides warm. I noticed that the rear of her exterior is pretty much snow and ice free except for the bumper, while the front, and least heated, part of her is icy. Coincidence, I think not.

An issue I'm having is that the space heater is skewing the thermostat's sensors. So, I'll be moving the space heater forward and bringing the radiant heater aft. I think that this will serve a dual function in that the space heater will help reduce condensation in the cab and upstairs bedroom. I just wish it wasn't so noisy!

I'm trying to decide if I should blow my water lines or not. Some people say I should out of sheer precaution, others that this is not necessary. I have too much experience with exploding plumbing to make this decision lightly. I'm just wondering if I'm not already too late to do so.

I'm not worried about my personal safety or that of the cats. We've ridden out worse weather than this. But the last thing I want is to ruin Miranda or have her experience damages that will ruin me financially.

As the days march by, I regret more and more my decision to remain in Canada this winter. My reasoning was that I would be able to work, but that hasn't panned out at all. I would have been much better off living frugally in a New Mexico park. A bitter lesson.

Walking in a Winter Horrorland

2008-12-12T20:56:00.001-08:00

This morning, I watched astounded as a mountain (okay, what amounted to about two inches) of snow came down. It was the best kind of day; snowy, but at a perfect temperature for walking. I just got in from a brisk stroll.

But the snow was a non-event compared to news I got this morning from my colleague's husband: an extremely cold front is moving in, bringing in temperatures that haven't been seen here in at least a decade. Check out this graph, courtesy of theweathernetwork.com

The white line marks average temperatures. The yellow marks projected temperatures. It is well below the white line. We're heading into a week-long stretch of weather in the minus teens to minus twenties. That's the high minus single digits for you Americans.

There is no way I can properly prepare Miranda for that kind of weather, not with the resources available to me nor the resort restrictions on what can be done to the exterior of the rig. I can mostly only pray that the forecasts are extremely pessimistic.

My colleague's husband suggested I get a rigid PVC pipe in which to run my sewer hose so that it can be propped up at an angle. He even measured how much I would need. The first hardware store didn't have any pipes left in stock, but the second one did. Slight problem, though. I can fit up to 8' lengths in the car... but I needed 10'. I wound up sticking the extra length out of the passenger window. According to eye witness testimony, it looked like my car was equipped with a canon! LOL

When I got home, I unloaded the pipe and went in to have lunch. When I came out, my pipe was gone! On a hunch, I went around the rig and there was my pipe, all nicely installed by my colleague's very nice husband.

I went back in an installed insulation in the cab, which is already making a difference (!). Tomorrow, I need to work on the front door and get a new space heater since the first one I bought conked out on me (over use, perhaps?).

How I plan to ride out this wave of cold weather is to run both electric heaters on max AND have the furnace going. I will leave all cabinet doors and that to the bathroom open to let the warm air circulate.

I'm especially worried about my holding tanks. I'm going to call a few RV places tomorrow and see if they have the special heating pads.

What a mess. I feel like I'm in the movie The Day After Tomorrow!!!

In happier news, one of my best friends never ceases to amuse me. She sent me this:

RV Park Gouging

2008-12-12T09:41:00.001-08:00

One of the most unpleasant realities of living in RV parks is the way in which owners gouge clients by creating 'extras' that are not built into the flat fee.

The park in Fort Langley that I was looking forward to going to. The rates were attractive, but I saw a note that there is a 2$ charge per pet per day. I was going to ignore that since my cats don't go outside, but then I realised that since they like to sit by a window, management would know I have pets. So, I emailed back to confirm that the pet fee wouldn't apply to pets that don't go outside. Nope. They wanted to charge me an extra 20$ per month for them!!!

I replied that this was ridiculous and that I won't be staying at their campground.

Boondocking and Shunpiking Resources

2008-12-10T16:15:00.001-08:00

Have you ever heard of 'shunpiking'? I hadn't until I read Marianne Edwards three books about frugal boondocking and shunpiking through the southern US, appropriately called RV Travel Guides: The Frugal Shunpikers Guides To America:

I was very impressed by all three of these books, one each for New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. They detail suggested routes for touring these states, complete with boondocking spots along the way.

Of particular interest to Canadians is that fact that Marianne is a Canadian! I've heard great things about how cheap it is to boondock in New Mexico, but her book on the state is the only resource I've found that explains in detail how a Canadian can benefit from the New Mexico parks policy.

Complete with a comprehensive table of contents and index, maps, and pictures, these e-books are very professionally designed. My favourite part is the 'tips' sidebars.

The books will also appeal to campers (ie. tenters) as Marianne offers plenty of information for them, too.

In addition to boondocking information, she also offers suggestions for what to see and how to get there. In short, all three books about frugal shunpiking through the southern US are comprehensive tomes on how to get to the state and tour the state frugally while making sure that you see what needs to be seen.

Even though Marianne writes from years of experience on the subject, she still doesn't purport herself to be an expert on the subject, but rather makes it clear that the books are based on her family's experience. They therefore make good travelogues also, even if they are not written in that style.

As a bonus, if you buy all three books at once, you get the third for only $5 and you get a fourth bonus book, Basic Boondocking: A Frugal Shunpiker's Guide!

Marianne and her husband travel in a small class B camper van, so different from my spacious class C. I still found a lot of the information to be relevant to me. Ontario boondockers and snowbirds will benefit from reading the section about OHIP coverage. Two pictures in this book will sell you on the concept of boondocking and alone are worth getting this book. One shows the view when boondocking in the southern US, while the other shows the view when staying in a campground.

The holiday season will soon be upon us and I believe that RV Travel Guides: The Frugal Shunpikers Guides To America would make a fantastic gift for the RVer in your life or even the armchair traveler.

Endings and Beginnings

2008-12-10T12:25:00.001-08:00

I was laid off from the nursery job today. I can't believe that I made it all the way to the end of this contract!!! It was a brutally hard time there, sometimes demeaning, always exhausting, but there was laughter and camaraderie, too. It reminded me that I'm not as soft or undisciplined as I think I am. I couldn't make a career of that particular job, but I think I could do manual labour for the long term, provided it's a position that's a better fit for me. I gained 10lbs of solid muscle and lost 5 inches on my waistline doing this job. It sure beat riding a desk for eight hours and then squeezing in an hour at the gym!

It seems that I won't be working the rest of December (EEP), but I'll keep looking for work until the 20th.

My options for January are:

1) Remain in Oliver if I find a good job and stay on at the resort as a guest;

2) Remain in the Okanagan... if I find a good job. I am waiting to hear from a ski resort near Vernon that advertised an appealing position;

3) Move the Vancouver area. I've found a park in Fort Langley (about 40 minutes from downtown Vancouver) with reasonable rates for January and February. I told them that I will confirm a reservation next week. So, I'm giving myself that long to find a job here. So... I think I'm going to Fort Langley next. :-)

A Time for Departure

2008-12-07T16:38:00.001-08:00

Weather permitting, I will be rolling out of Oliver on January 1st, 2009.

Next stop, who knows, but let's just hope there are good jobs there.

A World Made to Scale

2008-12-07T15:07:00.001-08:00

This afternoon, a group from the resort including myself toured a couple of ski hills, three or four fairs, a zoo, a m*a*s*h, an army base, and several towns. We witnessed at least a half dozen accidents and someone getting arrested, explored a sunken ship, marveled at a mermaid, laughed at skinny dippers, and experienced two nights.

All this, and so much more, can be experienced at the Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad, Canada's largest Marklin-layout. The museum is a 3,500 square foot (and growing!) miniature Europe, featuring fantastic scenes and whimsical humour with, of course, model trains traveling through the various landscapes. It is well worth a detour to Osoyoos!

Playing With Dragons

2008-12-06T15:59:00.001-08:00

Earlier this week, I decided to get away Friday night to, well, get away. I decided to go to Vernon, thinking it would be a quick drive as the city is just 155km north of Oliver.

Ha.

There have been road closures on highway 97 north of Summerland for months now and the situation is getting ridiculous seeing as that road is the only way to reach the north Okanagan without taking three times as long by using one of the 'detours.' Yesterday, I left Oliver at 1:15, figuring I would hit Summerland at 2, at the end of the scheduled 1 to 2 road closure, just squeeze in before the 2:30 closure and arrive in Vernon for about 3:30. Just as I entered Summerland, there came an announcement on the radio that the road would be closed until about 3:30. I finally pulled into Vernon at about 5:15, in the dark, and in freezing rain. Very relaxing. The four hours it took me to drive 155 kilometres doesn't beat the 9 hours it took me to drive from the Mexican border to north of Los Angeles (less than 200km), but it's pretty close.

At any rate, I sure was glad to get to the B&B I'd found via trusty old Google, Richmond House 1894. I'd called my hosts, Dinham and Kathy, to let them know I would be very late, so they were waiting for me when I arrived. Kathy lead me up to my room, the Tennyson, and showed me around the guest area. Richmond House is a beautifully appointed Victorian jewel with all the comforts of home. I had a specific reason for picking this B&B:

A sight for sore eyes for an RVer who loves a good soak!

Before the ultimate of all treats, I asked for some suggestions for dinner and Kathy was quick to suggest Sushi 1 on 30th Avenue. Not having had Japanese in way too long, I headed that way. Dinner, while not inexpensive, was fabulous! I went for the evening bento box special which had sashimi, shrimp rolls, tofu, tempura, teriyaki salmon, and more. Add a Sapporo beer and I just about rolled out of there, LOL! One thing I love about Japanese food is that you rarely know what you're eating, but just about everything is delicious. I easily recognized the salmon sashimi, but there was also some white fish I'd never had before. Both were equally delicious. Raw fish is not at all like cooked fish, it has a very delicate flavour and a 'melt-in-your-mouth' texture that is slightly gummy, but not slimy. When I started to eat fish voluntarily several years ago, I actually started with sashimi before 'graduating' to cooked fish. So, the bento box is a fabulous deal and I highly recommend Sushi 1 in Vernon!

Then, I had a much needed and well-timed soak as yesterday we moved 'mega' blocks weighing 25lbs to 30lbs each and my muscles were sore!

Sleep came easily in a luxuriously soft bed...

Breakfast this morning was the proverbial icing on the cake: fresh juice, excellent coffee, fruit compote with yoghurt, waffles with mounds of berries and whipped cream, two muffins, and a slice and a half of pumpkin loaf. I brought the muffins and loaf home as I was stuffed by the time they came out of the kitchen! The price for all this luxury is worth mentioning as I've paid more to stay in crappy motels with no amenities: 75$, taxes included.

It's really winter in Vernon, with snow, slush, and freezing rain, so I wasn't too tempted to tool around much this morning. I'd made a list of interesting-sounding attractions open on Saturday mornings and decided to visit the Okanagan Science Centre.

The museum is tiny and kid-oriented. At present, it is between exhibits, so there isn't really much to see. It was still worth a detour for me because of the reptiles!

First, though, I toured their astronomy section and really enjoyed the exhibit featuring a 'what if' scenario for someone stranded on the moon: your craft is damaged, there is stuff to fix it 100km away at a station, and these are the items available for your journey. Which five items will help you and which three will hinder you? I was surprised by some of the answers.

As I was heading out, a lady asked if I want to pet the one snake available for public touching, seeing as the others were digesting after being fed yesterday. Of course! The snake in question was a young (two year old) albino boa (making him cream and orange-coloured) and such a darling! The lady even let me hold him for a surprisingly long time. I love boas! After getting my fill of the boa, I was invited to take a look at the resident anaconda (a member of the boa family), not something I was about to turn down! To my delight, this wound up being a green anaconda, not a black one like I'd seen in San Francisco and Brandon. Her name is Bridget and she's a beauty, olive-skinned with black spots. Just as I thought the visit couldn't get any better, I was invited to hold one of the resident bearded dragons! I'd never in my life held such a critter before and it was quite the experience! He was a rolypoly fellow, with a huge tummy and a love of having the top of his head scratched. Anyone who thinks that a reptile can't show affection has never met Ralph the bearded dragon!

And that was the end of my over night trip to Vernon. The drive home was better, although I still hit an unscheduled 15 minute closure at Summerland.

When I left yesterday, I turned off the space heater, left the radiator on high and the furnace set to 60, hoping that this would keep Miranda's temperature at 16 even though we were set for another very cold night yesterday. I got in this afternoon and it was 16.5 in here. So, that's very useful information to file away for the next time I leave her overnight in cold weather.

A Slight Chill

2008-12-04T19:23:00.000-08:00

We are currently in the throes of our first below freezing stretch. It's been going down to about minus five over night and we're hitting daily highs of about minus two. Even though I'm well acquainted with week-long stretches of minus thirty-fives, it's been a while and I'm finding these days very cold!

I'm pleased to report that Miranda is holding up very well. I can keep the study, the main part of the bathroom, and the lounge at a comfortable temperature. The kitchen, entrance, cab, upstairs bedroom, toilet room, all cabinets, and the basement stay chilly. For these prolonged periods of cold, I run the furnace through the night as it heats parts of the coach that the electric heaters can't reach. My holding tanks, water line, and sewer pipe all seem to be doing just fine.

Moisture and condensation have thus far only proven to be a problem in the bedroom. Yesterday, I discovered that a cushion that was lying against a window was mouldy. I threw it out and will now make it a habit to wipe the windows once a day. The bedroom being chilly isn't a problem. I like to sleep with a lot of blankets, so I'm nice and cozy, and when I get up, I immediately enter a warmer part of the rig, so I don't have a temperature shock.

I had a small heater for the toilet room, but it stopped working a few weeks ago. I finally made it to Penticton today and returned it, but there were no comparable replacement options. So, for now, I leave the toilet room door open overnight, but I will try to find another little heater as soon as I can. I still can't get over the fact that there is no furnace vent in that room!

Miranda continues to be the most comfortable home I have ever had the pleasure of living in.

Camp Hosting Tips

2008-12-03T18:18:00.001-08:00

I've now been at my first camp hosting job for close to eight weeks. It is not going well.

Here are some tips on what should be done to avoid some of the issues I'm now facing:

1) Confirm the details of the arrangement before moving in and sign a written contract;

2) Make sure you and the manager agree on what constitutes hours that qualify towards the minimum expected to cover your rent (or whatever you're bartering for);

3) Get a bit of background on the people you will be working with (how long they've worked there, what they do, what their expectations are for temporary staff);

4) Don't allow them to make significant changes to the contract without a new contract being signed;

5) Don't assume that you and the manager speak the same language. Reiterate very instruction that you are told until you're sure you know exactly what s/he means;

6) Be aware of just how much value you are being given for the number of hours you put in. Camp hosting can turn out to not be cost effective;

7) 7) Carefully evaluate the proposed schedule to ensure that it will not be damaging to your health.

Headin' for Oz

2008-12-02T13:26:00.001-08:00

This morning, I awoke to find Miranda rocking back and forth. It was almost like being on a boat! So, I sure wasn't surprised when I stepped outside to find the wind gusting at about 30KPH. As we worked this morning in the greenhouses, their plastic coverings flapping ominously, I joked that if the house had wings we could take off. My surly (but sweet!) supervisor actually found that funny. Bitterly cold wind not withstanding, it's been a beautiful day with sun and a really odd sky colour. I believe it's called 'blue.'

As if the day wasn't surreal enough, we had that coup in Ottawa. I just can't believe that our politicians, who are of the talking, not acting, variety, conspired together to bring down the current government. Let's hope the Queen (via the Governor General, of course) signs off on the coalition!

The Little Discussed Gem of the Class C

2008-11-29T07:27:00.001-08:00

I've read a lot about Class C RVs. We owners of them are quick to extol their virtues. But there is one feature I've never seen discussed: the view from the overhead cab.

Think about it. Miranda is about 11' tall, not counting the air conditioner and antenna. So, when I'm lying in the cab, right up against the ceiling (since I have a particularly thick mattress), I'm pretty much sleeping at a height that is equivalent to the floor of a second story.

One of my favourite parts of the day is to peek through the curtains up there first thing in the morning and watch the sun rise or the rain fall. I get a long distance view right clear across the park and to the mountains. I've had gorgeous views (middle of nowhere Transcanada, Vérendrye Park), views that were okay (Cochrane, here), and views that sucked (Edmonton, any Walmart). What a treat it is to be able to survey my new home or check out the weather before even getting out of bed!

Snow! (sort of)

2008-11-28T14:28:00.001-08:00

We got our first snowfall this morning! Okay, it didn't stick and quickly turned to rain, but the mountains, where it did stick, sure do look pretty!

Winter, Is That You?

2008-11-26T21:24:00.001-08:00

November 26th. No sign of snow, although we have plenty of pea-soup fog. Still warm enough out most days to just wear a sweater and fleecy coat (although I do pull out my winter coat when I do the gates at 11PM!). No need for boots. Only the odd bitterly cold wind betrays the fact that we're less than a month away from the official start of winter.

Tonight, we're going to reach the lowest temperature I have yet encountered while living in Miranda: minus five. I've got both heaters running full blast after running the furnace for a couple of hours. The heaters simply don't reach the farthest reaches of the rig, such as the back of the cabinets, but the furnace does. Miranda is now nice and toasty, so I should have a comfortable night.

As for the outside, I've got heat tape on my water hose, so I don't think it will freeze. I'm not worried about the holding tanks since they would need a stretch of several days below zero before freezing. It still rises to well above that during the day.

Propane Is No Fun At All

2008-11-26T15:44:00.001-08:00

I went back to Osoyoos yesterday afternoon and finally got the proper hose. I returned home, installed it, checked for leaks, then followed the instructions before trying to light my stove. It got a bit of gas, lit, then conked on. I tried this a couple of times, then went back out. My neighbour saw me poking around and asked me if I needed help. I walked him through the steps I had taken and he confirmed that I did everything perfectly. He said that there was probably a lot of air in the hose and to try to light the stove every couple of minutes until the flame took.

A couple of hours later, he came to see if my stove was firing up. Nope. So, he told me to close the valve on the auxiliary tank, turn on the stove to drain the last of the propane from the hose, and then open the tank sloooooowly so as to trick the flow-limiting valve.

That didn't help either.

But the flow-limiting valve was something I didn't know about. It's a safety feature that prevents a huge amount of propane from getting into your systems and becoming a fire hazard. I Googled that last night and found a suggestion that I simply shut off everything, remove the hose, reattach it, then reopen the tank valve sloooooooowly.

I did that and, this morning, I had a lot more propane coming to the stove, but it still wouldn't stay lit. Same thing this afternoon.

I decided to try to reset the system one last time before admitting defeat and conceding that I might have seriously screwed up my propane system. I closed the valve on the tank, unhooked the hose, rehooked, then just nudged the valve. For the first time, I hear a bit of a hiss. I waited until the noise stopped, then I slowly and evenly opened the valve the rest of the way. I could finally hear propane flowing!

My stove lit up fine and stayed lit for a couple of minutes, so the next step was the hot water heater. It fired up in one try. Woohoo!

Shower Snobbery

2008-11-24T22:37:00.001-08:00

Having no hot water, I used a resort shower tonight. They're quite nice and very clean, definitely better than any shower I've ever had... except Miranda's!

Miranda's shower has several features that make her particularly luxurious to me:

1) The angled design means more width. I can stretch out and turn comfortably. It seems to be a more efficient use of square footage;

2) It has a door instead of a curtain which tends to flap around. I used to find such doors high maintenance until I discovered the squeegee! Now, I just squeegee the doors when I'm done and the doors stay sparkling clean;

3) Storage space!

The caddy has just enough room for all the things I use in a normal shower and there's even a little shelf for extras. I had never before seen a shower or bath with proper storage!

4) The shower head on a hose is very useful for accessing those difficult to reach parts of the body.

Ah, be it ever so humble, there's no place like home. :)

Fun With Propane (or Not)

2008-11-24T17:57:00.001-08:00

I ran out of propane last night. *rereads that* Okay, that sounds bad. I did run out of propane, but this was calculated. I knew I was on the last dregs of the tank, and wanted to get right to the end so I could better estimate my usage for winter. By my calculations, I would be going through a full tank by February, so I'd need to fill up again. That would mean having to unhook everything twice in order to drive the two blocks round trip to the propane fill up station since no one delivers propane directly to motorhomes in this area! The other option was to rent a large tank, but the cost was insane and there was no way I would use every last drop of propane in that tank. So, I finally decided to use an Extend-A-Stay adapter to hook up an external, BBQ-type, propane tank to the rig.

I located one of these adapters in Osoyoos, about twenty-minutes south of Oliver. I finish at noon now at the nursery, so the plan was to drive down there, pick up the part, pick up a tank of propane, and then spend at most an hour installing everything. At the RV parts store, I asked the clerk if I had the right hose and he said I did. So, I went on to get propane. I found out that there is a taller, skinnier tank for motorhome use that holds 30lbs of propane.

By the time I got home, I'd already spend 210$.

I examined my tank and the instructions and suspected that I might not need to Extend-a-Stay, but that, either way, I didn't have the right hose.

So, back to Osoyoos I went where the clerk confirmed that I did need the Extend-a-Stay, but had the wrong hose. He sold me another one. 45$ more.

Got home and spent a brutally cold half hour installing the Extend-a-Stay. It was very hard because the fittings on the tank had never been taken apart, but I finally got it installed and then I went to install the hose.

It's still the wrong hose.

So, now I have to go all the way back to Osoyoos to get yet another hose, and I have no hot water or stove. Some people in my life will tell me that serves me right for waiting till the last minute to get my propane, but if the guy had sold me the correct hose, I would have been done by 2:30 this afternoon!!!

Tomorrow, I'm going to speak with a manager if there is one on site and see if they would be willing to give me the hose since my research tells me it should have been included in the cost the Extend-a-Stay anyway.

Oh, well, it was a good excuse to treat myself to dinner for the first time since I can remember (very unusual for me as I'm a restaurant fiend!) and now I get to try the resort's very nice (but not nearly as nice as Miranda's) shower. :)

So, What's a Grey Cup and Why Have a Party For It?

2008-11-23T21:25:00.001-08:00

Today, I hosted a Grey Cup party in our new clubhouse. I had purchased English muffins and pizza sauce and invited guests to bring their favourite toppings. With everything that's been going on, I clean forgot to get my own toppings! Well, I needn't have worried as the guests were all insistent that I partake of whatever goodies they brought from pastries to mozzarella to some wine that could just about convert me from beer (just about).

I'm not into football at all. The closest I've ever really come to the sport was playing rugby on snowshoes in high school. So, I really dreaded spending three or four hours hosting this party, but the conversation was good, and the handful of guests who showed up really got in the spirit of things making me feel much more appreciated than I have in the past couple of weeks. One guest in particular was very chilly the first time I met her and now she has just about adopted me, much to my amusement.

So, Calgary 22, Montreal 14. BOO.

Writing

2008-11-22T21:19:00.001-08:00

I've always enjoyed writing. There was even a time when I would have considered the hobby a passion. After years of writing huge papers on topics that didn't interest me, I forgot about how much fun it is to write about something that does interest me, like RVing. Which is when I finally clued in to what I want to be when I don't grow up: a full-time RVer earning a living through her writings! Others do it, why not me? Lightbulb on!

I also realised that I'm in the perfect place to actually focus on going about this--rent is taken care of, but I've got the other bills to pay and jobs are scarce. It's good motivation to take a few risks and pen a few words.

I'll let you in on a little secret: I'm already making money from my RV writings. The amounts are jokes (I'll admit to averaging 2 cents per day with one revenue source, LOL!), but they don't have to be. It's time that I be a bit more open about my intentions for this blog and how my readers can help me realise my dream, and this without spending any money.

While Travels With Miranda, both the blog and the website, will always offer free content, I'm no longer going to shy away from pointing out ways in which readers can support Travels so that I can continue to provide new and interesting reading material. I'm pretty sure that tales of travel to such exotic locations as the Walmarts of northern Ontario are much more interesting to read about than complaints about work (they're definitely much more interesting to write about!).

The easiest way to help support this blog is to click on an ad in the sidebar each time you visit, but if you want to outlay some money, directly or not, I've detailed other ways of offering support on the website.

Many thanks to 50 or so unique visitors to this blog every single day. This number grows each week, and makes me believe that I'm not writing to the wind and that my dream is achievable!

and Kabooms

2008-11-22T19:49:00.001-08:00

Making tea this evening, I was presented with a reason why some people could be put off from cooking on an RV stove. I face this reason regularly, but tonight it was particularly spectacular.

When I light a burner, I turn on the gas to lite/hi and then turn the sparker. Said sparker has been acting up again as the knob is loose. After three tries, I gave up and reached for the lighter.

Of course, a bit of propane had accumulated by this time, so there was an impressive explosion when I lit the burner. This happens occasionally and it doesn't faze me as I'm used to cooking with propane.

I wasn't ten years ago, however, and as I made tea tonight, I was transported back to Aviemore, Scotland, on June 15th, 1998. It was a cold and wet Monday night and I was craving soup. As I was doing the youth hostel circuit, I'd been lugging groceries and making my meals, but this was my first time encountering a gas stove that needed to be lit with matches. I put on quite a show for my fellow hostelers, what with my startled scream and falling on my butt. Ah, my first KABOOM. It was unforgettable.

Kablooeies

2008-11-22T19:02:00.001-08:00

Ah. Every time I get smug about some RVing aspect or another, I make a goof that gives me a good dose of humility!

I've been running two heaters on my 30A without any issue. I can even run the microwave when the two are going.

This morning, I decided to vacuum the coach (I must be coming down with something). Only one heater was plugged in, so I decided that I was okay to run the vacuum. Why bother pulling out the manual to see how many amps it draws. It can't possibly run more amps than a microwave and two space heaters combined, right?

I'm just glad that I blew a breaker, not a fuse.

For the record, I use a Black & Decker HV9010P Retriever Pet-Series Cyclonic-Action Corded Dustbuster and Blower that works very well... and draws 6.25AMPs. Add that to the 12.5A drawn by the space heater we're already at 19, and then add the computer and, waitaminute, we're still nowhere near 30A.

Which brings me to the second thing I learned: the outlet above the bed in the backroom and the outlet above the fridge in the kitchen are on the same circuit, which my 19A apparently overloaded. Hence the kablooey.

There's never a dull day when you're RVing.

Swampin'

2008-11-19T18:24:00.001-08:00

A little work update...

This week at the nursery has been okay so far. Half days there really suits me. Did I mention that I'm on half days there now? Probably not. The reasons have nothing to do with the nursery. More on that below.

Monday and today, I was swamping. Best I can figure, this job was so named because it is cold, wet, and unpleasant. I'd previously done this job, but it was much more acceptable this week. What it entails is bending down to pick up 20lb boxes of trees from slats, passing them to someone down a line, then loading them onto a trailer. Repeat ad nauseum (99 boxes of trees on the slats, 99 boxes of trees! Pick one up, pass it around, 98 boxes of trees on the slats!). I had a really good crew Monday and today, all ladies who go at my pace and have comparable strength, so it was not strenuous like the time I did it with the crew of three men. In fact, if I could have this crew all the time, I would prefer to do this job until my last day. The work is positively mindless and it's easy to zone out, so time flies by.

Yesterday, I was put on the packing line, something I've decided I was just not born to do. I have very little manual dexterity and small hands, which means that I can either work fast or I can work neat, I can't do both. Until 11, I was put on a slower line and was able to keep up fine, but then I was put on a faster one for my last hour. The supervisor only got one chance to get on my case since I told her that I know I have no business being on the line and that if she doesn't like my being there, she should take it up with her supervisor. HMPH.

When I started there, I was told the job would run till about December 15th and now I'm hearing December 22nd. There's no way I'm staying there that long. Tomorrow afternoon, I'll be going back down to the employment office to see if there's anything else I could be doing. I can't believe that on Friday I will have been there for four full weeks!!!

As for The Other Job, if this camp hosting position is typical, then I am never camp hosting again. I've written and rewritten and re-rewritten posts on this subject, but I can't find the right balance between pure emotion and objective reporting. Let's just say when I was hired the manager knew that I'm not retired.

Baking

2008-11-16T13:23:00.001-08:00

I don't know why people make such a fuss about baking in an RV oven. It's really not that different from baking in an electric oven. Sure, it's a bit more difficult to gauge the temperature with gas than with electric, but you can get pretty close and then use visual and olfactory clues to tell you when the food is done.

Today being Sunday, we're having a social and the theme is 'afternoon tea' (because, as the guest activities coordinator, I said so *g*). I'm bringing fresh baked tea biscuits and jam:

I make two kinds of biscuits. One is a camping recipe that requires a minimal amount of prep work and then there is this one that requires kneading and rolling out, always a fun activity in a tiny kitchen with no counter space. I wound up just using the top of the stove, with the covering board laid on top of it. I suppose I could have used the dinette, but I try to restrict my messy kitchen activities to the kitchen area... which is really quite a farce in an RV. :-)

Better Days I've Known...

2008-11-11T12:11:00.001-08:00

It's a good thing that today is a stat and that the nursery is closed, otherwise I would have quit last night.

Yesterday morning was fine. The afternoon, however, was a nightmare. We changed tree types and bundle specifications. I was just getting the hang of making bundles of ten trees and was just about able to keep up the pace. Bundles of fifteen trees require a different pattern and the trees are a lot bigger, so I can't pick them up with one hand. As the afternoon progressed, I got more and more behind and the line supervisor yelled my name more and more, sometimes across the harvest room, and more shrilly every time. It was humiliating. I was obviously doing the best I could, was obviously painfully aware of how inadequate I was, and obviously trying to master in one afternoon a skill the line manager had been working on for years. The 80$ I made yesterday was definitely not worth being belittled like that.

We'll see how things go tomorrow. I suspect I won't be put on a line again. If I am and I get yelled at just one time, I'll be advising the production manager that I won't be back on Thursday.

*scans the 'want ads' hopefully*

Sunday Social

2008-11-09T17:28:00.000-08:00

Every Sunday afternoon, we have a 'social' here at the park. Everyone brings in a light(ish) snack and we gab for a few hours. For someone on a tight budget, it's a really good investment: spend about 5$ on a snack and come home stuffed to the gills! :-D

It's a nice way to get to know everyone. Last week, I really did not enjoy myself until the last half hour or so because everyone was talking about retirement and their grand-kids, so there were no conversations to join. Today, I knew a lot more people and they came to talk to me about Quebec, what I do in the park, their jobs, their kids etc. Since I wasn't 'on duty' today, I had planned to pop in for an hour at the most, but ended up staying till the end.

Last week, I brought in a large plate full of brownies (store bought) and went home with most of them. So, today I came with a very small quantity of Nanaimo bars. Lo and behold, it was the favourite dessert of half the people there! I should have known that they're a BC-favourite based on their name! The manager came with BC crab dip and another had a BC salmon dip. Mmm! This really is the promised land!

Similkameen Valley

2008-11-08T12:37:00.001-08:00

I thought of spending the day doing the loop from Oliver to Osoyoos to Keremeos to Penticton to Oliver, but the crummy weather and pea soup fog deterred me. I wound up turning towards home soon as I hit Keremeos and taking a shortcut back. You can visit the site for my pics of the gorgeous Similkameen Valley, but let me warn you that this is my most boring travel post ever. Except for the second to last picture of the set....

Not So Trivial... and Trivial

2008-11-06T17:08:00.001-08:00

Not So Trivial

Congratulations to the 52% of Americans who voted for change and a president who won't embarrass them. I love the fact that Bush's successor's middle name is... Hussein.

A comparable win in Canada would be by a Native American Neo-Democrat... and we're so far from that in terms of how the Natives are still viewed and treated here that I know that won't happen in my lifetime.

But shame, SHAME on those voters in California that de-legalized gay marriage. Electing a black president and taking a giant step back for gay rights cancel each other out. The US doesn't come off as being any more enlightened than it was before Obama became the president elect. :-(

Trivial

The nursery job was much better for a couple of days as I was, temporarily, 'promoted' to full-time line worker. Wrapping and bundling are much easier now and I'm now learning how to do sorting, which is my favourite task. Sorting is essentially quality controlling the trees and picking out the ones that should not be sent to the customers. I love doing this and can do it for hours on end without feeling bored. Unfortunately, all line workers need to rotate the jobs, so I can't sort all day. Yesterday I got to sort for the longest shift of the day (2.5 hours straight), so the day went by rather quickly. Today, I was really disappointed when I was sent back to box duty first thing in the morning. I got a bit of a reprieve for an hour or so to haul blocks, but then had to go back to boxes. The morning was interminable! I was so happy this afternoon when I was sent to a line to bundle and wrap.

Still Slavin' Away

2008-11-03T17:02:00.001-08:00

I've now started my second week at the nursery. Between that and the park, I really don't have any spare energy for things like blogging or updating my site. :-(

My only day off last week was Saturday. I did my laundry and cleaned the rig, then decided that I'd earned a bit of fun. So, I drove to Penticton for a movie, dinner, and bigger grocery selection. The latter is important when you need to have a lunch every day! And quite the lunch, too. A basic PB and J with juice and an apple isn't enough. I need snacks for both AM and PM and a hearty lunch because this job works up an appetite!

Sunday, we had our first social at the park (potluck) and I got to meet some of the neighbours, including someone who is just ten years older than me. Today, I met another woman who is close to my age. I have a feeling we'll all be seeing each other socially this winter. :-)

The nursery job continues to be mind numbingly dull. On Thursday, I got sent outside for the afternoon in a show of very bad management. I was put on a line with four guys. My job was to accept a 10-12lb box of trees from one guy and pass it to the next guy in the line. I kept up, but barely. On Friday, I was told to report to the fields and I said no. The shift supervisor was a bit taken aback by that, but I don't care. I don't want to completely burn myself out, thank you kindly. So, I got put on the assembly line, learning to bundle trees (tougher than it looks) and wrap the bundles. This was okay, but I really didn't like being rushed. So, by Friday I knew that box making up duty really is the best job there, as the boxing supervisor had confided in me earlier in the week.

And that's what I did today, make up boxes. For eight hours straight, until I couldn't feel my thumbs anymore. I was grateful to be indoors because it has been raining non-stop for days now and will for the foreseeable future (with perhaps a break on Wednesday).

For this year on the road, I'd promised myself one month at a low-paying and physically exerting job. Once I'm through at the nursery, either from finding something else that would take me through to spring, or from being laid off at the end of the contract, I want something that pays more an hour so I can work fewer hours. My current schedule is insane! That said, I'm going to be quite buff again by the time I'm through working there. :-)

Slavin' Away

2008-10-28T19:42:00.001-07:00

Whew. The nursery job is better for the body than a pilates workout... except that you don't get a day of rest between workouts. I'm so stiff that I couldn't even bend over to untie my bootlaces this afternoon!

As I expected, the days are very long and the work is mind-numbingly boring. I can't believe that I am paid 10$ an hour to do such exciting things as:

-line cardboard boxes with plastic bags;
-make up boxes (take box folded flat off the pallet, open it up, bend the end flaps);
-take styrofoam trays that come out of the washing tunnel, flip them, and stack them seven high (while trying to drip as little disgusting water on yourself as you can);
-take styrofoam trays coming off the assembly line, flip them, bang them really hard to get the dirt and leftover trees out, and send them on their merry way to the washing tunnel (my favourite job so far: my blue jeans were earthy brown in about ten minutes of this!)

Being a 'newbie', I get all the grunt work, of course! That said, being a 'spare' isn't so bad as I have been able to do several things during the two days I've been there, rather than specializing.

To think that I once had a job where I was paid minimum wage (then just a bit above) to supervise staff, work with customers, perform rescues, do the bookkeeping at the end of my shift, etc. Or how about the job where I was paid 9 bucks an hour to freeze outside during interminably long shifts in isolated parking lots in the dead of winter?! I was such a SUCKER!!! LOL!!!

I doubt I could do much more than five or six weeks at this sort of job, but I think that I'm going to settle into it and come to look back on it fondly. After having jobs where I had to be present for so long, it's nice to just coast along and have no real responsibility.

Most of the other workers are Greek or Indian and I don't think there is a native English speaker among us!!! When I'm on tray washing duty, I have to communicate in sign language with my team mate. Our favourite sign is the smile, which means everything from 'thank you' to 'would you PLEASE speed up?!', with the eyes conveying the nuance of meaning. :-)

I've decided to be reclusive in this job. I'm cheerful and engage in conversation when directly addressed, but otherwise just go about quietly with my work. I take my breaks in almost absolute silence. Those who know me are laughing right now trying to visualize me not talking. It's just not a job where you can gab and get to know your colleagues, and most of them have been there so long that there are established cliques in the lunchrooms. I'm not going to be there long enough to make it worth my while to try to break into one of them.

Speaking of breaks, we get three. We start at 7AM and break from 9:30 to 9:45. Lunch is from 12 to 12:30. Afternoon break is at 2:00 and we go home at 3:30. I like this spacing of breaks. The morning is interminably long, but the afternoon speeds by. Yesterday, I brought a granola bar for a morning snack and some bread and cheese with juice for lunch. I learned my lesson. Today, I had granola bars for both my snacks, with crudités, soup, bread, and juice for lunch. It still wasn't enough. I forgot that these kind of jobs eat up a lot of calories!

I found out from a colleague here at the park that the retail people pretty much lied to me. As it turns out, they wanted me for grunt work (setting up the store) until December and then possibly for a cashier position starting in December. So, it pretty much amounts to what I'm doing at the nursery and I wouldn't be paid as well or have as good conditions (the nursery being unionized means everyone is treated fairly). I definitely made the right choice!!!

As we slowly settle into 'winter' (and I use the term loosely), I already find myself dreaming of spring and the open road. I pretty much know where I'm going next, unless something else comes up, so I'm trying to focus on being here right now and finding as much joy as I can in days when I get up at 6:10AM and work straight through to 11PM. I'm exhausted, but surprised to find that I am not malcontent. I am happy with the choices I made, and while life isn't as sweet or easy now as it was a few weeks ago, it will be again very soon. I can find a measure of contentment in doing a real day's worth of work. With each tray I handle, I remind myself that it once held a seedling that will soon be planted to replace a tree that was logged. So, while my job might now seem insignificant compared to the one I left behind, I know it is much, much more important.

Mother Nature Fights Back!

2008-10-26T13:18:00.001-07:00

Highway 97 between Summerland and Kelowna is closed indefinitely because of a threat of a landslide. This is an area that has been dynamited extensively in the last few months as the government is trying to widen the road. *rolls eyes*

For someone in Osoyoos or Oliver, the detour isn't monstrous. You have to take roads 33 and 3, the road I took when I came back from Kelowna last week. That road takes about 2.5 hours vs. the 1.5 on the 97. Those in Penticton, though, must be peeved: their detour is about TWO hours long!

I can't even begin to imagine the impact on the economy if this had happened at the height of the tourist season.

Assumptions

2008-10-26T12:22:00.001-07:00

There are a lot of things pet owners should not assume. One of them is that just because you cleaned the kitchen table after breakfast it's clean enough to eat lunch at (after removing all the junk you piled onto it, of course):

Mr. Neelix is just enjoying all the lovely heat from that radiator since Ms. Tabitha is hogging the most sun-heated spot in the rig.

Feeling a Desperate Need to Rub It In

2008-10-25T16:32:00.000-07:00

It's sunny out. About 17 degrees. Tee-shirt and sandal weather. Bwa ha ha.

The Three Rs

2008-10-24T14:42:00.001-07:00

Reading

I've been spending the bulk of my 'on duty' hours in the evenings sitting in the front room. This is so I can see who comes in after hours and greet them without their having to come knock on my door. The other after hours host is right in the entrance, so she can be anywhere in her coach and see who has arrived. I'm worried that I'll be asked to move Miranda since one day new arrivals had to knock at my door (I got caught in the bathroom, but what proof of that do I have?!). So, anyway, there isn't much to do in the front room other than reading. I've therefore been going through books at a speed I haven't since high school. The day before yesterday, the other after hours host caught me raiding the bookshelf in the laundry room and informed me that the Oliver library gives cards to RVers wintering in the area! I went there yesterday and had no problem getting my card! They have a decent collection for such a small library, including a teeny French section that held the most recent book by my favourite author, Arlette Cousture! I came out with a pile (okay, seven) books; some novels and some non-fiction, including a pictorial history of Cary Grant. WOOHOO!

Writing

Sunday morning, I have to write up my first newsletter as Guests Activities Coordinator. This is the part of my job description I'm lukewarm about. I'm not convinced that a twenty-something year old is the right person to figure out things for retirees to do. Hopefully, I'll find enough inspiration in previous years' activities folders to satisfy the requirements of the position.

Arithmetic

I was at Walmart this morning looking for two more heaters: a teeny, inexpensive one for the toilet room and a larger oil-filled one for the main room (recommendation from the other after hours host who has been here for a year). Croft brilliantly suggested that I plug one of my heaters into the 15A receptacle on the my pedestal, so I just had to make sure that the oil filled heater wasn't going to be more than 15A. A lot of heaters I've looked at had the wattage printed right on the box, but not this one. So, I had to completely unpack it to get to the manual at the bottom of the box (who packs these things?!). I got some strange looks from other customers, but no one from Walmart bugged me. The heater wound up having a wattage of 600 to 1500, or 5 to 12.5A. So, it would be fine on the 15A circuit. Now, the second heater. My current heater uses 12.5A. My iMac uses 1A. That leaves me 17A. The little heater I bought has a wattage of 900 to 1500, or 7.5 to 12.5A. Obviously, I'll need to leave that one on the minimum setting, but that still leaves me with 9A for operating anything else; enough, but not so much that I'll be able to turn on 'anything else' without thinking about it (note to self, unplug a heater before running the vacuum cleaner or printer!!). As I was figuring all of this out at Walmart, I kept flashing to the scene in 'Apollo 13' where the Gary Sinise character is trying to figure out how to reduce power consumption on the crippled ship. I finally understand what that scene is all about now. :-)

It Doesn't Rain But It Pours!

2008-10-22T11:12:00.001-07:00

Geeze! I had no sooner finished signing the hiring papers for a job when my cell phone rang. I ignored it, of course, and checked my messages a few minutes later. It was another job offer!

I really had to think things over because it wasn't obvious at first glance which job I should take.

Job no. 1:

A position at a tree nursery;

7 to 3:30 Monday to Friday (OUCH. I'm already up at 6:30 because of the gates, but I can't go to bed before 11 because of the gates.);

Repetitive physical labour;

Better than minimum wage, but unionized, so I'd have to work a day and a half just to pay the sign up fees for the union, plus 35 bucks per month;

Eight week contract.

Job no. 2:

A retail position;

8:30 to 4:30 Monday to Friday (still OUCH because there would be no sense going back to bed at 6:30 if I have to get up an hour later!);

Repetitive work (cashier);

Minimum wage;

Work guaranteed till spring.

The 'old' me would have went back to Job no. 1 and said 'Sorry, something else came up' and gone for Job no. 2.

The 'new' me is trying to get away from work that is in line with her university degree and any work that is irrelevant to her studies, and back towards work that is is in line with her college diploma. Working at a nursery plus at an RV park? Completely, 100% in line with my diploma.

So, I'm going to try the nursery job. I did tell the retail shop that I would appreciate their holding my resumé since I'll be back in this same position in eight weeks.

I start Monday.

Oh, and both positions are equi-distance from home. The retail job is 1km north and the nursery job is 1km south. So, neither would have required driving.

Stuck

2008-10-21T18:59:00.001-07:00

Well, I installed my heat tape today and it would be a pain to remove the water hose now, so it looks like I'm settled in for the winter. :-S

First step to installing the heat tape was to cut The Hose From Hell down to a six foot length. I didn't mind doing that since it's thus far been a) too long and b) leaky. I was just about to cut the hose when my neighbour startled me:

Neighbour: How are you going to attach that hose if you cut it?!

Me (holding up a threaded hose connector): With this.

Neighbour: But your hose is going to leak...

Me (holding up hose tighteners): Nope, I've got these.

Neighbour: Oh... How're you doing for tools?

Me (holding up sizable tool chest): Not a problem.

Neighbour: Oh. Um, your foam tubing looks like it might be too short.

Me: Yeah, I need to go pick up some more.

Neighbour: Just a sec! *rummages through basement and emerges with a length of foam tubing* Would this be enough?

Me: Perfect! Thank you so much!

LOL!!! I'm so glad I found a way for him to help me!

We had a gorgeous day here today, hot enough for me to putter around the rig in just a tee-shirt. But 'they' are announcing a below zero night, so I figured it was time to get the heat tape in, even though I've already weathered such nights without it in. The foam is installed in my overhead hatches, so all that's left are the windows and door weather stripping and plastic.

Today, I learned how to read our electric metres. I was advised that my electricity would be paid so long as it is comparable to the average consumption and thus far it is (and is at the lower end). This is very good news! I just hope that adding a second heater won't change those numbers too much. Then again, I won't be the only person heating more, so it shouldn't.

Job hunting continues to suck. I went to the employment office today and got some leads, one of which I'm really excited about. Hopefully, something will come of that one.

I've been asked why I don't just move to Victoria or Vancouver, even Kelowna, where I could get a really good paying job that would pay the rent and the bills. There are lots of reasons I'd rather not do that:

1) The work I'm doing to cover my rent here doesn't really qualify as 'work' in my book. Plus, I can do most of it from home. I'm at work right now, finishing dinner, and keeping an ear out for the office phone (which I bring home with me) and the front gate for late arrivals;

2) The weather is a big factor in wanting to stay put. I've endured a lot of winters in a bad climate with inadequate housing. I've earned a reprieve;

3) I want this camp hosting experience. Now that I have it (and can keep up my good work to earn a good recommendation), I'll be able to start sending out resumés to the Yukon in anticipation of the summer season. I'll have a much better chance of finding something before I arrive than if I had no camp hosting experience at all.

I'm not desperate for work yet, but will be revising my situation in four weeks.

The Little Things

2008-10-19T20:33:00.001-07:00

This morning was my first time opening the office by myself. I was a bit nervous. What if my key jammed in the lock again? What if I had a hard time disarming the alarm system? What if I couldn't get the safe open?

Well, the opening went really well, except for one thing I would never have thought to worry about:

The coffeemaker.

First person in the office has to prepare coffee for staff and guests (yes, free GOOD coffee is another perk here!).

When I make coffee in an automatic machine, I take these steps:

-put water in machine;
-put empty carafe on burner;
-put filter in basket;
-put coffee in filter;
-install basket in machine;
-turn on machine

Well, our machine here is, well, not one whose operation I am familiar with.

I put water in the machine. So far, so good, right?

I didn't realise that putting water in the machine would start it.

Hot water began to pour out.

I placed a carafe on the burner only to realise that I was being pelted by jets of hot water, not a stream, and they weren't hitting the carafe.

With no way (that I know of) to stop the hot water, I held the carafe up to the source of the hot water and jammed styrofoam cups under it to hold it.

While waiting for the carafe to collect all the water, I mopped up the flood.

That done, I put a filter in the basket, put coffee in the basket, and put the filter in the machine.

Then I filled the carafe with water and poured the water in the machine.

Can you see where I'm going with this?

Yup, I should have placed the second, empty, carafe, under the basket.

Because the machine was now raining coffee. At least, it was in a steady stream, not several jets. In the nano seconds before I managed to get a carafe under the stream, there was enough time for a river of coffee to escape, run down the side of the machine, traverse the whole width of the table, and drip down to make a nice puddle on the floor.

I mopped up really well, had my first cup of (much needed) joe, and got to endure quite a few pokes about the smell of burnt coffee (from what had accumulated on the hot burner) in the office all morning.

Maybe I should have my first cup of coffee at home the mornings I open the office!

Highway 33

2008-10-17T18:08:00.000-07:00

I've been out of 'tourist mode' since settling for the winter since I haven't had any money come in. So, I decided that today being the gorgeous day that it was, I would take a mini-road trip to Kelowna and turn it into an adventure by taking highway 33 back, effectively doing a full circle. It would be quite the detour, but a chance to see more of the splendid Okanagan Valley.

First stop in Kelowna was an oil change, then I was off to the Okanagan Heritage Museum. I'm glad that admission was by donation because I was quite disappointed. The museum is tiny! I started by taking a tour of a temporary exhibit about the KGH: Kelowna General Hospital. Then it took about five minutes to go through the rest of the museum. It was an interesting hodgepodge of artifacts from around the world, most of it not immediately relevant to Kelowna. Worth stopping in if you're in Kelowna, but definitely not worth a detour. I walked around the Marina a bit, had lunch, went to Value Village, and then headed home.

Highway 33 wound up being positively breath taking, a world of valleys and peaks unto itself. The most memorable part of the drive was the section of switchbacks that led me down into Osoyoos.

Go to the website for pictures (direct link).

TWM: The Website!

2008-10-16T13:20:00.000-07:00

Whew. After several weeks of playing with templates, conceding that I simply needed to bite the bullet and reacquaint myself with HTML, working with iPhoto, and getting a crash course in CSS from Andy Baird (thanks, Andy!), my dream of creating a website about my journey has been realised!

Please visit the Travels With Miranda website at travelswithmiranda.uskeba.ca.

The blog is a great way to share my story, but it's not a suitable medium for keeping track of vasts amount of information.

The site is still very much under construction, but I do have some goodies on there which you won't find in the blog: many, many more pictures about my travels. So far, I have ALL my Banff and ALL my Kananaskis country pictures up. You'll also find some more in depth information about Miranda and the great big makeover.

In the coming weeks, I'll be adding more travel photographs, a page about full-time RVing for Canadians, and much more.

Settled In

2008-10-15T21:56:00.001-07:00

Last night was my first evening working on my own. I got one drive in and one late check in on a reservation. Both scenarios had twists that hadn't come up in training, but I apparently handled everything fine. Since it was election night, I spent a couple of hours in the lounge watching the results trickle in. I'm allowed to crash on the couch in the unoccupied staff house, but to me it makes more sense to do so in the office where I can see people coming in. At any rate, watching tv is such a 'once in a blue moon' type of event that the issue is unlikely to crop up again this winter (unless our government falls again, of course).

Today, I got caught up on my laundry. Boy is it nice to have access to FREE laundry facilities!!! The laundry room in the staff house is right at an exterior door that faces my front door. I probably have less far to go to get to the washing machine here than I did at my last house!

Tomorrow is my first of three days off, so no getting up at 6:30. Yaaaay! I'll take Miranda out for propane (so much work to go two blocks round trip, *sighs*, and then get to work installing heat tape.

I bought a little space heater at Canadian Tire and it's managed to keep the heat in here at a cozy 20 today and 18 last night all by itself. So, I think that if I add a second one, I won't need to use the furnace at all this winter, avoiding the propane tank rental fees. I wish I had a better idea of just how much propane I will need this winter so I can know if it's worth getting the tank or if I should just put up with the hassle of taking Miranda out a few times. No, propane delivery to my tank is not an option; the company that does propane in this area only fills its own tanks. :-(

I have a job interview tomorrow afternoon with A&W, a fast food chain, hopefully for the cashier position. Minimum wage in BC is pathetic, so there is no way I could make enough on part-time hours there. So, if I get an offer, I'll probably have to consider full-time hours, unless I get a surprise and am offered a supervisor position with better pay. Or better pay, period. At any rate, any employment would be welcome right now; if something better comes along later I can always quit. I do very much like the fact that A&W is walking distance from home and right next to the supermarket.

Tonight has been very quiet. It's nice to be 'on duty' and earning my keep, but still able to sit at home with a movie and a top secret project pertaining to the blog. I really enjoy cashing out; it's been a long time since I've had the pleasure of using a calculator and doing basic bookkeeping (other than my own, of course).

Once I have money coming in again and know what my full schedule will be like, I'm going to start taking off on short trips in the toad. It doesn't make sense to pay gas and campground fees for Miranda when it won't cost anything to leave her here and a motel would be much cheaper for an overnight (or two).

I still can't believe that I'm here and that other than the grape picking not happening, my winter is so far progressing pretty much as predicted.

Settling In and Training

2008-10-13T17:13:00.001-07:00

I don't feel it would be appropriate to give too many details about my hosting job or my colleagues, but I'll at least give a taste of what I've been up to.

Yesterday, I trained in the office for a full day. It's been quiet, so I didn't really learn a lot. Therefore, I was asked to come back in for a few hours today. So, I did the afternoon. I'm learning how to check in guests, use the computer system and cash register, and otherwise see how things are done here.

Mornings, I get up and open the gate at 6:30 and I close them again at 11 at night. This is quite brutal if I need to be up and at 'em like I did yesterday. I went back to bed after doing the gates and had to get up again at 8. Next time, I'll stay up. But this morning I was able to go back to sleep for as long as I needed, so I felt fine.

Last night, I learned how to cash out for the day and I'll be doing that again tonight with supervision. Tomorrow, I should get my keys and then do this on my own from then on. I imagine that starting next week I'll be expected to do my full duties in the evening, which is when I know I'll really start to learn things. :-)

Life here has thus far been quite pleasant and I feel that my privacy and personal schedule are respected even though I'm right on site.

I sent out a few more resumés over the weekend after checking out the local newspaper, so hopefully I'll be able to start paying work soon. Today being Thanksgiving, I didn't think there was a point of going into town to hand out more resumés.

Heating and Work

2008-10-11T16:16:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning to find my propane levels had apparently dropped dramatically overnight, according to Miranda's useless sensors. So, I have anywhere from one day to one week's left of propane (hence the word useless). I noticed that one of my neighbours has a huge tank hooked up to their coach. So, I spoke to the manager about propane delivery and she said that someone is coming by on Tuesday, Monday being Thanksgiving, and that I could get an account set up then for a propane tank rental. However, it could be up to two weeks before I could get a tank hooked up and filled! This is because they have to run a credit check on all customers because of the rental equipment.

The manager repeated that I should get electric heaters and confirmed that I am unmetred (unless I get crazy with my electric consumption). I am going to get heaters, but I just don't feel that they would be as good for coach-wide heating as the furnace is. It makes more sense to me to use the furnace to maintain a general coach-wide temperature of about 17 or 18 and then use an electric heater to heat up the area I'm in to a comfortable temp of 20+. So, I think that getting the propane delivery set up would still be a good thing even if I go hog wild with electricity heating.

Meanwhile, I'm rationing propane. :-) Thankfully, it's gorgeous outside, so I can cook there on the Coleman or the hibachi (now that I am no longer charring my meals!), and the sun has been doing a fine job of heating the coach during the day.

In other news, I got a bit of training this afternoon and was asked to work all day tomorrow to apply that training. Training for what, you might ask? For signing people in after hours, of course! I have also been asked to put in three hours on Sunday morning in the office so that the day people can go to church. So, I have to learn their computer reservation system, cash register operation, and also tour the campground to learn where all the sites are and how to best direct people into them. There's a lot to take in! I'm especially glad that there is cash register work to do since that will update my resumé in regards to retail experience.

Last night's gate closing at 11 wasn't too bad. I showered and changed into my PJs ahead of time, so it was just a matter on slipping into shoes and a coat and popping out for five minutes and then going to bed straight away after since I was exhausted. But this morning's 6:25 wake up call was a tad brutal!!! At least, it doesn't take long to get the gates open. I was back in my still warm bed at 6:30 and managed to fall asleep again. I'm just glad that it's pitch black out at both those hours because of my sartorial choices! LOL Oh, and the manager says that she also performs gate operation duties in her PJs, so I won't get weird looks from her if she sees me. :-) In a few days, once I've learned the necessary procedures, I'll need to perform 'cash out' duties in the evenings. She normally does that at 9 and then goes back out to do the gates at 11, but it's up to me. I might end up preferring to go out at 10:30 and do everything at once. I suppose it will depend on how cold it is!

Rub a Dub Dub

2008-10-10T16:48:00.001-07:00

Like every single park I've been to since hitting the road, this one had has a rule page with one entry that stands out: NO WASHING RV.

That's all well and good and understandable, but Miranda was getting to be extremely filthy and embarrassing looking and I hadn't had any luck finding an RV wash place.

So, I asked here if I could wash the dirtiest parts of her with a rag and bucket and was told that this is fine. I was even offered a ladder! I went out and got a bottle of car cleaner with wax in it. I started with her rear because it was turning black. What a difference the wash made! I then started on her sides but realised that there was no way I could wash her entirely by hand in one afternoon. Her sides weren't that bad, actually, and only really in need of a wash from the tops of the compartments down. So, I did only that part. I washed the cab completely, also. The only thing I didn't manage to wash, and this bugs me, is the bug-encrusted overhead cab. I just could not find a good angle to access it. And, yes, I tried using a mop; it just didn't have enough scrubbing power. Still, Miranda looks much better than she did a couple of hours ago! I did the same thing with Pommette.

I can't believe what a difference this location is to my last. I'm in almost full sun here and I had to crank open a couple of windows. All of last week, I had to run the heat throughout the day to maintain a constant temperature. This will make a huge difference in the winter.

Finally, I discovered I have another perk here: phone access. Once I get a long enough phone cord, I'll be able to receive calls on a regular phone at absolutely no charge. For outgoing calls, I'll need to compare the rates to that of my cell, but I'm sure they'll be better. I'm glad I had the foresight to bring my cordless phones and answering machine with me!

When I add it all up--good internet access, unmetred electricity, unlimited incoming phone calls on top of the site with running water and sewer--I'm going to be willing to work quite a few hours for this park without feeling that I'm being exploited. Heck, just the internet is a huge thing. I had thought that I'd have to get online on my own this winter and estimates put that bill at close to 100$ per month. So, I don't want to hear anyone say that I'm volunteering too many hours! I'll keep track of those hours in the beginning, but I'm not going to be a clock watcher.

Now, if I can only get paying work. The supermarket won't have a position for me just yet and probably not before November. I dropped off another resumé today, this time at Home Hardware, and made a list of places to visit on Monday. I'm not concerned yet. If I haven't had any nibbles in the next week, then I'll expand the search to Osoyoos and then to Penticton if I get really desperate. But I'd really love to find something in Oliver, so that I can be walking (or even biking) distance to work. Penticton would be quite a commute and I would be spending a fortune on gas.

Well, all that scrubbing sure worked up an appetite, so I'm off to make a yummy dinner. :-)

Home Sweet Home

2008-10-10T12:44:00.001-07:00

Whew. Moving just a kilometre and a half (even less far than I'd estimated!) is as much work as moving 200km!

So, I'm here. As Croft describes it, this park is of the drive in sort. It's on pavement and the rigs are parked tightly together in a herringbone pattern. I'm tucked away in a corner where I have a bit of grass and trees. It's definitely one of the nicer sites. Next door to me is the house they offer campground hosts who don't have an RV. It's empty at present, so I'll be given a key to it so I can access the laundry room and television until such time as the park owners decide what they will do with the house. The television doesn't interest me, but the free laundry does!

One thing I figured out five minutes into arrival is that I need to come up with an efficient interior privacy curtain for the cab. Until now, I've been using an exterior cover that works great, but it's a pain to install and remove. The only way I'm going to get direct sunshine into this coach during the day is through the windshield, so I need something I can open and close easily. The way the cab is set up now, there are little bits of velcro around the top for hanging a flimsy curtain. It's an even bigger pain to install and it doesn't hide much.

This afternoon, I'm settling in and running errands, then I'm going to get keys from the manager so that I can start my gate closing duties. It's not Sunday night (duh), but the people who work the nights I'll be off are not here this weekend, so I was asked if I'd mind hitting the ground running. Not in the least.

Some people might be wondering if there is a catch to this arrangement. There is. I'll be responsible for closing the gates at 11PM. No biggie, I'm up at that hour. But I'll also be responsible for opening them up at 6:30. Yeouch. So much for a good night's sleep four days a week! That said, I can just stumble out of bed in my PJs, get the gate open, and go back to sleep if I so please. So, if I don't find work that starts insanely early, this should be fine.

Being the night owl that I am, I am beginning to think that a night job would be ideal. I could close the gates at 11, go to work, come home to open the gates at 6:30, run a few errands, then sleep a full 'night' until I go on duty here at 5. Another possibility to consider.

The handyman at the last park spent three winters in the area and comes from out east, so we spoke the same language today when we talked about the winter climate here. He told me that I absolutely need a heat tape on my water hose, but that there is no risk of my tanks freezing. What we've been living the last few days is very comparable to what we'll be getting in the next few months, but it will be much less sunny. I can expect temps to go down to as far as minus 10 at night, but to rise above freezing most days. So, next time I go into Penticton I need to get insulation for my skylights, a heat tape, and weather stripping for the exterior doors. I already have plastic for my windows. I hate putting that stuff up because it just looks ugly, but I've been using it for years, so I know it works.

It's weird to be set up here and know that I'm likely not going anywhere for the next five months. But I'm okay with that. I'll get to know the area and be able to take day trips in the toad and perhaps take Miranda out a few times. This is actually closer to my vision of my life on the road than the last month was. Traveling every couple of days, even once a week, is positively exhausting and you remain a tourist. I want to stop somewhere, get a feel for its rhythm and move on when I've had enough.

Eureka 2!

2008-10-08T15:32:00.000-07:00

I've raved about Eureka before, so imagine my excitement when I discovered this afternoon that Andy had put out a second volume! This volume contains the same information as the first, and lots more. It is well worth the 8$ download fee if you own Eureka! already or 12$ if you're getting Eureka! 2 without having previously purchased Eureka! Costs for a CD are slightly higher.

Thanks for more tips, Andy!

Oh, and the five minute chocolate cake (recipe found in Eureka! 2)? Oh. So. Yummy.

Total Randomness

2008-10-07T17:08:00.001-07:00

I've resisted writing about the upcoming election (the one that matters, on October 14th, not the one happening in November *winks*), but today I saw a sign that just made me laugh. As it turns out, I'm in the riding of a certain Mr. Stockwell Day, former leader of the Canadian Alliance. That's all well and good, except that his name gave me pause for the first time in my life. Maybe I've been doing too much dry camping. I don't know, but I find that his name sounds like a once a year event at Walmart. Come celebrate Stock Well Day, when we refresh our inventory!

As I said, total randomness.

Oh, and vote orange! I did so by special ballot way back when I was in Edmonton.

The End of the Road!

2008-10-07T14:20:00.000-07:00

Well, sort of!

Friday morning, I move about three kilometres north of here to just within the Oliver town limits, and I'll be staying there right through to February or March!

I've been 'hired' as an after hours campground host, by the first campground at which I inquired about such work! I'll be on duty Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday evenings in exchange for full hookups! Let me repeat that: I'll be 'paid' to stay home weekday evenings. LOL If the weather here is as good as propaganda says it is, I probably won't have to do too much to get Miranda comfortable and I might be able to keep her mobile enough to make it worth taking her out on my three day weekends, if I'm not working. We'll see!

The manager's family owns the supermarket and I've been advised to show up with a resumé. It's not quite the sort of work I'm looking for, but I won't turn up my nose at it!

Sounds like it will be a quiet winter and just what I'm looking for. I just love the thought of taking on easy work with little responsibility. I know that my pay will take a sharp drop unless I get really lucky paying work-wise, but I'm tired. I've been working since I was thirteen years old and most of that work entailed heavy responsibilities. Just let me earn enough to pay my bills and put some aside for the summer and I'll be happy.

Pounding the Pavement

2008-10-06T14:47:00.001-07:00

Whew.

This morning, I visited every single winery between Oliver and Osoyoos. While a few persons I spoke to were very friendly, most were snooty. I was told several times that I would not be considered for picking because they only hire teams of two. I left resumés at all of them and made it clear that I'm interested in any job, not just picking, so we'll see what happens. I'm definitely not in Alberta anymore!

For the afternoon, I planned to visit a few RV parks between Oliver and Penticton. The first one I stopped at was so promising I decided it wasn't worth my while to use more gas until I hear back from the manager tomorrow! I'm not saying more about that as I don't want to jinx it. :)

New Broom

2008-10-05T16:53:00.001-07:00

I was surprised to discover that I miss having a full-size broom. I thought that my Swiffer complemented by a hand broom and a hand vac would be sufficient, but it isn't.

At Walmart today, I spent quite a bit of time drooling over their RV products aisle and I found an adjustable RV broom that seemed like a good idea for a small house. It's a full size broom that collapses to 24" in length, has a head that pivots, and includes a dust pan. For 11.72$, it was worth trying as a regular broom and dustpan kit would cost me just about the same thing.

Well, I love it! The broom gets in everywhere I need it to go, stores easily and out of the way, and even traps quite a bit of cat hair. It's a gimicky sounding product that actually delivers and costs a reasonable amount.

I might actually learn to like sweeping one day....

OkanOgan

2008-10-05T14:57:00.001-07:00

The US border being just 25 minutes away, I decided to add a state to my list and go to Washington for half a day, the main purpose for the trip being a chance to fill my toad for about 15$ less than I can in Canada. Since I feel that you should always have something to declare upon reentry (looks less suspicious, even if you just spent 20$), I checked to see if there might be a Walmart Super Center nearby. There was! It's in Omak, about an hour and a half away.

I had no problems entering the United States. When asked when I was going home, I replied truthfully that I will be leaving Oliver in a week. For the first time, I was asked to pop open my trunk, but that was the only delay before entering my 26th state!

The scenery on the drive to Omak down the US 97 was breathtaking!

I had lunch at Tequila's in Omak, which promised 'authentic' Mexican fare. I have no idea if it was authentic, but it sure was good! My Spanish accent must be as good as my profs said it is since after ordering my 'burrito a la crema' (chicken cooked in sour cream and wrapped in a tortilla), the server only addressed me in Spanish! What a nice way to get a change of scenery while staying close to home!

Crossing the border back into Canada was a non-event. I declared the 30 bucks worth of stuff I'd bought at Walmart (including a huge quantity of RV-friendly toilet paper, something I have not being able to find here), and did not have to pay any customs on my purchases.

On the way back, I intended to stop off at the Canada Desert Centre, but it closes early, so I'll need to try again. I did get a shot of Canada's desert! :)

Occam's Razor

2008-10-04T13:08:00.001-07:00

Well, Croft resolved my electrical issue for me through some of my own Googling.

Turns out I could have solved this problem myself on Thursday evening in about 10 seconds without even going outside.

The problem I was experiencing is that none of my 12V appliances--furnace blower, fridge, lights, or water pump--were working. The battery was good, but no power was going out. Everything had worked fine until late afternoon on Thursday. I couldn't fathom what had happened in that time to kill my electrical system.

The first thing I suspected was a loose connection. I thought that maybe I hadn't wrenched the main connector enough because I didn't have much room to work. So, I went out and bought a teeny wrench. It didn't help.

I then went and bought a battery terminal cleaning tool and some special gel. They didn't help.

We blamed the cables. We blamed the converter. I ran I don't know how many tests with my multimeter. I triple checked my fuses. I quadruple checked my breakers.

Then I did some Googling and found reference to a battery turn off switch.

Croft asked me if that switch could possibly be the great big yellow button on the dash board I've referred to a few times.

Indeed. When it's pulled out, the 12V system works fine. When it gets hit by someone's knee because it's at a silly height and location, it shuts off the 12V system.

WHO DESIGNS THESE THINGS?!

I'm choosing to laugh even though I am profoundly embarrassed.

But the upshot of this is that my battery job was good!

Evaluating Miranda

2008-10-03T19:27:00.001-07:00

I've been on the road with this coach exactly a month now. I can't believe that this day in September was my last day of work! Now that Miranda and I are so well acquainted with each other, I thought I'd share a list of things I like about her and one of the things I don't.

Let's get the negative out of the way first!

Things I Don't Like

Since it has been on my mind lately, I will start with the battery compartment. It's spacious enough that I could put in eight golf cart-sized batteries if I want, but maintaining the batteries is a pain because of lack of overhead space. I am considering installing a pull out battery shelf, but I need to look into how much reinforcement would be needed.

The storage space under the dinette benches could much easier to get to. The bench behind the driver's seat is especially a waste of space. There is a tiny, hard to open, drawer, accessible from the aisle. Taking it out would give me a large storage chest. It's on my to do list.

The wardrobe doors suck. The sliding doors have hard plastic holders to keep the doors from moving when I drive. I have yet to access that closet without striking one of those holders with a wrist or elbow. The doors have a tendency to get off their rails and forget about trying to open them if stuff inside has shifted. If I'm going to live in this coach for any length of time, I need those doors replaced with ones that open out. That's no longer a luxury item! I had considered a tension rod and curtain solution, then realised that this wouldn't hold the items in while driving. So, back to real doors I go. All I want for Yule is...

The towel holder on the inside of the bathroom door has got to go. I say this an average of once a day. Early on in my trip, I hit my head so hard on the darn thing that I had a dark purple egg on my forehead from Nipigon all the way through to Regina!!! Yesterday, it almost took an eye out. Yet, it's still there. I need to remember to bring a screwdriver in there the next time I, erm, go.

The cockpit console. I'm told that there are other ones available, so I'll have to do a search. I'd like one that could hold my atlas and other guides and which wouldn't make reaching for the glass of water/a pen/a pad of paper/the camera/my sun glasses/the lip balm/the hand cream/ the Purell/etc. a treasure hunt.

The coach door sticks as though it's not exactly square. Maybe it just needs an adjustment. I'll have to take a closer look at it.

The cockpit door locks only occasionally open from the outside with the key. I frequently have to reenter from the house and open the doors from inside.

Things I Like

The layout is pitch perfect. The spaces flow well into one another and make the coach seem really spacious. I've lived here a month and a bit now and I have yet to feel cramped at all. I really like having to cross a room (the main part of the bathroom) to get to the kitchen and that the entrance to the kitchen isn't exactly in line with that of the study. I am a lot happier having many small rooms than a few big rooms. The fact that the toilet has its very own room is a bonus. In such a small space, having to open an actual door is a real luxury.

The furnishings are well chosen. The absolute only thing I wish I could change, and I've said this before, would be to swap out one of the chairs in the lounge so I could fit in a credenza with shelves and drawers. I was surprised to discover that I like having the other chair. When I'm traveling, I overturn my computer chair in the back room, making that room fairly inaccessible. If I'm just stopping for a few hours for lunch or making a late stop in the evening, I don't bother 'making up' that room and instead I find myself plopping down in one of the chairs at the front to read. Unfortunately, the chair that would be easiest to remove, the one behind the passenger's side (because the bolts are easily accessible via the battery compartment), is the one I want to keep. The chair by the door tends to be a catch all, so I might as well have a proper surface there.

I'm surprisingly fond of the dinette, too. I usually eat there and it's where I sit with my laptop and research materials to plan out my day. When traveling, I take the wicker baskets that I placed over the fridge and store them on a dinette bench. Eventually, I'll get around to creating some sort of securing mechanism so I can leave the baskets above the fridge when traveling, but for now they're completely out of the way on the dinette bench.

The 'upstairs bedroom' is a cozy space that works for me even though some might find it a tad tight up there with my mattress. I like that there is room for overflow storage without cramping my sleeping space. I'm not fond of the fact that I have to climb up on the dinette to get up there, though, since it's getting the dinette dirty. I supposed I c/should put a towel over it. But climbing up (and down) isn't a pain at all, not even in the wee hours of the morning when my bladder is screaming at me. There is a conveniently located light above the bed and I really like the curtain on a hospital rail. Closing it at night is the equivalent to shutting the bedroom door and gives me the feeling that I'm cozy and secure in a private little nest.

The kitchen is surprisingly efficient. There is just enough room to work. The only thing I'd change is that I would replace the double sink with a single one. The sink could be deeper, too, but that's a minor complaint. The stove and oven are fantastic. A couple of weeks back, the piezo (sparker), the one part I was told didn't work, started to work! So, now I don't have to use a BBQ lighter to fire up the stove. I absolutely adore cooking on a gas range; it's so much faster than on an electric one. The oven is excellent, too, and doesn't require any feats of athleticism or eyebrow risk to light. The size is just right one-person sized casserole dishes. As for the fridge, no complaints there. It's huge! I can't even keep it completely filled, but when I have something oversized, there's room for it.

The bathroom is the best space in the coach that I didn't design myself. It does not feel like a stereotypical RV bathroom. There is plenty of space to walk around in the main part of it. The vanity is generously proportioned, with a medicine cabinet that offers more usable space than I have need for, plenty of counter space, and an under sink cabinet that is roomy enough for all my cleaning products. Next to the shower, there's enough place for me to put a storage tower I had at my old house, effectively giving me the exact same amount of storage in the bathroom as I'm used to having! The shower is very luxurious and just the right size for me. There's no elbow banging involved in it! The only thing I'd change is the shower head since it doesn't have the adjustment for turning off the water while soaping up. The toilet room is surprisingly pleasant for such a tiny space as its white walls and window make it very bright and airy. This room was also the source of a DOH! moment for me. I was frustrated that the coach doesn't have a broom closet. Yesterday, I finally clued in as to why there's a hook behind the toilet. Whadya know, it's just the right height for hanging a broom. Or a Swiffer stick in my case!

Then, there's the room I call the study or the living room. Oh, I LOVE this space! My mother really outdid herself with her fine tuning of my design. The two mattresses and pillows make a wonderful place to recline and watch a movie or read. The night table is at just the right height and distance for placing a mug of tea or a glass of water. The useless bar has turned into a very useful place for storing all the cables for my electronic equipment. There's also just enough room to put a litter box and box of litter out of the way, tucked in the space between the toilet room wall and the edge of the storage box topped with the night table.

Looking up, I have no less than four skylights, two of which have covers enabling me to leave them open even when it's raining. They add a lot of light to the coach and bring in less noise than do open windows. I do need to think about insulating them for the winter.

Finally, there's the basement. What else can I say about the basement, but thank goodness for all that usable storage space! I packed the basement in Ottawa and have had to make only a few minor tweaks. There can be a lot of shuffling involved to get at things that are stored in the bowels of the large pass throughs, but it's not tedious at all.

All of these elements combined make for a very airy and livable coach. I don't feel cramped in here in the least and I just left a 900 square foot home!

The Best Laid Plans...

2008-10-03T15:25:00.001-07:00

Wow. I sure didn't expect to be here today, here as in the Okanagan Valley, here as in the capital of wine country, here as in the end of the road for the next month.

Yesterday didn't quite go as planned. By the time I stopped for the night, I was sure that I couldn't possibly ever again have a worst day. By the morning, though, I was grinning and realising that nothing, absolutely nothing, will ever be as bad as that crunching day between Thunder Bay and Selkirk.

But let's start at the beginning, shall we?

Here's Miranda at the Spring Hill RV Park 9km north of Cochrane, Alberta:

Cochrane is quite possibility the most beautiful full service town I have ever visited, even more beautiful than Banff. I could have easily stayed a few months there.

I left the park almost two hours earlier than I had planned. I'm grateful that they had propane and gas fill up stations, so I was able to do everything there before pushing off. All of that, plus the one hour time shift and the week's rest I just had meant that I was ready to drive if conditions warranted it. Tourism time had ended and it was time for me to get to work. I'd have plenty of time to come back into the mountains to explore in later months.

So, I made it to past Revelstoke yesterday, about 480km, but it wasn't a drudging sort of drive because I did make the time for two touristy stops, one of which was an hour and a half long.

This stop was, of course, at Lake Louise.

As I expected, Lake Louise is 100% a tourist trap. Oh, the lake is definitely worth the long climb up a narrow winding road, but I can't believe that people are saps enough to pay 55$ for a one hour canoe trip on the lake. Just call me the cynic. Or maybe I'm just frugal. :-) Having had lunch in the rig and craving dessert, I went into the Chateau

to look for ridiculously overpriced ice cream to munch on while I walked partway around the lake and was delighted to find merely overpriced ice cream.

My next stop was at the Spiral Tunnels. I waited almost a half hour there hoping to see a train go through them, but I finally had to press on. The pictures I took here don't really show anything, so I won't post them. Very briefly, the Spiral Tunnels were an answer to the Big Hill, a really steep bit of Transcanada rail line between Field, BC, and Kicking Horse Pass. This hill cost a fortune to run and was the scene of many accidents. The spiral tunnels cut into the mountain reduced the grade by 50%. I really can't do the story justice, so you'll just need to go read the Wiki article. :-)

Then, I drove.

My first possibility for an overnight stop was the Kicking Horse rest area, just west of Yoho National Park. Unfortunately, it was only 3PM local time when I arrived there and there was blasting and other construction going on. So, I pressed on, surprised to find myself already going through Glacier and Revelstoke Parks.

Just west of Revelstoke, I found what seemed like an informal truck stop, but it looked very busy and noisy, so I pressed on.

Then, I found what seemed like the perfect stop to stop for the night. There was a rest area with a road leading down to a utility shed, with a large open area. It seemed private and quiet, so I decided to make that my stop for the night.

Which is when I discovered that I had absolutely no power. Now, my batteries were fully charged, but no power was getting through to my 12V system. I check the terminals and my fuse box, trying to figure out what had happened in 5.5 hours to break my electrical system! It was about to get dark and I decided to drive 10km. If I didn't find an RV park within that time, I would come back to this spot and tough out the night without power.

As I drove, I suddenly remembered Croft's suggestion that I try to start the generator with the truck engine running. So, having passed two closed RV parks and being ready to turn around, I pulled into a rest area and tested his trick. It worked! I had power! Noisy power, but at least my fridge was running again. I decided to go back to my previously selected spot when I realised that I didn't need to. This rest area was built a bit like a tea cup. I was parked in the bowl. To the right of me was a thicket of trees and there was a narrow path going around this thicket, like a handle. I pulled into it and to my delight found myself tucked away out of sight of the road. It wasn't as quiet as the other spot would have been, but at least I didn't have to double back. It was fully dark now and pouring rain, so I was very, very grateful that my day of driving was done.

I set to work making dinner, then I read for a couple of hours. I went to bed ridiculously early, about 8:30 local time, but it was 9:30 my time and I was beat!

For a first time pulling off the road and sleeping in the middle of nowhere, I slept pretty well. I woke up around 1, then slept soundly again until 5. I ran the generator again for a couple of hours as I puttered around, waiting for it to be light enough out for me to set off. This kept most of the contents of the freezer frozen solid, thankfully, and used up only a negligible amount of gas. I can almost get used to the noise inside, but would hate to run the generator when there are people around!

So, my first day in BC dawned like my first day in Manitoba, very rainy and foggy. I decided to drive until such time as the weather cleared up and run the generator again for about an hour for the fridge's benefit, then I would make a straight run for Oliver where hookups would give me time to figure out what was going on with my electrical system.

I was in a really good mood this morning. I'd slept well, had an indecently yummy cup of coffee while watching the sun rise at the rest stop, and realised that the part of my journey I had feared the most was over: I was clear across the mountains! Sure, part of the day before had sucked (driving in the dark in rain with no power and chicken about to thaw in the freezer), but, sum told, it had actually been quite a good day. I was especially proud of myself for being able to recognize a good place to stop and, most importantly, for not pushing myself any further than I absolutely needed to.

So, I set off in pea soup fog and made a quick stop at the site of a major event in Canadian history:

And that was it for tourism. I drove quickly through Vernon and Kelowna, glad when I saw them that I wasn't stopping there for my week of reconnaissance, and then I pulled over at a rest stop outside of Penticton for lunch (thawed out pizza that I hadn't been able to stuff into the colder part of the freezer with all the other stuff that was still, thankfully, frozen solid).

The Okanagan area looks quite like I expected it to, except for the hills which remind me of the Sierra Nevadas!

Okanagan Valley

Sierra Nevadas

I'm now settled for a week just outside of Oliver, which is the wine capital of Canada. I passed too many wineries to count on the drive down here, so I think I'll just start at the closest one to here and work my way south to Oosoyos, and then north again, asking at each one if they're hiring pickers yet. Tomorrow, though, I just might take the morning for a wee bit of sightseeing as I am very eager to see Canada's only (non-Arctic) desert. But, after that, it's time to look for work!

So, the first stage of my great big adventure has ended. I have successfully traveled the roughly 5,000km (not counting mileage done with the toad) that separated me from my old life in Gatineau to the new one awaiting me in the Okanagan Valley. I arrived here a lot less naive and cocky, but in excellent spirits and with a month's worth of memories that make up for a lifetime of disillusionment.

Now that my rig is well broken in and I am more knowledgeable, it's time to think about finding work, a place to spend the winter, and a way to make Miranda comfortable during that season.

In a way, I feel that my journey is still just beginning. Today is not an ending, just a really, really, really major milestone.

British Columbia, Here I Come!

2008-10-01T22:00:00.000-07:00

This time tomorrow, I will be in British Columbia! After tomorrow, the only province I will have left to visit is Newfoundland and Labrador!

I'm trying to plan out my route to Oliver. It's a 700km journey. Normally, I'd say that I could easily do that in two days, with just one overnight stop, but normally I'm not driving through several national parks with slow speed limits and let's not forget the mountains. I think it will probably take me three days to get there, but it can't take any more since I could be called to work on Monday. Could is a big word, but I wouldn't want to miss my chance.

I'd like to invite you all to visit the Parks Canada website and get information on RV camping along this route just so you'll see that I'm not exaggerating when I state that this is a ridiculously frustrating task. In order to get information on campgrounds, their amenities, and their rates, I have to visit an average of four websites!

After about an hour's worth of Googling, I finally was able to determine that my first overnight stop will probably be at Kicking Horse Pass campground in Yoho National Park. Camping there is 30$ per night. No hookups. 40$ if you need a day pass. No hookups. Let me say that again. No hookups. As if that wasn't bad enough, the campground doesn't take reservations, so if they're full, tough luck, I have to push on to Golden. This type of fleecing by the Canadian government is par for the course, unfortunately. If you're coming to Canada, I suggest sticking to provincial and private campgrounds. Visit the national parks by day only!

Because there are apparently so few places to stop overnight between Canmore and Golden, I'm not guaranteed a spot at Kicking Horse, and I won't be pushing off till noon tomorrow, I doubt I'll be detouring to Lake Louise. :-(

I have to say that this is the first night before departure since Thunder Bay that I'm just about raring to go! I've been here a full week and it's been really nice, but I've had my fill of the area for now.

Even though I'm nine kilometres from the nearest full service town and thirty kilometres from Calgary city limits, I still feel that this location was fantastic. I really enjoyed doing my daily excursions and coming home to this spot. It's not as quiet as it could be since it's right at the intersection of two busy roads, but it's peaceful and the staff is very friendly. I just wish the window in front of my computer didn't overlook the dumpsters. :-D

I'm seeing a lot of rigs in this park that are not much different from Miranda all gussied up with skirts in preparation for the winter. Oh, those brave souls! As for me, I'm headin' for the promised land. :-)

But I have to say the weather here has been incredible. It dips to close to freezing at night and goes up to about 25 during the day. Miranda turns into an oven (it was 32 in here this afternoon!). I don't know how to describe the sun out here, but it feels really close and it's unbelievably intense. Soon as it sets, though, BRR! It's meant nice days for exploring or puttering at home, but nights that are really comfortable for sleeping, so absolutely ideal RVing conditions. Pity they can't last all year. :-)

New Batteries

2008-09-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

Reader Croft essentially adopted me on the battery issue with my coach. He realised from my blog entries that I was facing eminent battery failure and took me under his wing to see a replacement project brought to a successful conclusion. Thank you so much, Croft!

As it turns out, he was right. My battery was the original one that came with the coach and had more than surpassed the average lifetime for a battery (seven year lifespan vs. twelve year old coach, hmm)... Also, it had probably not been maintained by the POs, and I discovered tonight that the cells were bone dry. Yup, this was definitely not a project I could postpone.

The first thing he advised me to do was replace my standard 12V battery with two 6V golf cart-type batteries to get more usage time between charges. I found some that he said would be satisfactory at Canadian Tire. Then I came to the issue of installation. Canadian Tire quoted me 400$ to install them and an RV place 300$. Croft seethed at that! So, he gave me two lists. One detailed the steps that I needed to take to replace the battery myself and the second gave me all the components I needed, including the Canadian Tire inventory number for some of them. Can I say thank you too many times in one post?

Once I knew what to do, I had to get permission to do it at this campground and I had to find myself a helper who could lift 136lbs, the weight of just one of my new batteries!

I had to ask for permission because there are a lot of rules here, one of which is that you are not allowed to work on your coach. I spoke to the manager and said "May I change my coach battery here?" She said that that was fine as it's neither a messy nor noisy job. I then asked her if she could recommend a strong guy to help me. She volunteered her husband!

Today, I went to town (Calgary) to get all the parts I needed, including some lumber to reinforce the compartment floor. I was lucky to find what I needed in the scrap bin, so my costs for wood were negligible, and I scored some 3/4 plywood for the floor!

I'd called Canadian Tire ahead of time to make sure they had two of the batteries in stock and to put them aside for me. They did have some and they were on sale now! I saved 20$ per battery. When I arrived, all the items I'd asked about were waiting for me as were a few other things the clerk had assumed I'd need (he was right) and someone made himself available to bring the batteries to the car. WOW. Canadian Tires out west sure aren't like the one in Gatineau! My shopping list there included the batteries, a voltmeter (on sale from 40$ reduced to 10$!), a battery watering thingy that looks like a turkey baster, a 9V battery for the voltmeter, and a gallon of special battery water (same price as I'd seen for the same quantity of distilled water at Walmart, so I figured I might as well go with battery-specific water).

I got home mid-afternoon and set to work cutting the wood for the floor and corresponding back and forth some more with Croft working out other little details and questions that came up. Let me say that it was so nice to work on my home like that. I sure missed being a homeowner in respect to doing fun projects!

My helper arrived at 6 as promised. Getting the old battery out of the coach was tougher than I'd expected. It was in a tote... that was bolted to the coach floor. It took about a half hour for him to get the tote out of there, put in the plywood, and put in the two new batteries. He kept on needing tools and laughed each time I pulled out what he needed. And some people said I was an idiot to bring all my tools (save the miter saw)!

He accepted only a thank you for all his effort. Some people are just so nice.

It didn't take me long to hook up the batteries as per Croft's specifications, test them with my shiny new voltmeter, and hook them up to the charger which informed me that the batteries were already fully charged. I then installed some 2x4's to keep the batteries from moving, opened a beer, and set to work putting all the stuff that I'd taken out back into my coach. That was the longest part of the process!

Total cost of the project, including the beer, but not including the hardware bits I had at home: 270$.

Here's a picture of the final result. The way I cut those 2x4s leaves me with a little compartment in front of the batteries that is just the right size for my container of water, the voltmeter case, the battery baster, and a couple of rags. Croft says that everything looks good, so I'm having a beer now and calling it a day!

Easy Decisions and Provincial Differences

2008-09-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

The park where I'm staying runs through the winter, but with only a small section of its sites open. When I pulled in last week, they didn't have a spot in their winterized section available, so they put me in their 'about to be closed' section and told me I'd probably have to move today. Bummer. Today, I went to confirm that I was moving and where to. They said I could stay on my site if I didn't mind... not having running water. Okay, run this by me again. I can pack up and move for two days or I can stay here, with sewer and 30A power, and my full tank of water? Ooooh, now that's a toughie. This was pretty much my confirmation that this park attracts a higher end clientele; the manager couldn't believe that it's no hardship to live off my fresh water tank for two days! What's nice is that I now have no immediate neighbours.

As for provincial differences, I ran out of beer this week as I finished the 12 pack I'd bought my first day on the road. I decided to replenish my supply and looked forward to seeing how beer is sold in Alberta. In Quebec, you can buy liquor at any grocery store or convenience store, or go to a liquor (SAQ) store to get higher end items. In Ontario, you go to the liquor (LCBO) store to get wine, spirits, and fine beers, and you go to the beer store for beer. I'm exceedingly fond of that system. Sure, the beer stores can sometimes be in out of the way places, but it offers every single kind of beer imaginable in one aisle. Kind of like the M&M meat shop of the alcohol world. At any rate, I didn't really register where to buy beer in Manitoba or Saskatchewan. Parked in front of a Safeway grocery store today, I noticed that it had a separate entrance with 'liquour and spirits' written over the top. I imagined that it might be an LCBO-type setup, but figured that they might have some beers. I went in and found a proper beer cooler, with a decent selection. So, I guess that Alberta is similar to Quebec, in that you can get your beer at the grocery store, but in a special section of its own.

Well, I'm off to get creative with my battery compartment. An update about that will follow, provided my coach doesn't blow up (*winks at Croft*).

Banff

2008-09-29T21:20:00.001-07:00

Today was the kind of day that makes you realise that you've been given enough gifts to last a lifetime and that asking for anything more is just greed talking.

I had a lot of misgivings and preconceptions about Banff. I expected it to be kitschy, expensive, and over rated. By the time I got to the town limits, I was in an absolutely foul mood and wondered if there was any point my being there at all. To enter Banff National Park (in which Banff is located), you need to pay an access fee of 10$ for a day or 65$ for a year for an individual or 130$ for a family. I decided that the annual pass would make more sense since it's good at all national parks across Canada. I asked the attendant if I was going to need a second pass for my motorhome, even if I was towing my car behind it and only one vehicle would be on park roads at a time. She said yes. That was sort of the proverbial straw for me as to dealing with Parks Canada. In order to stay at their grossly overpriced campgrounds I had to pay an additional 130$ per year? I decided right then and there that I was taking the Crowsnest Pass on Thursday and not going through Banff again.

But I talked to someone else at the Banff Information Centre and what she had to say was much more logical, that I didn't need a second pass. I realised then that Parks Canada employees are like a lot civil servants I work with and unable to see their jobs as anything but black and white. So if I get questioned for having just one pass, I'll just tell them that the people at the Banff info centre said I didn't need a second one.

My mood greatly improved then and one of the most amazing days of my life began.

Let's start at the beginning.

I stopped for a bit of a break on my almost 1.5 hour drive to Banff at Lacs des arcs:

I've always wanted to say: "I'm Rae. From Canmore." Non Royal Canadian Air Farce fans can just scratch their heads at that one. *ggl*

Entrance to Banff National Park

Welcome to Banff!

Banff Avenue

A lovely, eye-catching, sculpture on Banff Avenue

So, Banff. A compact, aesthetically pleasing but not kitshy, friendly town. The first thing that I noticed were gas prices; they were the same as in Calgary! Then I noticed all the signs announcing RV parking for two hours on the street and 12 hours (but no overnight) in special lots reserved for RVs. Then I noticed that all parking in Banff is free! I wouldn't want to take Miranda in there at the height of the tourist season, but today I would have had no problem finding a place for her and she would have been secure all day, without my having to beg for a place to park her while I explored. I therefore award Banff the distinction of being the first truly RV friendly place I've been to so far. I've never felt so welcome!

First order of business in Banff was pretty funny and goes to show that I'm living my real life and not on vacation. Yesterday, I managed to lose my ATM card. I'd had my previous card for 15 years and I wasn't able to hang on to my current card for more than a few months! So, off to the CIBC I went to get a new card. This illustrates one of the many reasons I love being with the CIBC; if a town has more than one banking institution there is usually a CIBC (unless you're in Quebec where the same can be said about Caisse Pops). I was therefore not surprised to find a CIBC right across the street from the lot where I parked.

That done, I went to the visitor's centre to raise hell about the park passes and to see if I could add anything to my day's itinerary, which contained just two items.

I wandered down Banff Avenue for a bit and then went to Gopher Avenue to visit the Whyte Museum for the sole purpose of viewing the Group of Seven et. al. exhibition. Yes, we finally get a bit of culture! LOL

Of all the members of the Group of Seven, A.Y. Jackson is my favourite.

There were also some lovely pieces by Japanese-Canadian artist Takao Tanabe, another favourite of mine. I couldn't believe I got to see this piece in person; it's my favourite of his!

There was more to the museum, but it was way too nice a day out to stay inside for long!

Next order of business was something I learned about at the info centre: the Sulphur Mountain Gondola. Even though riding a gondola was in violation of everyone of my instincts, I'd never done it and figured that I could survive the 14 minute round trip.

I didn't enjoy the trip at all, I'm afraid, even though the views were spectacular!

At the top, I continued up to the Cosmic Ray Station.

I have no problem being that high up when I'm on solid ground!

Coming back down on the gondola, I really impressed myself when I actually turned around and took this picture. EEP!

The ride down was a lot harder than the ride up as the first time around there had been people in the gondola with me and they were able to distract me.

Back on solid ground (and having lost fifteen years off my life), it was time to do the second item on my to-do list, something I found I'm not sure how. I got back onto the Transcanada Highway, then exited at the Bow Valley Parkway where I cruised along until I got to Johnston's Canyon. It features an amazing hike through a canyon, mostly on cantilevered walkways (non-scary; they're made of concrete and steel). There is a short hike to the lower falls, a longer one to the higher falls, and very long hike to pools of water known as the 'Inkpots.'

Making an attempt to reach the Inkpots was no small decision on my part. I'd already hiked 3km uphill to get to the higher falls and it was another 3km uphill to get to the Inkpots. Add to that the climb at Sulphur Mountain and the late hour of the day. This was a case where a good decision could only be made with firm knowledge of one's abilities. On flat terrain, I can hike 3km in about 30 minutes. Uphill, make that 45 minutes. Uphill and exhausted? Calculate an hour. So, that put me at the Ink Pots around 4. Add a bit of sight seeing, picture taking, and talking to people on the trail and I wouldn't be back at my car before 5:30. I was dressed for the weather, had enough supplies on me to face a 'worst case scenario', and knew that I was smart enough to turn around if I reached my limit. I set off and decided to reevaluate around 3:30. I'd just about had enough by this point, but, thankfully, some hikers came up from the Inkpots right around then and told me it was a downhill shot from where I was standing. I knew I'd have to climb back up again, but that after that I was looking at mainly downhill to get back to the car. I pushed on.

I'm so glad I did. :-)

The Inkpots

Doing the uphill hike up out of there, I had to keep reminding myself that I could not spend the night on the mountain. Someone was bound to question the car at the trail head and come in search of me! That would have been so humiliating! So, I pressed on and made it back to the trail head for bang on 5:30! There was an ice cream stand open now and I decided to treat myself to a double scoop cone! I've only just started to eat ice cream again and I have to say this cone was just fantastic! :-)

Driving back towards Banff, traffic came to a standstill on the parkway because of these three little guys:

Since I had an hour and a half to go before home and I felt that I'd earned a nice dinner out, I treated myself to salmon and chicken in Banff, then ambled back to my car. I had to stop to take this picture:

I call it 'Deer on Banff Avenue.'

Oh, wait. That name is taken!

I got home at 8:30; my longest day out as of yet and the first time I've been out after dark other than to go to the cinema!

One thing I didn't get to do today since I went to the Inkpots was to catch a glimpse of Lake Louise. I'll swing by there on Thursday on my way through the park.

I have two days left here. I had thought to go to Drumheller, but didn't realise that it's almost a five hour round trip drive. So, I'll save Drumheller for the spring. Tomorrow, I'll go into Calgary for supplies for Operation: Batteries and Wednesday I'll putter around at home, do laundry, pack, and plan my trip across the Rockies.

I can consider Banff to be the perfect cap to this first portion of my incredible journey. Now, it's a straight shot to the Osoyoos area (site of the only desert in Canada, not counting the Arctic) where I need to find a place to park my butt as I will be on call for a grape picking job as of Monday!

It seems that even good lives have no shortage of good days.

Heritage Park

2008-09-28T16:51:00.001-07:00

Scary moment of the day: I had to scrape a thick layer of frost off my car this morning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Driving into Calgary today, I had to take this picture:

That's not a lake down there. It's a fog-shrouded town!

Preamble to my day:

1) Yes, I was a history major and am still a history buff.
2) The days have been way too lovely and sunny to spend them cooped up in museums!

So, today, I went to Heritage Park, which is Calgary's Fort Edmonton. It's quite a similar set up, only I got to see Heritage Park while it was fully running. It was a much more hectic, but richer, experience.

Entrance to Heritage Park is 15$ and then you pay 3$ per ride you want to take or 10$ for unlimited rides. Rides include a steam train, a paddle boat, a wagon, a trolley, and a variety of midway attractions. I suspected that the 10$ option would be the best value, so I went with that.

Guests who arrive before 10AM are served a complimentary and surprisingly hearty and delicious pancake and sausage breakfast with juice. So, I started with that and then began my tour of the park.

My first stop was the blacksmith shop where I stayed for almost a half hour watching the blacksmith turn a piece of iron into a meat fork. He gave me a lot of information on the trade and how one learns it.

After that, I wandered through the village, taking pictures of random things that caught my eye.

The Two Storey Outhouse:

This outhouse was attached to a bar with a hotel over it. Bar patrons used the ground floor holes while the hotel guests used the upstairs ones.

The Reservoir's Water Colour:

The ride on the SS Moyie was an incredible value, affording me a half hour cruise of the Calgary reservoir.

Rugs I Wouldn't Have in My Home:

I was startled just walking into that parlour. Imagine wandering around the house in the wee hours of the morning while half asleep and stumbling onto that thing?!

Fan Etiquette:

That Oh-So-Gaudy Victorian Sense of Style:

I wish I hadn't been shy and had taken a picture of the interpreter in this house. My first thought was that her blouse matched the wallpaper, but I didn't say that out loud. When I commented on the decor, she said "A lot of people are impressed that my blouse matches the wallpaper." LOL

My Favourite House Style:

Some people, including the interpreter, call this a Queen Anne Cottage. It's actually a rare type of Victorian that followed the Queen Anne Cottage, which has more ornamentation, and is a Gothic Victorian. If money were no object and I could afford someone to ensure the upkeep of such a home, this is what I would have built for myself. I love the square tower and the general layout of the rooms inside without there being all the Queen Anne 'frou frou.'

Before having lunch, I decided to try the midway. I rode the whip, which was fun, but very tame. I then decided for some unfathomable reason to ride the ferris wheel. The second to last time I rode a ferris wheel, I told myself 'never again' and six years later I found myself riding it again and being stuck at the top for an unfathomably long time due to a mechanical problem (how reassuring). But this wheel seemed tiny! Yeah. Let's just say I didn't have much fun and I was really, really, really glad when the ride was over. This video makes me queasy all over again:

I walked around for a bit after to settle my stomach and decide what I was going to do for food. I carry snacks, but was getting a bit tired of my usual lunch of a granola bar, cheese, nuts, and fruit. I avoid having lunch in these sorts of places, but when I saw the prices at the most 'upscale' restaurant on site, I decided to treat myself to a nice meal. Prices would have been considered reasonable anywhere and were a bargain in this sort of location. 14$ (including tip) netted me a huge gourmet sandwich of provolone, turkey, and vegetables, with a side of fresh french fries and a bottomless glass of apple juice.

Add a steam train ride, tons of walking, and an extremely bright sun, and I was wiped by about 4. What a full day!

I really liked Heritage Park and suspect that even if Fort Edmonton Park had been running full swing it wouldn't have been quite as much fun. My only major complaint about Heritage Park is that too many of the exhibits are actually stores. For example, you walk into a period drug store and are accosted to buy all manner of goods before you can walk to the back and see the actual museum exhibits. Otherwise, HP offers really good value for the money.

Calgary, My Enchanted Land, and the End of the Road?

2008-09-27T19:29:00.001-07:00

Calgary

The only thing on my schedule for today was a visit of Fort Calgary. It's a small museum, but the exhibits about the NWMP and the history of Calgary are quite interesting. I was accosted at one point by a retired RCMP officer who proceeded to talk my ear off for about twenty minutes about his career, his uniform, Mountie training, career opportunities within the force, his son who is serving at the detachment in Inuvik, our mutual feelings about Ottawa vs. The West, and more. It was really interesting!

As I was about to leave the fort, the lady at the admissions desk called me back and gave me some information about another museum that might interest me that is only open tomorrow (more about that tomorrow *g*) and then she gave me information on a walking tour of downtown Calgary, a scenic detour on the way to a cemetery, details on how to find a particularly interesting gravestone, a brochure about a rock garden that is a must see, and, finally, a map illustrating filming locations in the Calgary area. Whew!

I did only part of the walking tour, which was mostly a gentle stroll down Stephen Avenue, Calgary's former main street. The architecture was exquisite!!! During a pre-WWI boom, a lot of Calgary's original wooden buildings were replaced by sandstone structures that really reflect the amount of wealth coming into the city at the time. The Doll Building was my favourite:

The Hudson's Bay store left me awestruck. It takes up a whole block!

I then returned to my car and proceeded to Spiller Avenue, from which she told me I should take the steepest side street I could find and that I would know why at the top:

Next on the list was the cemetery. There, I took a photograph of this grave:

You won't know who he is. Most people wouldn't. But he employed two people who you will know about, even if you didn't know that they spent some time working in Calgary and that they probably met up here, while working for this gentleman. History remembers these two men as Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

The Reader Rock Garden was attached to the cemetery. I enjoyed clambering up and down the stone paths even if there wasn't much in bloom at this time of year.

It was two by this point and I had nothing else planned for the day. So, I took a gander at the movie locations map. You wouldn't believe the number of major Hollywood pictures filmed in the Calgary area, everything from Robin Williams' 'RV' to Clint Eastwood's 'Unforgiven' to Ang Lee's 'Brokeback Mountain' (a lot of which was filmed near the town on the outskirts of which I'm currently living).

My Enchanted Land

Until the late '90's, I could recognize a certain landscape, or a variation thereof, in numerous movies, but I didn't realise that it was truly one landscape from one region. It was a landscape of mountains, plateaus, and valleys; the perfect setting for everything from 'Legends of the Fall' to 'The Edge', movies set in a gentler time or about a rough wilderness. Then one day I watched the dueSouth episode 'Call of the Wild' and recognized this landscape in it. I did some research and discovered that my enchanted land is called Kananaskis country and it is in Alberta.

Why my enchanted land? There is a book I reread many times in my youth called 'Cat, Herself.' It tells the story of a family of tinkers in Scotland. Tinkers are travelers not unlike the full-time RVer. The main character, Cat, had a grand-mother who referred to Ben Loyal as her enchanted land. The expression stuck in my mind.

So, looking at the movie locations map today, I noticed a route marked the Kananaskis trail. It looked like perhaps three to four hours driving time total.

I wanted to go, but I hesitated. What if my enchanted land turned out to be two beautiful peaks surrounded by condos? Perhaps I should do what I did in 1998 when I purposely avoided Sherwood Forest, just leave it as a land out of dreams.

But I was so close. I decided to go.

I'll let just a few of the pictures I took tell the rest of the story.

The End of the Road?

There is so much work here in Alberta, more jobs than there are workers. From an employment point of view, this should be the end of the road for me until the spring. But I really don't think that Miranda could be made comfortable enough to endure a Calgary winter and I've endured enough miserable winters in the mobile home to know what I'd be getting into. But all these jobs! So, I'll confess that I'm looking, just for curiosity's sake, for an indoor place where I could park Miranda for the winter and live in her, like a heated garage or plane hangar.

To give you an idea of what the employment situation is like, let's go back for a moment to my very first morning in Alberta, back when I was in Lloydminster. I decided to treat myself to a Tim Horton's coffee before pushing off. I went in, ordered my coffee and muffin, and was about to leave when someone called to me. It was the manager. He wanted to know if I owned the RV outside and, if so, if I'd be interested in a couple of weeks worth of work.

I haven't shared that story because I felt no one would believe it. But the woman at the museum today did and she said she had a job for me for the winter if I wanted it.

That doesn't make actually looking for work particularly appealing.

Surprise Gifts

2008-09-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

I woke up this morning and looked out all the windows as I always do to see how things changed over night (two neighbours gone, one added). I then noticed two bulging bags on my picnic table with a piece of paper flapping in the breeze.

The note said: "We go back to Holland today. Maybe you can use these."

The bags contained:

-a 3lb sac of onions
-a garlic clove
-a bottle of olive oil
-two bottles of salad dressing (unopened)
-a bottle of ketchup
-salt and pepper shakers (filled)
-a bag of sugar
-starter briquettes for a grill (which I was going to go pick up today!)
-two large bottles of dish washing detergent
-a small box of laundry detergent

The bags rested on two badminton rackets and a birdie.

I can definitely use all of the bag contents and I'll be able to pass on the rackets to a family with children at some point down the road (or even keep them; I like badminton!).

Hmm... all that garlic and onions and olive oil makes me think that I'm due to cook up a huge pot of spaghetti sauce, LOL!

I wouldn't have taken in just any sort of food from strangers, but none of this stuff has an 'ick' factor and it sure would be a shame to throw out perfectly good food!

Running out of Superlatives

2008-09-25T16:51:00.000-07:00

Three weeks ago at this time I had just completed my first day on the road and was camped within site of very familiar lac Roland in Quebec's Vérendrye Park.

Tonight, I can see the Canadian Rockies from my living room window.

I've run the whole gamut of emotions these past three weeks, but not once have I shed a tear, and now I can't stop crying. I am so overwhelmed in the best of senses by this life I have chosen, by this country I was fortunate to be born in, by the variety of its landscapes and the generosity of its people, and by all the opportunities it gives me.

I'm at a really nice park about an hour west of Calgary and will be here for a full week. I hope to visit Banff, Calgary, Canmore, and Drumheller from here while reserving some time to research my mountain crossing, to figure out exactly what town I should use as a base of operations when I get to British Columbia, and to start looking for work.

Decisions Reached!

2008-09-25T08:08:00.001-07:00

Calgary, Banff, Canmore, and Kananaskis country here I come!

I found a campground with full hookups outside of Calgary that has very reasonable weekly rates, so I'm heading there for seven nights!

First though, I'm going to go on the hunt for a new coach battery. Actually two 6V golf cart-type batteries. Faithful reader Croft has voiced what I have thus far avoided staring right in the face: I'm probably looking at an imminent coach battery failure. So, I'm getting that done in Edmonton today (hopefully) and then I'm moving on to Calgary. If I get a late start today, then I'll stay overnight in Red Deer.

For the visual folks out there, here's what my journey has looked like so far. This represents roughly 3,600km.

At Crossroads

2008-09-24T19:04:00.000-07:00

Wow. I have to be out of this site by 11AM tomorrow and I have absolutely no idea where I'm going next!!! I really do want to plunk myself down somewhere for a several nights and just breathe before plunging back into working life. I'm a bit distressed that I don't have the stamina I had when I was 19!

My options for getting to Kelowna, which will be my base of operations in October, are:

1) stick to my original plan and get to BC by way of Red Deer, Calgary, Canmore, Banff, Revelstoke, and Salmon Arm;

2) continue on the Yellowhead and get to BC by way of Jasper stopping in Hinton, Blue River, and Kamloops.

I'm going to get flogged for this, but I am trying to avoid staying in national parks. I don't care how pretty they are, 45$ a night for camping is highway robbery!!! Even non-hook up sites are exorbitantly priced.

I'm told Banff is a must see place, but I already have a chip on my shoulder about it. I just resent having to pay a premium for going where everyone else goes. I therefore try to find my own out of the way equivalents. No, I have never been to Niagara Falls, either (well, other than as a foetus).

So, technically, that leaves me with a third option, crossing over from southern Alberta via the Crows Nest Pass. But that's an extra 300km, so not an option I'm seriously considering at this time (although I did once).

Does it really matter which road I choose now? The one I don't take will be the one I'll embark on in the spring when I get back on the road again.

I've been avoiding making this decision since I started off on this whole insane adventure of mine knowing full well that I would eventually end up in Edmonton one night with no idea of what my next move would be. Let's see what sort of wise advice the night brings. I'm such a procrastinator. :-)

And through the night, behind the wheel,
The mileage clicking west,
I'll think upon Mackenzie, David Thompson, and the rest,
Who cracked the mountain ramparts and did show a path for me,
To race the roaring Fraser to the sea.

Redoing the Electrical Audit

2008-09-24T17:13:00.001-07:00

Another thing I did yesterday was redo all my reading about RV electrical systems to figure out why I'm having such a hard time when boondocking more than one night and properly determine what I need to upgrade. Things made sooooo much more sense this time around. For example, I finally figured out why watching a movie through the inverter runs down my batteries. Old timers are going to roll their eyes at me as this is really one of those DOH! moments.

I watch movies on my iMac. The iMac runs at about 100-120 watts. According to my initial energy audit, that meant that it uses at most 1 amp (120w/120v=1a), no more than a light. Therefore, I could definitely run my iMac on the battery for a couple of hours.

(Old timers are going waitaminute...)

Yeah.

What I failed to understand is that the inverter doesn't really give me 120v power, so I should have been dividing that 120w by 12v, not 120. Meaning that my iMac uses 10 amps!!!

Okay, it's clear. I can't run the iMac when boondocking. It's also the only power hungry thing I'd want to run for any length of time when boondocking. Therefore, my solution for long term boondocking isn't to upgrade my electrical system but to get a slightly newer laptop that is faster and has a DVD player, a solution costing a few hundred dollars rather than a few thousand. Talk about my getting smarter!

That said, I most definitely need to replace my battery and I won't even bother getting this one load tested. It has surpassed its lifespan and I doubt the POs did any sort of maintenance on it. So, two new 6V golf cart batteries are on my priority list for this winter, and then I'll shop for a new-to-me laptop in the spring when I start boondocking again.

At any rate, I quit running the iMac while Walmarting quite a while back as well as running a million lights to either read or embroider as I've picked up a new hobby that requires no electricity and very little light. No, I'm not going to tell you what it is so don't even bother asking. :)

Further evidence that I'm getting smarter about all things RV came about when I arrived in Edmonton on Monday night. It was really cold and damp in the rig, but I didn't turn on the furnace since I was only on 15A service. Then, I actually questioned if the furnace would use as many amps as an air conditioner. I pulled out the manual and learned that the furnace only uses 8A. Add the 1 for the iMac and 1 for a light and I was still at only 10A. Ah, no more shivering. :-)

Electrical heaters are next on my to-by list and I'm still debating catalytic heaters. I have really mixed opinions on those.

Where I've Stayed

2008-09-24T16:54:00.001-07:00

I haven't given too many details on the campgrounds in which I've stayed because I don't think it's wise to give too much information on exactly where I am at the time of posting, so consider this a bit of a catch up edition. :-)

So, my first campground was the Ottawa Municipal Campground in Ottawa, Ontario.

I maintain that the OMC is Ottawa's best kept secret. The park feels like it's deep in nature, but it's just minutes from the Queensway and from shopping centres in Nepean and Kanata while being about ten minutes from downtown (as long as it's not rush hour!). Staff is friendly, rules are lax, there's wi-fi at the laundromat, and the electricity and water are good.

I found this campground using Google.

My second campground was Stillwater RV Park in Nipigon, Ontario.

For the night that I stayed, this place was fantastic. It had 30A pull-thrus, good water, a cheap laundromat, and wi-fi. Even though it's located right on the highway, the sites are removed enough from it to be quiet. But I'd hate to stay here in the high season as the sites are packed very closely together. Thankfully, the place was practically empty when I stayed.

I found this campground in an old Trailer Life directory the POs left me.

My third campground was Shady Oaks RV Resort & Campground in Sidney, Manitoba.

This was a really nice campground, if you like being in the middle of nowhere (60km to the nearest grocery store!). I had a beautiful spot overlooking the Manitoba prairie and shaded by oak trees that rained acorns the whole time I was there! Water quality wasn't very good here (too much iron), but I wasn't drinking it, so I didn't mind. The staff was very friendly. There was wi-fi, but it wasn't free, and this new service needed a lot of tweaking.

I found this campground by driving down the Transcanada highway and following the signs advertising a park offering full 30A hookups and wi-fi.

Then, I moved on to the Dyer Straits Campground and Cabins (great name!) in Whitecity, Saskatchewan.

I adored this campground. Even though it's right on the Transcanada and just twelve kilometres from all the shops and services, it feels like you're in a natural setting. It's quiet and the owners are friendly and laid back. The water here had the same problem as that at Shady Oaks, but, otherwise, the services were good. Wi-fi isn't available at all the sites, but the owners are okay with laptop owners coming up to their house after dinner and stretching out on their lawn chairs.

I knew that I wanted to stay in the Whitecity area and was looking at another campground found in my Saskatchewan Official Campgrounds Guide, but Dyer Straits was cheaper.

Next, I stayed at the Gordon Howe Campground in Saskatoon.

This campground is very well located. It feels private and rustic, but is close to downtown and several Saskatoon attractions. I found that there were a lot of rules and I was disappointed to learn that you can only dump during the week! That said, staff was friendly, laundry was cheap (and change for it was given with a smile), and the wi-fi was free (even though they had a service interruption most of the time I was there!). Water pressure at this park is very high, so you need a regulator. They warn you about this several times.

I had planned to stay at another campground right on highway 16 west of Saskatoon, but didn't have specific directions to get there. So, upon arriving in Saskatoon, I followed little brown signs showing a trailer until I got to what looked like a dead end as I wound up at a sports arena parking lot. Just before deciding to cut my losses and try again to find the other park, I saw rigs off in the distance behind trees and realised that the road forked out to the left to the campground entrance. I'm glad things worked out this way as this campground was a much better choice for my purposes than would have been one several kilometres out of town.

Which brings me to here, the Rainbow Campground in Edmonton.

Meh. This campground was obviously my best choice for Edmonton, but it's ludicrously expensive for 15A service with no water! And you have to pay 10.50$ per day for internet access! The gates close at 11PM sharp, so this isn't the place to stay if you want to experience Edmonton's nightlife. That said, it's fairly conveniently located and fairly quiet. I'm right at the entrance and in front of the men's washrooms, positioned here because I have a toad. They only allow one motorized vehicle per site, so I have to park my toad somewhere else. This is the only site where there is a 'somewhere else' close by: right across the way in front of the men's washrooms. :-) I do find that getting here is a bit of a pain. My GPS is of absolutely no use and being 'off Whitemud Drive' is of only limited use. Depending on where you enter and exit Whitemud Drive, it runs north/south or east/west! So, I always have a hard time figuring out which direction to go to get home.

I found this campground in the Official Alberta Campgrounds guide, and decided on it with a bit of research done in Lloydminster on a limited internet connection.

Fort Edmonton Park

2008-09-24T16:00:00.001-07:00

Today was the best sort of day!

First off, the weather was just beautiful; crisp but not too cold, with a bright blue sky that contrasted sharply with the emerald and amber foliage of the park. It was the kind of day meant for strolling outdoors.

As it turned out, Fort Edmonton Park isn't closed during the week in the fall! It just runs on a very reduced basis: most buildings are open, but there are few interpreters and no concessions are open. There are also wagon rides available that go through the park and give the history of it.

While I was disappointed that the first Rutherford home was not open today, the atmosphere in the park more than made up for that. It was quiet and empty, and it was an absolute luxury to tour at my own pace, unhurried and without having to push my way through crowds.

Normally, there is a train which takes guests from the admissions building to the Edmonton Fort, from which guests can amble back chronologically through the exhibits. I did my tour in reverse and I actually much preferred that, as it felt like I was slowly making my way back in time, from a 1920's street, to one from 1905, to one from 1885, to the old fort circa 1840.

At the fort, I took the the wagon back to the entrance, then back to the fort again, from which I took a slightly less beaten path back so that I could snap pictures of the few buildings I'd missed which had been pointed out on the tour.

I would up spending four hours at the park when I had expected to spend just one. Admission for today was just 8.75$!

This is the entrance gate to the park. It's supposed to be inspired by the shape of a boat and that of a fort wall:

I collect(ed?) blue willow dishware and snapped a picture of this enamel piece as I'd never seen one that was so pale. I came close to buying this dish in the gift shop but showed remarkable restraint. :-)

This is the first mosque ever built in Canada (and possibly North America). If it looks Ukrainian, guess the nationality of the architect and builder. :-)

Private toilet facilities at the fort (only three holes!):

This round barn is an original building that was moved to the park. The design (a 20-sided polygon) wasn't very popular, but made for an efficient use of space as it could hold more cattle per square foot and allowed for a common feed area in the centre that could be supplied by a hay loft on the second level:

Wild Rose Country

2008-09-24T09:53:00.001-07:00

I'm posting from Edmonton, Alberta.

Driving northwest out of Saskatoon on the Yellowhead (16), the landscape begins to ripple and the vast golden expanses of wheat give way to green pastures interrupted by dense poplar copses. By the time you truly enter Alberta, after you've passed Lloydminster, you'd think you were back in northern Ontario. But the trees betray your true location, as Alberta along this route has more poplar than it does spruce.

My first night in Alberta was spent in a zoo of a shopping complex in Lloydminster. I was very technically set up in front of a Wal-mart, but, truly, home was squeezed in between a Kelsey's restaurant and a bank. It was very noisy, crowded, and busy, but provided a good lesson in how far I've come in the past few weeks. My first times in such locations, I couldn't relax and absolutely had to leave the coach. This night, I just got a few groceries to make dinner at home, and then I plopped down with a book for several hours.

I made it to Edmonton around 12:30 on Monday. It had been a miserable morning; rainy, damp, cold, muddy, and windy. Keeping Miranda in her lane had required all my energy. I wanted to go somewhere warm for the afternoon, somewhere I wouldn't have to think too much, somewhere I could have some exercise.

So, within a half hour of arriving in Edmonton, I was on my way to the West Edmonton Mall.

Now, I have no love for these insane orgies of consumerism. When I went through Minnesota in 2005 I purposely skipped the Mall of America even though I went right by it. But the West Edmonton Mall promised an indoor water park with a wave pool which sounded like just the thing I wanted....

I found the water park and was dismayed by the admission cost of 32$, plus 7$ for a locker rental. I just wanted to swim! I took a chance and asked the lady at admissions if there was perhaps a special fee just for the pool. Not during the week... because access to the whole facility is 17$ since not all the activities are open.

And that's why I am really beginning to love this life, folks. I woke up Monday in a miserable parking lot, went to bed in a quiet setting surrounded by firs, and in the middle of all that, I spent three glorious hours swimming, body surfing waves, and taking too many exhilarating rides to count down waterslides. Monday was a Good Day.

Yesterday was okay. Everything I really wanted to see in Edmonton is either closed for renovations, closed for the season, or has a drastically reduced program. I did the Royal Alberta Museum in the morning and had mixed feelings about it. The 10$ admission fee felt bloated when I compared the museum to the RSM (2$) and I found the exhibits disjointed and badly organized. But I was able to fall in love with an absolutely adorable little guy (Australian stick bug) and learn about the shipwreck of the Empress of Ireland, which happened on the St. Lawrence River, and which I'd never heard about even though it was comparable in tragedy to the sinking of the Titanic.

I finished up my day early by going to Rutherford House, home of Alberta's first premiere.

Admission was 4$ and got me a private guide who was fantastic. I enjoyed touring this Edwardian home, comparing it to Victorian homes I'd toured before. The Edwardian style is a lot more simple, but the paint colours are shockingly bright.

Today, I'm not sure if I'm doing anything touristy. I had wanted to go to Fort Edmonton Park, but it's shut down for the season and the only thing going on during the week are wagon rides. Later today I'll go check out if those are worth doing since the park is just minutes from here. I also need to visit an Elections Canada office to get a special ballot to vote by mail as we have an election coming up on October 14!

I'm very tired and the cold I woke up with last Thursday has hardly abated. So, I'm reconsidering my plans for the rest of the week. I was supposed to go to Calgary tomorrow and stay through to Sunday. I think I'm going to blow off the city and come back in the spring.

So, my new tentative itinerary is to make it as far as the Wal-mart in Red Deer tomorrow, the Wal-mart in Calgary on Friday, and then stop in Canmore for a full seven nights as I found a park there that offers a free seventh night for six paid up (making the average cost per night almost reasonable). From there, I could take a day trip into Calgary (1 hour) and day trips into Banff, similar to what I did in Regina. And then from Canmore, I'll drive, up and down and through the mountains until I reach the Okanagan valley. It's getting colder up here (there's frost on the grass outside!) and the Okanagan Valley is starting to sound like the promised land. :-)

I must also confess that I'm getting too settled into this semi-retired-type routine of mine and that it won't hurt for me to start making some income again to remind me that there is still a big old world out there. :-)

Saskatoon

2008-09-21T08:55:00.001-07:00

I wish I had time to share all the pictures I took of Saskatoon, but I have to be out of this site by 11! :( Every other place I've stayed, checkout has been a much more civilized 12 o'clock.

At any rate, let me take you back to Regina one last time, to the set of 'Laundry Day On the Prairie':

Even though I haven't blogged about it since I bought it, I've been using and absolutely adore my Wonderwash. I use it to keep on top of the cleaning of small items like dish cloths. The machine cleans things beautifully. I should have taken a before and after picture of one of the cloths I cleaned; it was so filthy after washing a BBQ grill that I thought it would have to become a rag. My Wonderwash got it back to brilliant white! At any rate, I woke up Thursday to discover that Ms. Tabitha had been sick all over the bed. Yay. Not. I decided to wash the sheets in the Wonderwash. This was not as tedious an endeavour as one might imagine even though it took about an hour. The sun was shining so hard that I barely had to wring anything out; within an hour everything was bone dry.

The owners came by at one point because someone had told them that a tenant had strung a clothesline, an apparent no no. They laughed when they saw I'd strung the line from one of Miranda's mirrors to a utility pole. That was fine; the no no is to string a heavy line between their precious tiny poplars. I can't believe that I can believe that some idiots would have done that. Me, I'm good at improvising. :)

Croft will be happy to see a white hose in this picture. I had to use my green hose for black tank related matters back in Manitoba, so since I needed a new hose anyway, I made it a point to look for a white one. I hate it, it leaks at the connection where it screws to the tap and Canadian Tire won't take it back. I'll have to fix it next time I stop; thankfully I have the parts to do that.

So, Saskatoon. I'm going to have to move here since it hosts my dream home!

I decided that the only thing I absolutely had to do in Saskatoon was the Western Development Museum's '1910 Boomtown':

It's fantastic!!! The museum is a recreation of a street in a circa 1910 Saskatchewan town:

You can go into each building and see a typical commerce, service, or home from the period.

That took up the entire morning. As I was coming out, the lady at the admissions counter 'had' to introduce me to her other colleague as 'the gal RVing across Canada with her two cats.' Without prompting, she then told me I had to visit the University of Saskatchewan campus and pulled out a map showing me a walking route I could take. That sounded fantastic. I needed the exercise and I wasn't in the mood for more museums.

The walk was quite long, about 7.5km, if I reckon correctly, and was breath taking. I started at the Saskatoon Weir (dam) and climbed up to the CPR Bridge.

I discovered here that there is no way I am ever going to be able to make it up the Eiffel tower. The stairs are metal mesh that you can see through. I barely made it to the top, and that's because I finally had the smarts to close my eyes. The view from the top was breathtaking, but I couldn't get off that bridge fast enough. If a train had come by as I crossed, as one did an hour later when I was safely on the ground, a rescue crew would have been needed to get me moving again!

Look at how high up it is!!!

Once I got across to the U of S campus, the daring bridge crossing was all worth it. I got some fantastic shots of Saskatoon, of which this is one:

It was past lunchtime when I got back to my car, so I decided to head to the 'trendy' Broad Street area to scope out a place for a nice lunch, which I found at the Broad Street diner, where they have some amazing fries. Just off Broad Street I found a used bookstore with an owner who is quiiiiiite the character. He talked my ear off about how people today, especially politicians, know nothing about our history. I'd picked up a book on ancient Egypt and he told me I could have it free if I bought the autobiography of Nellie McClung, a suffragette, which he had seen me pick up (and put back down because it was pricey). I hesitated just long enough for him to offer me an even better deal, so I walked out with both books. In my defense, there were so many books on my 'wish list' in that store that if I was still living in a real house I could have easily bought a couple dozen!!!

Since I still have that nasty cold (better today, thank you), I was pretty exhausted by this point, so I went home to do laundry and come up with something fun to do in the evening.

The Saskatchewan activities guide mentioned boat tours, but that these tours stop on Labour Day weekend. That said, I'd found the launch for these tours on my walk and a sign there seemed to indicate that there would be a tour at 7PM. A quick phone call confirmed that, so off I went after dinner for a 1 hour cruise up and down the Saskatchewan River. It wasn't a particularly good cruise in that we had to get any information we wanted from a brochure that was given to us. The brochure was great, but it's hard to read and look at the scenery at the same time! That said, it was a lovely hour on the water and the weather was mild. Unfortunately, my pictures didn't turn out, but this one is just about salvageable:

I'll have to see about getting more of my Boomtown pics onto a site like Flickr. Anyhoo, I have to be off within the next hour. I'm Alberta bound! Tonight's destination: the Walmart in Lloydminster, a border city of which one part lies in Alberta and the other in Saskatchewan! Tomorrow, I'll get to Edmonton.

Regina and the RCMP Heritage Centre

2008-09-19T21:02:00.001-07:00

Some pictures from Monday:

This is Wascana Lake, in the heart of Regina. It's surrounded by greenery and has paths along its banks for running, biking, walking, etc. There are a lot of tourist attractions in this area.

One of the many gravestones I photographed at the Regina Cemetery. There was a whole section devoted to the graves of children and this was one of the sweetest. Rest for the little sleeper indeed.

This is a native prairie grass garden growing right outside the Royal Saskatchewan Museum. Most of these plants no longer grow naturally as the prairie ecology has been changed to accommodate agriculture.

Now on to Wednesday, which was devoted to touring the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Heritage Centre located right on the site of Depot, where all Mounties get their training. The site has a museum that is well worth the visit and visitors are also allowed to wander the grounds of Depot provided they follow the blue Mountie road:

All the buildings at Depot are of this style:

Finally, if there's one nice thing I can say about the RCMP it's that they sure do know how to put on a show:

This is an excerpt from the Sergeant Major's parade, which is when all the cadets are inspected.

I was surprised that I was allowed to take the pictures and videos that I did. Must have something to do with the RCMP's desperate need to improve their public image and seem more transparent.

Moose Jaw

2008-09-19T20:11:00.000-07:00

Moose Jaw is an easy fifty minute drive from the campground where I stayed, so let's say about forty minutes from Regina proper. I'm so glad I did the town as a day trip rather than moving on to it with the coach. Those five nights I spent in one location really helped me recoup some energy!

I left for Moose Jaw around quarter to 8, getting into town just before 9, only to learn that the town opens late! Thankfully, I found a coffee shop and was able to kill some time there before 10, when the Tunnels of Moose Jaw ticket office opened.

Moose Jaw's tunnels are the stuff of legends. Please visit the website to get some more information on their history. They were originally built as a way for steam engineers to easily access the boilers that provided the steam which heated the city, but they soon became the domain of sweatshops and bootlegging. These two topics were the subject of the tours available.

The first tour I went on took me on a Chinese immigrant's journey upon arrival in Canada at the turn of the 19th century. The Chinese immigrant experience at that time is a true black mark on Canadian history. The tour very effectively conveys the exploitation and degradation these immigrants were subject to. There wasn't a dry eye in the group when we got back to the surface.

The second tour is about Moose Jaw's connection with Chicago during the Prohibition era. This tour was very entertaining, but was based on conjecture (that Al Capone might have sought refuge at times in Moose Jaw) and didn't really provide that much historical information other than to set Moose Jaw as being the place for debauchery at the time. It was nice to finish up with that one, but if you can only take one tour, I recommend the Chinese one.

There's a small heritage museum at the library, which I toured, then I bought a brochure outlining the steps for a self-guided tour of the town. The temperature in Moose Jaw on Tuesday was torrid. I can only compare it to my experience of Las Vegas in June. A real 30 degrees, not a 30 degrees with humidity. I couldn't keep myself hydrated, so I knew that I was going to be cutting the day short.

Here are a few pictures from that tour:

A beautiful church:

There was absolutely no way for me to capture the front of it in one clear shot because there was a park across the street.

A funny road crossing sign (points if you catch the joke):

Every single street light in downtown Moose Jaw has a voice that in tones: "The WALK light to cross XXX Street is now on. The WALK light to cross XXX Street is now on. The WALK--" It got to be very annoying, especially in the afternoon when I was trying to take photographs of various buildings and the heat was sapping all my patience. It reminded me of the annoying elevator voice at my job who calls out each floor.

Moose Jaw City Hall, formally a post office:

There's an extension on the back of the building for the police station. This addition perfectly matches the style of the old post office.

Moose Jaw came off as a charming, but faded, town. It had a grimy, sun bleached quality to it. Downtown is just a few blocks square and is very walkable. There's a lovely park called Crescent Park, right in the middle of town, with a casino and spa on its edges. There are a lot of things to do in the environs, so if I'd had more time and had gone to Moose Jaw with the coach for a few days, as I'd initially planned, I would have had plenty to do.

Why 'Moose Jaw'? The accepted theory is that the town is named after the Moose Jaw river, which has a bend that looks like the jaw of a moose!

Lost in an Endless Sea of Blue and Gold

2008-09-19T19:11:00.001-07:00

I'm in Saskatoon!

The exclamation point is because I was certain I'd be camping out at the Regina Walmart tonight as there was absolutely no way my mail could have arrived. I mean, it would be way too convenient. But it did!

It turned out to be a good thing that I had to spend that extra day in the Regina area seeing as I woke up with a cold yesterday and felt like doing nothing but lounging around at home. I'm still stuffed up today, but at least I had enough energy to pack up and drive the 300 klicks to Saskatoon and to deal with the issues that needed dealing with this morning.

One of them was having my new wheel retorqued at a Regina Kal Tire (amazing backing up manoeuvres were required there). The other is such a classic Rae moment that those who know me are going to burst out laughing when they read about it. After Kal Tire, I parked at a nearby Walmart to have lunch, scope out the parking lot, and call the post office. I did what I needed to do, got hold of the post office who gave me the good news, and stepped out of the coach to check on the toad, ecstatic that I was going to be on the road to Saskatoon within the half hour.

Which is when I discovered that I'd locked myself out of the coach. All my spare keys were in Miranda. All the windows were shut. My cats can't open a door. I just stared at the rig for a moment dumbfounded and in complete disbelief of just how absent minded I can be sometimes. Then, I realised that I wasn't really locked out after all!

When I park somewhere like a Walmart, I crack open a roof vent instead of a window. This afternoon, I just happened to open the one above the kitchen sink. It's the only one I can fit through! So, I climbed up onto the roof, opened the hatch all the way, and lowered myself down to the counter (discovering at the same time that I'm definitely getting back into shape!).

That was the extent of the excitement for today, thankfully. I do want to say that I am in the market for a device that will activate at the same time as my turn signals and which will scream out: "This coach is moving into the left/right lane! Get the *beep* out of the way!" I cannot believe the number of people today who blatantly ignored my turn signals and purposely sped up to close gaps that I was about to merge into.

Today was a good day on the road. I love waking up not knowing where I'm going to sleep that night.

Please stay tuned for posts about Moose Jaw and the RCMP Heritage Centre!

Waitin' on the Mail

2008-09-17T18:44:00.001-07:00

I was supposed to be heading Saskatoon way tomorrow, but my mail hasn't arrived yet, so I'm staying at this park until Friday. If the mail isn't in by then, I'll move to a fancier park for the weekend, one with internet and laundry facilities. At least, there are worst places to be stuck!

The park where I'm staying does have wi-fi, but only at the owners' home, where I'm sitting outside freezing my butt off watching an amazing prairie sunset. Unfortunately, my laptop is much to slow to do any real surfing, so replies to comments and updates with photos will have to wait until I can get online with my iMac.

I had a great time in Moose Jaw yesterday and an equally good one today at the RCMP heritage centre, but write ups will wait until I can provide pictures. :-)

Being out here on the prairie fills me with such peace. There is something about the plains that has always made sense to me. When I first encountered them in North Dakota back in 2005 I found myself wondering if it's possible to come home to a place you've never been before. Everything out here is amplified: the blue of the sky, the warmth of the sun, the sound of the wind... Mornings and evenings are bitterly cold in the fall, but the days are hot. Yesterday in Moose Jaw, I could have have closed my eyes and sworn I was in Las Vegas in June, it was that dryly hot out.

Regina is a nice little city, comparable to Winnipeg. It confirmed to me what it is exactly that makes Winnipeg so special to me as Regina has all the same criteria but one, no strong French community.

The ideal year, it would seem, would be a summer spent in the Prairies, an early fall spent on the Shield, and then a winter somewhere warm and dry.

I cannot believe that I am already a full two weeks into my adventure and that I need to be in British Columbia no more than three weeks from now! I want to spend two nights in Saskatoon and two each in Edmonton and Calgary, so that's another week eaten up, not counting travel time between the cities. And I thought I'd have time to go to Yellowknife! *laughs* I don't mind being 'stuck' in Regina an extra night or two, but I really hope to be gone by Saturday just because I'm getting to be a little too comfortable here! But after the last two weeks of learning and driving so much, it's nice to be parked somewhere for a spell and take some much needed time to breathe.

But the road beckons and I know that within the next day or so, I'll be itching to leave. It's lovely to know I can, and helps me to enjoy these peaceful moments even more.

Land of Living Skies

2008-09-16T08:52:00.001-07:00

First off, let me thank everyone who has commented in the past few days. I'll answer each one of you. I'm having to rely on a free wi-fi signal provided in SK's major centres which, unfortunately, is extremely slow. Combine that with the slowest laptop in the universe (doesn't mean I don't adore you, Bea!) and I'm keeping my surfing to the absolute minimum this week.

I'm posting from a coffee shop in Moose Jaw. The town opens really late, so I have about an hour to kill before I can start doing the tourist thing.

As it turns out, my location just outside of Regina is absolutely perfect. Moose Jaw is just an hour away, perfect for a day trip. Downtown Regina is barely 20 minutes away, so yesterday I was able to go out for the morning and part of the afternoon, go home for rest, then return in the evening to run some errands.

Monday in Regina is pretty much like Monday in Montreal, at least the way it was last time I was there on a Monday: just about everything of interest is closed. Fortunately, I'd done my homework and had a list of a few things that were open.

Joke was on me when I woke up at 7 yesterday. Saskatchewan has its own time rules, the details of which are fuzzy at present, but it turned out that even though I was still on central time, it was a whole hour earlier than I realised! I was pretty shocked when I got my bill at the pancake house and saw that it was 8AM, not 9AM as I'd thought!

The first thing I dealt with was mail. Being in Regina for the week and being willing to extend my stay if Canada Post is a bit slow, I felt that this was the perfect time to have some mail forwarded to me.

Then, I headed to the Regina Cemetery. Cemeteries are usually one of the first places I visit when I get to a new city. You can tell so much about a community by walking among its dead--what they believed in, what they fought for, what they fought against, major calamities, hierarchical divisions... At this cemetery I was must struck by the fact that simple wooden crosses sat next to large granite stones and by the number of graves belonging to soldiers killed during the Korean 'police action.'

Next stop was the Royal Saskatchewan Museum, the quintessential natural history museum found in most cities. I found this one to be particularly good, with interactive displays and audio that complemented printed information. I shot an amusing video that I hope to be able to post!

The RSM is located on the shores of Wascana Lake, a beautiful urban playground with paths for running, jogging, walking, bike riding, etc. I walked around there for a spell and went to see if the science museum was open (no). So, I returned to downtown for an hour and checked out a few antique shops (it's so easy to resist temptation when you live in an RV!).

Which brings me to this glorious sunny prairie morning in Moose Jaw. I have a full day of activities planned and tons of photos to share. Stay tuned. :-)

Little RV On the Prairie

2008-09-14T15:58:00.001-07:00

I'm presently just east of Regina, Saskatchewan, within very easy commuting distance, and will be here till Thursday.

The last few days have been quite the adventure.

I thought I would be rested and ready to go when I left the campground on Saturday with Brandon as my destination, but something felt off. The feeling got worse as I got closer to Brandon. The drive there didn't help as big wind gusts made it difficult not to sway. But there was something else.

Since Thunder Bay, I'd had one of my bad feelings about my left rear tire. No reason for it; pressure was good, tire was in impeccable condition, it was a Michelin. So, when it blew just as I got into Brandon, I felt immense relief as that feeling of being 'off' dissipated almost immediately.

I was able to limp into a big empty parking lot to assess the damage. Tire was definitely a goner. Okay, fine, need a new tire. I knew I was lucky. I wasn't in the middle of nowhere and chances were I'd be able to hunker down in this parking lot until I could get going again. I hadn't needed to use one of my precious 'free' roadside assistance calls and I didn't have to try to put on the spare myself. I was home. And didn't tire places offer a mobile service? As crummy things go, this was pretty non-crummy.

So, the first thing I did was hike across the tarmac to the grocery store there, get a few things, then politely ask if I could spend the day in their parking lot. Indeed. I was even welcome to stay through to Monday morning!

Okay, so I now had a place to securely leave Miranda while I went for help. I asked Majel for directions to the nearest tire place. It was closed, so I moved on to the next. Kal Tires. Go there if you ever blow a tire in Brandon!

I told the service tech what happened and where I was. He looked very apologetic and informed me that he couldn't possibly get someone out to see me for at least four or five hours and it would cost 60$ to do so. I told him that was fantastic and that I was thrilled that I'd be able to get service that day. I gave him my cell number (another thing to be grateful for), told him I was going exploring in my toad, and to give me a shout whenever his tech was ready to head my way.

So, Saturday I was able to do what I'd planned to do in the first place: explore Brandon. There was absolutely nothing to see. Really. It was too cold and rainy to walk along the river and all the interesting exhibits and shops were closed tight till Monday. I drove around a bit to orient myself, found a movie theatre, and then returned home to comb through all my literature on Saskatchewan to plan my next move.

The tech guy arrived around 5, as promised, and made quick work of getting the new tire put on, even though he had to return to the shop to pick up a tool he hadn't thought to bring. They didn't have a the exact kind of tire I have, but something equivalent... that was almost double the cost. To compensate me for that (!) I just had to pay for the tire, the service call, and the taxes. They actually waived the hourly work fee! The total bill wasn't pleasant, but it was fully half what I had thought a blow out would cost me.

By this time, it was going on seven. I'd had dinner between the tech's two visits (he told me I could be in the rig while it was on the jack) so I went to the movies then came home and had an early night.

Which brings us to this morning. I was a bit disoriented when I woke up. I'd slept 9 hours straight through. That is absolutely unheard of for me.

I had a pleasant and absolutely uneventful 450km journey to just outside Regina. The park I'd spotted in a campground guide turned out to be perfectly located (and cheap!). Walmart and any other store I could possibly need is just 10 minutes down the highway.

Tomorrow and Wednesday I'll explore Regina while Tuesday I'm taking a field trip to Moose Jaw.

If the adage that bad things happen in threes, then I should be good for a while. :-) At any rate, I'm on the prairie where it's warm and sunny, the aspen are giggling outside my door, and the beer is cold. All is right once again and I can't believe I'm almost halfway through this first portion of my great big adventure.

Plumbing Resolution At Last

2008-09-13T08:31:00.001-07:00

Warning: This post is not for the faint of stomach. :-)

The reason I splurged here on full hookups including sewer was that I knew I had to do something about my black holding tank. I didn't want to find myself again in a situation where I was so desperate to dump I had to follow bad directions and break my vehicles again. I also found that parking at a public dump station doesn't work well; someone always ends up queuing in behind me.

I tried Kevin's recipe and that helped a bit. I tried wanding the tank with high pressure bursts of water. That helped a bit. Finally, I decided it was time for big measures. I grabbed a slim, narrow, and not sharp object and jammed it down there. I'll spare you any olfactory descriptions, but, within five seconds of moving the stick around, WHOOSH!, the tank was absolutely empty!

This morning, I filled the tank completely and emptied it, then I sent the non-potable hose down there for a complete rinse. My sensors still say my tank is critically full, but those sensors, like most RV sensors, are absolutely useless. :-)

Holding tanks are empty, fresh water tank is full, and I'm reasonably well rested. I guess it's time to move on and see what Brandon has to offer in way of tourism. :-)

Not Quite a Hair Dryer Set on High, But...

2008-09-12T17:29:00.001-07:00

At 5 this afternoon, I began to think about dinner. I decided to bake the last potato and have that with the rest of the sour cream, with sliced fresh veggies on the side. Hmm, I told myself. It's five now. The potato won't be ready till seven!

Whadya know, it does, indeed, take two hours to bake a potato on a hibachi. The first hour is how long it takes to light the darn thing because it's so windy out!!!

Sweet Home Manitoba

2008-09-11T19:33:00.001-07:00

Disclaimer: the following is a long post. No one is forcing you to read it. You know who you are. :-)

I am presently in nowheresville, Manitoba, somewhere between Winnipeg and Brandon (closer to the latter), taking a much needed break. It has been a long, long journey from Nipigon to here. Now, it's time to slow down and spend a couple of days at various strategic locations.

So, last you heard from me, I was about a 100 klicks shy of Thunder Bay. There isn't really anything of note between Thunder Bay and Winnipeg, so I decided to do a short haul to Thunder Bay to recharge my batteries, then undertake the very long haul to the Winnipeg area, from where I could slow down.

Since I was in no hurry on Tuesday, I decided to follow the signs promising Canada's longest suspended bridge. The road there was a bit scary in a motorhome, but the signs said that there were RV sites at the end of the road, so I took a chance taking Miranda down there and it turned out fine. I wound up on the bottom of gorgeous Eagle Canyon where a path took me up to the first of two suspension bridges.

I couldn't cross them. I have a touch of acrophobia and these bridges were too much for me. I made it a quarter of the way across the shorter bridge before I started to see red. I don't let my fear of heights stop me from living and I challenge it regularly, so I go easy on myself at times like these. I took some pictures, then followed the path down to the river at the bottom of the canyon, enjoying a brisk hike around a lake before returning to Miranda. It was a fantastic forty minute detour and well worth the 18$ access fee that is easily explained by the impeccable installation.

In Thunder Bay, I picked up two items that would make my life easier. The first is a coffee press. I can't believe it's taken me this long to discover these fantastic devices. I don't think I could go back to drip coffee!

The second item is a speaker dock for my iPod. This enables me to now have music or podcasts on the road. Radio stations have been far between and satellite radio is as huge a monthly expense as would be satellite internet! I can also listen to music in the evening without having to start up the iMac or use headphones. I went into FutureShop not really knowing what it was I was looking for and the clerk figured it out in two seconds flat. Ah, it's so lovely to be able to have something to listen to other than the cats meowing. :-)

I slept amazingly well in Thunder Bay, waking up refreshed and relaxed. It was cold in the rig (13 degrees) and it was great to get up around 6 to use the bathroom and be able to turn on the generator to get the furnace going, crawl back under the blankets, and just doze with the kitties for a half hour until the temperature inside rose to a comfortable 16.5 degrees!

Speaking of cold mornings, the temperature fell to zero the night I was in Nipigon. According to Environment Canada, that's the worst sort of night I can expect in the Okanagan Valley. If that's the case, I have nothing to fear this winter.

So, I was bright eyed and bushy tailed in Thunder Bay and decided to head back east for a minute to the Terry Fox memorial, which I'd skipped the day before.

Sunrise over Lake Gitchigoomie (Superior):

Terry Fox memorial:

One of the reasons I felt I could do an almost 800km day, as I was 'gaining' an hour:

Tabitha spends our driving time in the overcab bunk, staring out the window. Neelix, however, likes to be right in the midst of the action (he is SO CUTE!):

Just outside of Kenora, I stopped at the Dixie Lake rest area:

I stood in this spot three years ago almost to the day, overcome with emotion. I had left Winnipeg about two hours before, knowing that from that moment on, my life was about to take a very different path. These first steps back onto the Canadian Shield cemented my decision for me. The next time I would go through that way would be heading west, hauling all my possessions and aiming for a new life in Winnipeg. I gave myself a deadline: March 2009. And then I went to work making this dream a reality. That dream died the first week of this past May, leaving room for an dream so much grander that I couldn't have even fathomed it that September day in 2005. But, I did accomplish part of that initial plan, and six months early to boot. I felt almost like a traitor to Winnipeg today when I drove by her without stopping, hauling all my worldly possessions and zooming west, as though I was thumbing my nose at her and being ungrateful for all that she gave me these past three years. But I visited her in April and I remain convinced that she will one day be home to me. So, goodbye, but not farewell. I'll be back this way again.

At any rate, the rest of yesterday leaves me with mixed feelings. After ten years of driving Ontario's roads, I was pulled over by the O(ntario) P(rovincial) P(olice) for the first time, an hour from the Manitoban border, for going all of seven kilometres over the speed limit. Soon as the cop told me that, I relaxed, realising that he just wanted an excuse to pull over the young chick in the big ass RV. He spent about 10 minutes asking me questions about my rig, where I was from, and where I was going, and then he sent me on my way. Looking back, it was actually pretty funny. I need to get Miranda's odometre checked, though. According to it, I was doing 94 in a 90 zone, not 97. Okay, speeding is speeding, but who the frell gets pulled over for doing 97 in a 90 zone? LOL!!!

I hit Manitoba soon thereafter and that's where the day went to hell. I stopped at the tourist information kiosk to get directions to a dump station since I was planning on doing the Walmart thing again and was (am) still having issues with the black tank. I followed the woman's instructions to the letter. They were wrong. I took the turn she told me to take, on a paved road, and promptly came to a dead end. No way to turn around without making major damage to both the car and Miranda. No way to unhook the car. No cell phone service to call for help. No help to be had on foot for ten kilometres. Result: one crunched RV back bumper (merely cosmetic damage), one crunched front car fender that is causing a noise that makes me suspect I'll need to take it in for proper fixing, and one very disheartened and exhausted driver who isn't exactly sure yet how much of that was her fault and isn't convinced that she made the best decision.

Let's just say I was in a foul mood (depressed and tired, not angry) when I got to the Walmart in Selkirk. This store was out of my way compared to, say, the one in St-Vital in Winnipeg south, but I was trying to avoid Winnipeg. :-) They had never had an RVer stay overnight before! The manager was quick to give me permission.

Back in Nipigon, I had met some semi-timers who RV 6 months of the year, who said that they gave up on doing the Walmart thing because they feel they have to spend at each one, and end up spending more than they would have had they gone to a campground. What I've been doing is making a list of the things I actually need and picking things up bit by bit at each store. This way, I have a bag of merchandise to hold up when I ask for permission to stay, but I'm not spending money I wouldn't have needed to spend. Yesterday, I finally picked up a water pressure regulator, so tonight I'm hooked up to water for the first time (and to sewer also).

So, this morning, I took off in pea soup fog:

and stopped off at the first RV park advertising wi-fi (not free) and full service 30AMP sites. It's a nice spot in the middle of nowhere (60 klicks to the nearest grocery store) and motivation to stay home tomorrow and get some things done around the coach.

I got settled in quickly (backing up is so not an issue!), then took off towards Brandon to visit the reptile zoo I'd been hankering to see. The map to get there sucked and the GPS was no help, so I'm really glad I went in the toad. When I arrived, I didn't know what to think. The outside of the place looked like a dump! But it was open, so I went in, and paid the very reasonable fee of 5$.

The zoo turned out to be amazing and WELL worth the detour!!! I saw pythons and boas and anacondas, Nile crocodiles (the only ones in Canada, apparently), all manners of toads and frogs and turtles, big ass roaches, tarantulas, scorpions, geckos, and lizards, oh my! The owners need to do some major professionalizing of the place (especially when it comes to signage), but I can tell that the animals are very well cared for and that the owners are working on making the place look less amateurish.

Then, I made it to Brandon, where I got gas and groceries, then I headed home feeling absolutely exhausted. I immediately revised my plans for the next few days. I'm staying home tomorrow and will visit Brandon on Saturday (overnighting at the Walmart if I get permission).

Next, I'll be moving on to the Regina area. I'd like to find a location somewhere between it and Moosejaw to hunker down for four or five nights so I can do day trips with the toad.

I'm a week into my journey and have but three left to go. It's time to start pacing myself!

Small Things

2008-09-09T07:30:00.001-07:00

Before I push off, I wanted to show off Miranda's amazing 40$ makeover. I had bought some pulls for a dresser I was going to refinish, but I never got around to completing that project. Since I gave the dresser away, I chose to keep the pulls as they fit Miranda perfectly. I got some more and replaced all the ugly gold pulls in the coach. What a difference!

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

2008-09-08T17:54:00.001-07:00

When last our heroine updated her blog, she was parked at the Canadian Tire in Val D'Or. She has done more than 900km since then... and not all of them have been above ground.

Not much happened on Saturday. I wound up boondocking outside the visitor's centre at the eastern edge of the city where I was told overnighting was 'tolerated', but I'd have to move to pay site or the Walmart for the next night. The only pay site in town was 15$ and that didn't include hookups or, at least, a view, so guess where I spent my second night in Val D'Or? :-)

At any rate, the sole purpose of my visit to Val D'Or was to see the gold mine at a complex they call the Cité de l'or. Other than outdoor sports, there isn't much to see or do in Val D'or. I therefore wouldn't recommend making a detour there just to see the mine, but if you just happen to be going by, then, please, don't miss it and pay the 40 bucks for the full tour!

The outside of the mine complex:

Here is a picture of what a gold vein looks like:

The white is quartz and the black is tourmaline. This is extracted and then processed to get the gold flakes inside. It takes about 5,000 tonnes of ore from this mine to get a single oz of gold.

There was nothing but wilderness around the mine site, so a village had to be built to house all the workers and their families. Imagine a whole neighbourhood of houses just like these:

The old mining village is just adorable and is a historic site, so current owners face strict regulations as to how much they can change the houses.

These houses offered excellent accommodation for the miners with running water, heating, telephones, and electricity. Miners were considered rich. They made about 35$ a week while a living wage was about 5$ per week! This is how they could afford such luxuries and pay the rent of 50$ per year for these houses.

Before my tour of the mine, I walked through the village and was accosted by a withered wraith of a man who used to work at the mine! He spent about twenty minutes sharing his life story. I thought it would be a tale of woe, but not at all. He loved his time at the mine, saying that the work was hard, but that conditions were good and safe, and that unlike coal mining it wasn't that bad for the health as there was no dust. His job was to take core samples that would be analysed to determine which way the mine should be further excavated. When he retired from mining, he used his knowledge to found his own diamond drilling company with more than 150 employees. Meeting him proved to me that there are no accidents in life. I was sure my mine tour was at 1PM, but it was at 1:30. I therefore had time to kill, time enough to make an encounter that completely change how I felt down there, 300ft below the surface....

I really don't like enclosed spaces, so the hour and a bit we were underground was just enough for me. When we got back into the shuttle for the drive back up, I couldn't get out of there fast enough. I can't imagine spending a whole day in such a place, including a lunch break spent in a room like this one:

After the tour, I went to pick up Miranda at the Sears where I'd received permission to park her for the day, then we moved to Walmart. The store was closed, so I just set up for the night and treated myself to dinner since I couldn't get anything working at home. :-)

Sunday, I pushed off ludicrously early (around 7) and felt my mood change as quickly as did the kilometres beneath me.

I passed this very cool sign mid-morning:

The weather was (and is) gross, not motivating me to try to find a boondocking spot on Crown land as I'd thought I might, so I decided to make a push for the Walmart in Kapuskasing:

(I was just amused that I was driving through the wilderness looking for a Walmart).

I passed some very interesting towns, such as Swastika and Moonbeam, where I had to take a picture:

When I got to Kapuskasing (and was done with the whole dumping thing), I went to the Walmart figuring that it would be closed for the evening. Nope, it's open 7 to 8 seven days a week!!! So, I went in to ask for permission to stay overnight. The manager replied "Of course!" in a very friendly manner. I knew I would have a good night there: I had permission to stay and the OPP had a station literally across the street. Can't get any safer than that! I wound up sleeping the sleep of the proverbial dead and woke up this morning at 5:30 feeling very odd because I haven't slept that many hours straight through since I was a teenager!

Today was another big push as there is just about nothing between Kapuskasing and Thunder Bay. I was very glad to find this park. It's nothing special and not a place where you can set up your hibachi or awning, but it's perfectly adequate for a one night stopover. Tomorrow, I'm going no further than the Walmart in Thunder Bay! I have this site until noon and I plan to take advantage of that to get caught up on my housekeeping.

If there is one thing I will remember the most about my first days on the road it is that the world is not nearly as hostile a place as some people would try to make me believe. There has been at least one person per day who helped me in a way that might have seemed small to them, but which made me feel like I am not alone on this vast and open road.

Tomorrow is Thunder Bay. Wednesday will be my last night on the Shield. Thursday I'll hit the Prairies. And then I'll slow down properly as I'll be hitting new things.

There is no shortage of good days. It is good lives that are hard to come by. Good lives, I'm discovering, have no shortage of bad days, but they are measured by the sum of the whole.

I'm impossibly happy, in good spirits, comfortable in my rig, grateful that my cats have taken to this life as well as their mom, and have discovered that it's easy to be a morning person if your day is going to be filled with adventure.

Plumbing Learning Curve

2008-09-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon, I arrived in Kapuskasing, Ontario, and found a conveniently located dump station right on the main drag. I was very glad of this because I have to dump once a day. WHAT?! I can hear all the full-timers say. Well, I have very good evidence that the POs didn't do much research about RV plumbing systems.

Since I got Miranda, her black tank sensor has read critically full even after dumping. I finally shone a light down there and discovered that they committed two sins of RV toilet use:

1) they didn't use the right toilet paper;
2) they most likely left both valves open when on sewer hookups.

Yup, my tank was full of a solid wad of other people's human waste.

Just like Robin Williams in the movie 'RV.' If you haven't seen this movie, go rent it before continuing with this post.

So, I pulled up to the dump station fully cognizant that I was having this problem. This wasn't my first time dumping, so I felt pretty cocky. I made sure that the tank was full of water and then I got started.

I attached the hose and discovered that it was too short.

But the hose is extensible so I pulled a bit (lot) to get it to the drain.

Then I opened the black valve...

Not realising that I hadn't fully latched the hose to the drain pipe.

Sewage started to spray everywhere.

I had the presence of mind to slap the valve closed.

I sat there for a full two minutes laughing. I couldn't do anything else. Considering the foul mood in which I'd gone to bed and woken up, I was ecstatic to discover that I still had my sense of humour. There I was surrounded by other people's fecal matter and I could see how funny that was. I knew that I was going to be just fine and that Saturday's melt down was just a combination of too many stressors in one day.

Thankfully, the sewage stayed on the concrete pad that was on a downward slope to the drain, so I was able to just wash it all away without causing undue pollution.

When I was done there and had cleaned up, I completely filled my toilet to almost overflowing with water and drove off with the sensors screaming 'critically full'. By the time I pulled over an hour later, my tank suddenly claimed that the tank was just a third full. I suspect that the dried out muck is now sludge and that my next dump will allow me to flush it all away. Hopefully. :-)

So much fun. I want grand-children just to tell them these stories!

Electricity Learning Curve

2008-09-08T16:48:00.001-07:00

I'm about 100km east of Thunder Bay and treating myself to a night on full hookups with access to wi-fi and a laundromat. Ah, civilization.

I've been boondocking since I left Ottawa on Thursday morning and, let me tell you, that has been full of brutal lessons that left me feeling quite disheartened on Saturday evening, but which were learned well enough to allow for a 180 degree mood shift by the following evening.

The most important of these lessons is: MIRANDA'S BATTERY SENSORS CAN'T BE TRUSTED. The sensors claimed right up to Saturday evening (and beyond) that the battery was operating at full operating capacity. When I finally realised that this wasn't the case, the battery had reached such a low level that I couldn't even get the generator going. Saturday evening, I had no lights worth mentioning, no hot water, no refrigerator, nothing. It was very cold and damp in the rig and I was miserable. I went to bed really early, got on the road even earlier the next day, go the battery topped up with the driving, and spent the evening boondocking with the generator running, giving me lights, hot water, a refrigerator, HEAT, and the ability to watch a movie. Lesson learned. If you're not driving that day, run the generator at least an hour.

The second lesson in electricity is that my inverter is my best friend (even though I called it horrible names on Saturday, poor thing!). It lets me know when battery power is too low to run it. If that's the case, the generator gets run ASAP.

The third lesson in electricity is that I really hate running the generator. It's very noisy. But it's not a gas guzzler and it means I get all the comforts of home. I'll get used to it.

Saturday night, as I laid there in my bunk, snug and warm thanks to flannel PJs and a feather duvet, I listened to a song on my iPod which really put things into perspective for me. It's called 'Painting Pictures of Egypt' and this is the bit that stuck out:

The place I was wasn't perfect, but I had found a way to live
And it wasn't milk or honey, but then neither is this.

Yeah, I'd rather be in a well-insulated bus with a million solar panels and a satellite dish for getting online, but, at least, I'm not working 8 to 4 at a desk and going home to the ghetto. This isn't a vacation or a dream. It's reality. And reality isn't perfect. But it sure can be great.

The next post will show that I still had my sense of humour come Sunday!

Just a Wave

2008-09-08T10:38:00.001-07:00

I can't do justice to the last few days in the few minutes I have left online, so I won't try at this time. Pictures and stories will follow! Some of the highlights of the past few days:

-going 300ft underground into a gold mine;
-experiencing my first nights (note the plural) at Walmart;
-discovering just how bad are Miranda's sensors;
-dealing with the POs idiocy when it comes to RV plumbing;
-and a full recount of just how I inadvertently perfectly recreated a certain scene in the Robin Williams movie 'RV'.

For those wanting to follow me on a map, I left Val D'Or yesterday morning and overnighted in Kapuskasing, Ontario. I am presently in Long Lac and heading for Nipigon, several hours away hence why I can't take greater advantage of this great connection! Northern Ontario, for those who don't know it, is 90 billion kilometres long, so I have at least another two days left in this land of black spruce, granite cliffs, and clear lakes. I just wish the weather was better so I could enjoy it more.

All is well... and I still have my sense of humour.

More will come from further down the road! :-)