How South Can We Go?

Day 23 – Dec 29

(D) The beach stretches forever and is wonderful.  In the summer it would be great.  The wind at this time provides great resistance training.  So after our walk/run we check out Port Aransas and Aransas Pass.  Lunch is at the highly recommended Kody’s where Ian samples their oyster sandwich and I, the shrimp sandwich.  Excellent food at a minimum cost.  We spend over an hour watching dolphins and pelicans at the island point then take the ferry to Aransas Pass to pick up groceries and gas.  There is only one small grocery store on the entire island and it doesn’t look great.  The ferry is also lots of fun as we get to dolphin watch.

Day 24 – Dec 30

(D) We start the day with a walk/run on the beach decked out in hats & gloves but today is sunny.  Then off to check out Padre Island National Seashore Park which stretches for 70 miles down the coast, is over 130,000 acres of undeveloped beach and winter home to migrating birds.  Beaches in Texas are part of the transportation system. The only way to see most of the park is by driving on the beach, so we go for a spin.  One can camp anywhere along the beach but we will not be towing the rig onto the sand. If you get stuck, it can cost hundreds or thousands for the local tow company to get you out and anyway, the rig is too pretty to subject it to salt and sand whipped about in 30 to 50 K winds. Then off to check out more dolphins. 

Day 25 – Dec 31

(D&I) Today we start the day looking after the truck with an oil change in Corpus Christi.  $58 for an oil change, tire rotation and check the brakes – this is a better price than we get in Canada.  We follow that with a quick trip into Best Buy for some TV remote batteries and then we check out the USS Lexington, a WWII aircraft carrier that is permanently anchored (actually, the hull is buried in 16’ of sand) in Corpus Christi.  Interesting tour.  Then time for a rest so that we can stay awake for the Pioneer New Year’s Eve Party.  We are seated with the staff which works out well as they are sociable and easy.  Ian and I spend the evening dancing to a lot of country and Texas 2 step. ( We’re treated to an awesome spectacle when the band starts a number I don’t recognize  and three people get up and start a line dance. Within a minute there are five rows of over twenty people all doing the same moves – moms, dads, kids and grandparents; they’re all kicking and swaying in step.) We have fun and are actually awake at midnight.

Day 26 – Jan 1^st, 2013

(D) Another cool and cloudy day.  The only entertainment open is the Texas State Aquarium so off we go to Corpus Christi  again.  The aquarium turns out to be great, the only problem is that I have dressed for an inside building to discover that more than half of the exhibits are outside.  Makes sense in a climate that is hot most of the year.  For $99.00 you can buy a private session to feed and play with the 2 dolphins.  We watch Mother and daughter for over half an hour and chat with an educational guide who is ensuring that the public stays out.  It looks like a great present for a grandchild but we realize by the time we have any grandchildren old enough, we will be too old to make the trip.  We do not feel a need to stay for the dolphin show which follows as we had a great show watching the young girl.  

Day 27 – Jan 2

(I) I’m going to start today by saying that the weather is finally getting to me. We’ve had weeks of gray skies, rain, 40º F temperatures, more gray skies and clouds – when the skies are not uniformly gray. I’m pissed.

Now I’m not pissed. Oh the weather’s still rainy and cold but we’ve had a good day. Drove back to Corpus Cristi and went to the South Texas Museum of Art – an absolutely beautiful building of stone and blended concrete on the seawall with a small but enjoyable collection of paintings and sculptures.  We followed that with lunch at Landry’s and they were good enough to let us eat cheap. They belong to a large chain that charges you $25 for a Landry’s card and immediately gives you $25 in credit the first time you use it. Plus you get a $25 bonus if it’s your birthday month. Since we decided my birthday was in January, we were able to double up. We then hunted down the Water Street Market which wasn’t doing much in the rain but Ian found a small gallery of local artists and bought a metal fish. (I think I want to buy a plasma cutter.)

Day 28 – Jan 3

Royal Terns

(D) Another walk/run on the beach in cool, cloudy, windy weather.  We head out to find track pants for Ian to run in as it is just too cold for his running shorts.  The highlight of the week is the 2 hour Birding Tour at the Padre Island Seashore National Park.  A couple from Missouri volunteer for the winter and stay at the park. Twice a day they take up to 4 people in the park van for a free birding tour.  Ian sits up front to take pictures and I am in the back with the wife.  Another couple of birders from Kansas in the middle.  The 2 guides are a wealth of information and we are thoroughly entertained.  Often eager birders can seem a little strange but this couple are terrific. Finally we can put some names to those innumerable shorebirds and gulls and we get our first sighting of two caracaras. We are planning on returning to Port Aransas on the way back north and will most likely do the tour again to see and learn more. 

Day 29 – Jan 4

(I) We leave Port Aransas in dull, cloudy weather and move on to the most southern part of Texas -  Port Isabel & South Padre Island in dull, cloudy, cold & rainy windy weather. We’re camping for a week at Isla Blanca Park the county campground which is right beside a beautiful beach – if you can stand the wind and rain.

Setting up we discover that the rear stabilizers no longer work; they seemed to be jammed. The motor won’t move them and the manual crank has stripped the rusty nubs from the crankshaft. I get even wetter & colder lying on my back trying to free them. Nothing works so we make a trip to WalMart (the only large store in Port Isabel) to buy jacks to take their place. Ian’s RV rule #1: Nothing bad happens in good weather.  Once again we are pleased that we got an early start and arrived in mid afternoon which provided lots of time to get parked in the rain and sort out the problem.

Day 30 – Jan. 5

(D) In the cold, wind but not in the rain we walk along South Padre beach, the point to Laguna Madre and around the park.  After breakfast, our standard of yogurt and fresh fruit which actually tastes like fresh fruit we head out to drive as far as the road goes on South Padre.  South Padre Island is much more developed than Padre Island and Port Aransas.  Here the hotels and condo’s are high rises along the beach strip, with many restaurants and beach stores.  As we drive out of the strip area the dunes take over, not just the landscape but the road as well - until the 2 lane road becomes one lane.   Most of Padre Island is a national park, but South Padre Island, other than a very large section of county park and RV Park, is private.  For half a mil, you can buy a beach lot with no services.  It doesn’t seem like a great investment to us but our views are coloured by grey, wind and cold.  Everyone tells us this is unusual and the brochures all say this is paradise.  Investments were never a strong point for either of us.  Our new hydraulic jacks are not holding the pressure so off to Walmart again to exchange them for scissor jacks.  This provides the opportunity to stop by Los Tortugo’s Seafood Market and purchase fresh shrimp for dinner.  What a difference fresh makes.

Day 31 – Jan 6

(D) Finally, a little warmth and a hint of sunshine.  For our walk/run we are still bundled in hats, gloves, fleece and rain jackets but as we return with the wind at our backs we take off the gloves, and unzip the jackets.  We check out the Farmer’s Market where we buy homemade nacho chips which are excellent.  Next stop is Port Isabel to wander their flea market.  So far the Texas flea market are pretty junky.  Lunch is at tripadvisor’s #1 restaurant, Joe’s Oyster Bar, a family owned small spot with great food and even better prices.  We inquire about ceviche, which is raw fish in lime juice.  I am not ready to order it so instead have Joe’s special - grilled shrimp, fish & great crab cake.  Ian has seafood special with oysters, shrimp, fish & crab cake.  Our waiter brings us a sample of ceviche which we both love.  We spend the rest of the afternoon wandering around the wharf area and enjoying the hint of sun and blue skies.  As the afternoon ends the skies become blue and the sun shines.  There is hope yet.  We are now up to a balmy 55 degrees F. 

New Orleans to Galveston

Day 13 – Dec 19

We awake to a beautiful day, hook up the truck and head for Rayne, LA, a small town just east of Lafayette. The highway is a concrete washboard through the Atchfalaya swamp but this is a journey down memory lane for us. On our honeymoon we discovered Chef Roy’s, a wonderful Southern seafood restaurant and we make reservations to revisit. Chef Roy has moved on; his sous chefs have bought him out. But the name remains the same and the menu is still excellent and we indulge ourselves. (Only sour note: the crème brûlée is neither crème nor brûlée.)

We are camped at the Rayne (Frog Capital of the World) municipal campground – set up for 700 RVs! We are the only campers. Is this Katrina money?

Day 14 – Dec 20

I get up and go for a jog in very windy weather and then we head back to Lafayette to visit Vermilionvillle, a historic village of early Cajun life. They’ve done it very well and the docents are pleasant and knowledgeable.  We’re there until the early afternoon.

We haven’t quite internalized the fact that many restaurants close their doors at 2 p.m. but we get a recommendation for Don’s Seafood downtown and once again we strike lucky – more great food.

When we return to Rayne we make plans to head for Galveston tomorrow and Darlene confirms that the ferry will take our RV.

Day 15 – Dec 21

An easy run down to Galveston but the roads in Louisiana are some of the bumpiest in the world. The ferry over to the island is first-come, first served but they have a special lane for big trucks and we get on easily. As we wait to depart we are greeted by a pod of dolphins that seem to be doing tricks just for us. We seen them before in Florida but these guys are jumping in pairs!

Day 16 – Dec 22

It’s  a fine day and we set out to explore Galveston. Top of my list is an oil rig – the Ocean Star – now retired and remodeled as a museum. Way up in Canada it’s easy to overlook the fact that one quarter of America’s oil comes from the Gulf of Mexico. We have seen refineries here that are the size of small cities, the horizon is speckled with drilling rigs, and it is apparent that, despite hurricanes, offshore drilling is not going to stop – ever.

It’s a good museum, obviously set up to present the profession in a good light, (a green light) but the material is laid out well and we soon can tell the difference between fixed rigs, compliants, jack-ups, tension-legs and spars.

Between videos and actual machines the process of drilling is explained fully – always with the emphasis on safety. I keep looking for information on the Deepwater Horizon, but find very little until, tucked away in a corner, I see a memorial to the 11 crewmen who lost their lives in the blowout. Nowhere is there any specific information on the causes of the disaster, but then this is a case that is still before the courts and Louisiana highways sport billboards that read “Got a BP claim? Call 1-800- ****” The deadline for claims isn’t until August 2013; this case will drag on for decades. I’m surprised that I see so many locals filling up at BP stations but then perhaps they’re trying to ensure the company doesn’t go under before all claims are settled.

After a walk around old Galveston admiring the Victorian architecture we had a late lunch at the family–owned Shrimp ‘N Stuff where I had an excellent oyster po-boy and Darlene tried to get through a mammoth shrimp salad.

Day 17 – Dec 23

Another ridiculous drive through multiple lane changes and overexcited traffic. There is a monster flea market in Houston called Trader’s Village and it is hyped for its excellence and its abundance of antiques. We decide to run up there only to find that it is now a Mexican village selling second-hand goods and budgies and tons of lurid Chinese plastic toys.  It was fun to see but there was little to attract us besides the tacos. And then, just as I was ready to be disappointed, I found a wonderful present for a friend in a used sign shop. I left happy.

Day 18 – Dec 24

Each morning we get up and go for a walk/jog along the beach. I am pleased and can actually see some progress. Today I went the furthest and ran the longest.

After breakfast we head down Seawall Drive to pick up supplies for tomorrow. At Randall’s we buy steaks and some enormous shrimp as well as a pecan pie and some croissants. Then north to Home Depot to find a string of Christmas lights.  Nothing at HD but Target offers me a single string of solar powered lights. I’m trying them out and have them pointing westerly to charge the battery as I type.

In the afternoon Dar and I wash the truck. It was filthy and now sits sparkling in front of the rig. Tonight we’ll splurge – put on our “goin’ to town” clothes and head for Fisherman’s Wharf for a big seafood dinner.

Day 19 – Dec 25 – Christmas Day

Well last night’s dinner was excellent! Restaurants in this part of the world love to fry their seafood. That usually means “deep-fry”, something we try to stay away from, but last night they showed us that it can mean light and crispy and crunchy with no oily aftertaste. I have to learn how to cook like that.

Neither of us got much of a sleep last night – very windy with lots of gusts that kept us awake. In the morning we got up, made a latte and coffee and we took to the beach with croissants for a  walk. The waves are up and thunderstorms are predicted for later. We’ll exchange gifts when we return and munch on Christmas cake (Thank you, Dulcie!) and mimosas.

Does this look safe to you?

The thunderstorms arrive but pass on by early afternoon and we head out to explore. Plenty of people out on the seawall downtown in spite of cool temperatures and big waves. We try the Seawolf Park but the whole park is closed, not just the ships.

Christmas dinner is to be surf and turf but the wind is so strong I’d never be able to keep the bbq upright, let alone lit. We settle for a shrimp dinner and both of us comment – once again – how fresh shrimp put the frozen ones to shame.  We certainly had an unusual Christmas without our family, very low key, but it was good, and we know Aaron and Danielle are enjoying skiing Whistler with her family, Alysha & Joel will have a blast in Costa Rico with their Dad.  Andrew who just returned from Australia after a month staying with his Mom while he wrote and passed his Master's exam will be spending the holidays with his girlfriend Shannon. My (Dar's) Mom and Dad are with my sister Dulcie and her kids at Kristen and Bryan's farm.  

You will notice a change of writing styles, and tenses as I (Dar) take on some of the writing.  Blogs take a lot of time to write so Ian has agreed that it makes sense to share the writing.  The letter in parentheses is a clue.

Day 20 – Dec 26
Again 55k/hr winds and now much colder so we head to Houston, 11/2hrs away, to visit some galleries.  We really enjoy the Museum of Contemporary crafts; it’s small but the work is very polished and imaginative. And then over to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts where I seem to overload on pre-Columbian gold and call it quits much sooner than usual.  Did you know that Houston is the 4th largest city in N.A.?  We were shocked that it took so much time to travel through it.

We stop on the way home at an outlet mall so that Ian can look for boots which he finds.  No such thing as boxing day sales in Texas, prices were the same as before Xmas.  The winds were better in the evening so Ian can BBQ  steaks and  we enjoy our 2nd Xmas dinner. Ian always finds me a great book for Christmas, this year it is 419 by Will Ferguson this year's Giller winner.  I am loving it and highly recommend it.   The family all seem to have had a great Christmas and not missed us. 

Day 21 - Dec. 27
More cold and rain so we snuggle inside.  I clean cupboards and the floor, as after a year of sitting the dirt does collect.  Ian works on the blog.  We catch up with family and friends and appreciate the American sim card and US phone rates.  

Day 22 - Dec. 28

We hitch up in rain, drive 5 hours to Port Aransas, an island near Corpus Christi, where we shall stay a week.  The sun has come out and it is warmer.  The park has 2 pools which I (Dar) am disappointed to discover are not heated and thus not swimmable.  Texas is not Florida even though it shares the Gulf.  We are beside the beach so we plan many walks for Dar, walk/runs for Ian.  The birding should be great.

Travellin' to Texas

Friday, Dec 7^th

We finally roll away at 11 am. It doesn’t seem to matter how much preparation we’ve done before, what time we get up, how few things remain to be done – it always takes us until 11 to get moving. I have come up with a “rule” – each of us can have no more than two items by the door on the morning we leave. (This is more for me than Darlene.

A good drive down to the Buffalo border, a momentary panic trying to find my passport which has slid down behind the front seats, and an easy trip to a Day’s Inn off the 271 in Macedonia. A good Mexican dinner accompanied by a pitcher of watery Margaritas.

Day 2-Dec 8th gets us as far as Cave City, KY, home of Mammoth Caves, which we will not explore as we’re moving on to Nashville this morning. In the afternoon we sign up with T-Mobile for an international plan and then discover down the road that it’s only good for landlines! Darlene is on the job. But last night’s meal at El Mazatlan – more Mexican – is great. A huge difference in quality and it’s packed with families.  (“The county is dry but the restaurants are moist.”[1]) And from what I can see, so are the women – in their armpits and neckfolds. We’re back in “big” country. We spent the night at a Sleep Inn, newly built, excellent value for our $47.

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[1] Carrie, Day’s Inn Night Manager

Day 3-Dec 9^th finds us at the Two Rivers campsite in Nashville, after a drive through rain that Noah would have recognized – non-stop torrential. The sky and the road the same colour of grey, tire tracks quickly filled in and the semis disappearing once they’re 15’ in front of you. And then, as soon as we arrive at the campground the skies clear and we are able to set up in the dry. Get everything working – water pump, water heater, fridge, propane, furnace, plumbing – all is good. While I’m messing with the outside stuff Darlene has the inside sorted out and suddenly we’re “home” again.

I discover that the campground has seriously upgraded their WiFi and we can actually stream Netflix so the evening is spent watching some old Bones. At night the rain revisits and it feels like it’s trying to pound its way through the roof

Day 4 – Dec 10^th

A frustrating day with success at the end. Dar’s phone can no longer access the T-Mobile server. All gone.

In the morning we head to the Lane Motor Museum which houses a collection of European cars and I take some photos. Nothing terribly exciting but I fill in a few blanks, get to see a Trabant ( a constant feature of  East European spy novels) and then we head downtown to Jack’s BBQ for lunch.

After some pulled pork and smoked turkey we were hoping to grab some honky-tonk but not a lot is happening and so it’s back to Opry Mills to see if we can do something for Dar’s phone at the T-Mobile centre. No, we cannot. So say the T-Mobile people. But they do send us to the iJunkiez  kiosk where me meet two very cool guys. Their business is fixing anything that’s an iSomething. The boss spends and hour and a half figuring out what’s wrong with the phone then re-jailbreaks it and bingo we have service again. While he’s doing this I watch his assistant disassemble an iphone, fix it, and then reassemble it with a totally custom face. And at the end he doesn’t want to charge us but I send $25 over to his assistant and everyone is happy.

By this time we’re both tired so it’s home to a movie. Thank you, Aaron!

Day 5 – Dec 11^th

Wake up to electrical problems with the overhead lights on the dining room slide and a blown breaker. The breaker is just an overload – tea kettle + heater fan – but it won’t reset and that has me checking GFIs and then going right back to basics, turning off the main breakers, disconnecting the battery, and wondering if the breaker itself could be shot.

Speak to Albert Camp next door who has the most amazing Alabama accent and after I hear the horror stories about his Class A I’m feeling better about the on-going maintenance that I seem to require. Albert also fixes the breaker in 2 seconds. It turns out that trailer breakers are not the same as house breakers – they need to be held fully down for a couple seconds to reset them. Every day, a new piece of information.

We eventually head into town to visit Fisk University where they house a portion of the Stieglitz collection. I was hoping for more of his photos but am happy with a few and get introduced to John Marin (1870-1953) and I like his abstract watercolor landscapes.

In the afternoon we head back to Opry Mills and enjoy The Life of Pi in 3D with another couple. (We didn’t know them – there were just the four of us in the theatre.) We really did not enjoy the half hour of previews though.

Day 6 – Dec 12 (12.12.12)

I spend some of the morning figuring out why VISA keeps declining payment for the new printer I bought and then we head over to the Opryland Hotel to see what all the fuss is about. This is not so much a hotel as it is a small town, complete with it’s own river, amazing gardens, multiple restaurants, tons of stores all on at least four levels. I love it when Americans go overboard! 

Opryland Hotel Panorama

In the afternoon we’re off to the Frick Gallery of Art where they have a Carrie May Weems show. Powerful images that reflect on the black experience in the USA. Then it’s dinner at Demo’s and on to Robert’s Western World for some country. The Don Kelly Band is playing. He’s really only a so-so singer but he’s got great sidemen and his guitarist, J.D. Simo, just blows us away! Anyone with children who think they’re going to make it in the music business should bring them here. See and hear the quality of musicians who make their living playing for tips.

Day 7 – Dec 13

We leave Nashville and head for the Natchez Trace, stopping first at The Loveless Café for a late breakfast. The Trace proves to be a lovely two-lane road through countryside that goes up & down and back & forth constantly. There is no way we are going to do 400 miles on this road and we leave it at Fly, happy to have seen a bit but ready for a drive down the I-65.

We stop at Cullman, Mississippi for the night – a quiet campground. Friendly people, happy to announce their Christianity but not pushy about it.

Day 8 – Dec 14

Still heading down the I-65, we pick up some groceries in Hattiesburg, MI and then later head off the road a few miles to Little Black Creek Waterpark. (This is not one with slides, rather a state park on a lake.) Due to a conflict between different levels of government, they can’t afford to open fully. There are over 100 sites closed and we are the only people staying there.

Day 9 – Dec 15

We make it to Ponchartrain Landing, our RV site in New Orleans by early afternoon. After setting up we head into the French Quarter, manage to find a parking spot on the street and go for an explore. In the late afternoon we duck into Maison for some Cajun and zydeco. Have a great time dancing among people who follow these bands from bar to bar, just to dance! Again I’m impressed with the Cajuns – there are no restrictions; 90 year-olds dance with 20 somethings, mothers with sons, and friends change partners easily. It’s all about the dance!

We later have a forgettable dinner at The Praline Connection – don’t bother – and then make our way home.

Day 10 – Dec 16

A day in New Orleans starts with a visit to the NO Museum of Art where we see an excellent show entitled “Life” featuring works from Warhol to Ai Weiwei. We then head for The Gumbo Shop where Darlene is not impressed but Ian is. This is followed by a visit to A Gallery For Fine Photography, possibly the best private photo gallery in North America where we see a huge range of images – from Julia Margaret Cameron and Fox Talbot to Salgado and Adams and Uelsmann. For me, this is a highlight of our stay.

Cafe au lait & beignets

We then walk down Canal St where I stop and ask a woman on the street what the fare is on the trolleys. She tells me she’s not from NO and I recognize that to be true; I tell her I should have figured out her name by now and she fills in with “Marcia Gay Harden”.  I wish her a good day and stop pestering her.

Bayou Teche

We visit Riverwalk, which has lost a lot of life since we were last here and then duck into the Café du Monde just as it starts to pour. After beignets and café au lait we make our way through the French Quarter back to the truck.

Day 11 – Dec 17

Darlene agrees to a (far too long) side trip to New Iberia, the haunt of Dave Robicheau and the place where James Lee Burke grew up. It has changed, of course, since he was a boy but Bayou Teche still cuts its way through the town, there are some beautiful homes, and we do a walking tour through the town checking out the places that Dave visits in the books. Sadly, Victor’s Cafeteria, one of Dave’s lunch spots, closes at 2 but the sushi place across the street lets us in and we have a good late lunch of sushi and sashimi.

The drive back becomes a little harrowing when night falls. There are few street lights even at highway intersections and at one point we’re convinced that our GPS is telling us to make a left turn across the lanes of a 65 mph highway. It all works out but I’m glad when we’re home.

Day 12 – Dec 18

Our last day in NO.  We putter around the camp site in the morning tending to little fix-its and then in the early afternoon we head into town. We begin by driving back and forth through Tremé. There are a lot of new buildings and still a lot of empty shells but on the whole this is a vibrant lively community. Some of the architecture is gorgeous but the streets are very skinny and already full of parked cars, and I don’t stop for photos.

Our next stop is the Ogden Museum of Art which is now closed on Tuesdays. This is a pain but a receptionist at the NO Contemporary Museum across the street puts us onto a whole line of private galleries and we walk and talk our way through several. I really can’t get over how open and friendly people are here. There’s no gallery snobbishness at all. I eventually buy a photo I’ve seen in other galleries.

We follow that with an early evening walk through the French Quarter – mostly down Bourbon St – and I get out the tripod and we do a number of night shots. (One fellow finds this exciting enough to expose his genitals for us and bounce up and down. Apparently he didn’t quite grasp the concept when I explained that a 5 second exposure wasn’t going to show anything at all. And it didn’t)

Dinner was at Oceana on Capri St. TVs on the ceiling but the food was fantastic! I’m getting lots of ideas for preparing oysters.

Last Post - Great Trip!

I 'm actually posting this having been home for a week. The last three weeks flew by quickly with broad expanses in the mid-west where there was little service.

Thursday, Sept 23rd, Burns Lake Municipal Campground, B.C.

Oh hell! Mechanical failure! An inspection of the rig’s tires has me worried. The outer edge of both tires on the passenger side is bare of tread. ( I probably should have noticed this weeks ago but when you’re covered in mud it’s hard to see. This is the first time we driven a hundred miles on good asphalt in months.) It’s late in the afternoon but I persuade a mechanic in Houston (B.C.) to have a look and his opinion is wheel bearing failure and that the tires will last me to Prince George - but after that I’m tempting fate.
The Burns Lake Municipal Campground is free to tourists but we get what we pay for. At midnight we awaken to a bunch of drunks arguing and a young man who flaunts his manhood - and the size of his brain - by standing on the brakes of his truck with one foot while he floors the accelerator with the other. This goes on for over an hour. But then they leave and all is quiet and we get a bit of sleep.
In the morning, as we leave, I see that he has dug sizable holes in the asphalt and I doubt he has any tread left.

Friday, Sept 24th - Bee Lazee RV Park - Prince George B.C.

In the morning we drive the rig to Inland Spring and Axle in Prince George. They are happy to help us spend $750 as they replace two tires and deal with the wheels and axles. I have hopes that I can get most of this covered under warranty when I get back. While they’re working on the rig we head out to Bee Lazee to pick up my glasses which have made the trip safely from Dawson City. In spite of its peculiar name the campground is really quite pleasant. The rest of the day is spent grocery shopping while we wait to pick up the rig.

Saturday, Sept 25th & 26th - Whistler’s Campground, Jasper, AB

Alders in fall

The drive from Prince George to Jasper is beautiful.The leaves are changing all around us and we drive down a corridor of amber and gold. I get rather frustrated as I drive by some great photos because:
I can’t stop quickly
There’s no place to pull over even if I could stop.
The “F” word is deployed repeatedly as  I vent my frustration. Eventually I find a highway exit and I turn around, but by the time I reach my goal the sun has retreated and the landscape is blah.

Monday, Sept 27th & Tuesday, Sept. 28th - Tunnel Mountain Village Campground, AB

Driving down the Icefields Parkway the day is grey and gloomy - the mountains shrouded in cloud. We stop at the Athabasca Glacier and hike against a vicious wind to the foot, but it has retreated considerably since 2006 and I can no longer get the shots I want because the barriers are set TOO FAR AWAY! Darlene tells me that my moods swing with the quality of light and it’s true that I’m just as gloomy as the day as we head for Banff. As we approach Banff, the clouds begin to break up and I find a patch of alders glowing in sunlight. I’m happy again.
Banff is surprisingly pleasant. When you reduce the number of tourists by a factor of 10 to the third it turns out that you can see the sidewalks, appreciate the mountains, and the town becomes real again. It’s still overpriced and filled with “boutiques” but there is a normalcy about the place. Now it’s no worse than, say, ... Niagara-on-the-Lake.
On Tuesday, we rent a GyPSy Guide and find to our delight that it’s very informative and it takes us to places and suggests hikes that we would have overlooked. The Canadian National Biathlon team is practicing and we watch them roller-ski their way up unforgiving hills. It pours with rain when we’re up at Lake Louise and Morraine Lake but by the time we return to Banff, the sun is out and I get more alder shots.

Wednesday, Sept 29th - Fort McLeod Municipal Campground, AB

Leaving Banff we head south down the #2 towards Claresholm where my mother grew up. Although it’s still very much a small town they have an active and eager museum staff and I learn and see all sorts of things about my family that I didn’t know. I saw a photo of Uncle Billy Moffatt as a young man with his piano class and there was Uncle Morley, a boy of about 5, in the front row. I don’t think I knew that Billy’s father - William - was the town’s first mayor or that my Tillotson grandparents - Colin Edgar and Melissa Ann -  were the first people married in Claresholm. And Uncle Ernie, a young man in a baseball uniform!

Mule deer - Writing on Stone Prov Park, Alta

Saturday, October 9th, Rawlins, Wyoming

A huge gap here! Due to the last ten days being spent in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. We entered at Mammoth, MT and I spent the first hour wrestling the rig over some very tight, twisty and pitted roads as we made our way to Mammoth Campground. It may be the end of the season but the park is still busy and we are asked if we have reservations. No - but we find a site and settle in for the night. The next morning there are elk in the camp and we drive south to Madison where we unhitch and spend the next two days exploring the park and stopping for wildlife.
I am getting jaded. If it’s an elk, I want a male, if it’s a male I want a big one with a decent rack, and if I’ve got all that, could I please have a little sunlight?

Finally - a guy with a decent rack!

Yellowstone seems to combine a dozen different topographies - mountains & valleys, forests and plateaus. The geysers, fumaroles and sulphur springs are a world unto themselves. Rain and cloud obscure some of this but there are still some moments of sunlight. (And the roads have improved immensely south of Madison. I hit the worst, first.)

Dar gets up close & personal with a cow elk

Grand Teton National Park is a revelation. I had heard it described as beautiful but was not prepared for its majesty.( Part of this is because of Jackson Hole - the tectonic shift that dropped the plateau and pushed the mountains high above with no foothills in between.) The park is still highlighted in tints of amber and gold - the last leaves of fall providing contrast to the pale grasses and grey rock.

Mormon barn - Grand Teton N.P.

Grand Tetons & happy couple

Dar and I are up early chasing the morning light amidst elk and antelope and herds of bison. At night we can hear the elk bugling - it’s rutting season. On the second morning, as I sleepily make my way to the washrooms, I come face-to-face with a bull moose. And then there are seven moose in the camp and I spend an hour shooting in my pajamas and crocks, freezing my butt off but reluctant to miss that perfect shot. We leave later that morning; our camp, Gros Ventre, is closing for the season at 11 a.m. We’re one of the last to leave. It’s Friday, the 8th and we’re heading east. Have I mentioned that Darlene is becoming her father? I get weather reports at least three times daily and sometimes hourly. Rain, sun, current temperature, nightly lows - she’s got them all. And not just for our current locale. I typically get information about 3 stops ahead of us and 2 behind.

Roadblock on way to washroom

On Friday we push through the continental divide about four times, the road snaking back and forth, getting higher and higher. At one point I stop for a pee break and we both comment that it seems to have gotten colder. Around the next bend we find mountains at eye level with snow on them, and around the next, climbing a bit higher, the snow is on the ground around us. Dar gets the hard drive of the day, weaving through road construction on a wet mud surface as we start to descend. We make it to Rawlins that night after passing through vast ranges of grass and sage, mountains and hills surrounding us on all sides. It’s windy in this part of Wyoming - really windy - and, at one point, there are huge wind farms stretching across the horizon.
We’re heading for Laramie. It’s time for another oil change.

Home again, home again. We spend our last night near Buffalo. We could have made it home but this will give us a chance to search for Bogs for Alysha tomorrow morning. And ... it lets us have our final meal away at the Anchor Bar!

Down The Inland Passage

The Inland Passage - out of Haines

The Inland Passage

Wednesday, Sept 8th - Haines to Juneau

Today we started our journey down the Inland Passage. We left Haines at 4:30 pm on one of the Alaska Marine Highways’ smaller ferries. Small enough that I had to reverse on! This is akin to pulling out on to a football field at the 50 yd line, backing straight down through the goal posts and then executing a quick right turn so as not to leave the end zone. We did it without a ding but an hour later I had a headache.

At Tracy's Crab Shack

The trip itself was grey and misty, the water, a hammered sheet of pewter. We arrived in the dark with heavy rain but managed to find the campsite and had some help backing in to our spot. The next day Juneau is a madhouse with four monster cruise ships parked at the bottom of the main street: tourists everywhere, doddering around, filling their shopping bags with cheap t-shirts and knock-off art work. (Yes, yes, I know. I’m a tourist too. But talk to these people! Many barely know where they are, often they’re not sure where they’re going next, some have forgotten what their last port was.) Fortunately the State Museum is a haven of peace and beauty and we try again to get our heads around the different moietes, clans and languages. Terrific exhibits and I fall in love again with Yupic masks. We have lunch that day at Tracy’s Crab Shack - an outdoor trailer selling wonderful king crab and share our picnic table with a couple of overseas Chinese from Indonesia currently living in Australia - their accents, to our ears, a wild mixture of all three countries.
No trip to Juneau is complete without a visit to the Mendenhall Glacier and on the second day it is dry, sunny and uncrowded - the ships sailed in the night. Dar and I are getting a bit blazé about glaciers - they have a tendency to just sit there - but their structure is fascinating and today a recent calving from the face reveals a deep, deep cyan blue that will gradually fade as exposure to oxygen bleaches the colour.

Saturday, Sept 11th - Juneau to Sitka

Big ferry - I get to drive on going forwards. The Fairweather is a large modern boat: carpet on the floors, reclinable armchairs, study carrels and big windows. A downside is that passengers are not allowed on the front deck. This boat is driven by water jets, moves at 35 knots/hr and sends up a fair bit of spray at the bow.
Dar and I spend almost the whole 5 hr trip on the back deck. The passage between the islands is almost mystical: forested hills, snow-capped peaks, sunshine sparkling on clear water while a pod of orcas pass by and then some humpbacks.

The Inland Passage - on to Sitka

We arrive in brilliant sunshine, drive into Sitka and Dar - in her quest for authenticity -  manages to find the oldest, narrowest road as we head towards the municipal campsite. (We are both impressed at how the oncoming trucks calmly pull up on to the sidewalk to let us pass - and we both know what they’re probably thinking.)
We both agree that Sitka is the most beautiful town we’ve seen so far. Although it is also on the cruise itinerary it is a thriving town in its own right and has not developed one of those dreadful strips of knick-knack shops and t-shirt ghettos.
Sitka is the homesite of the Tlingits; it was here that they first slaughtered the intruding Russians and only barely succumbed to a six-day retaliation siege a year later. Their culture is still strong here and there are numerous commercial ventures as well as a thriving artistic base. Our first visit is to the Sitka National Totem Park,  a conservation and reclamation park that houses numerous totem poles gathered from many of the islands around here.

Gotta love Humpbacks!

The following day we hire Paul Davis to take us whale-watching in his small cruiser. Just the two of us, Paul and a buddy.  At first, we seem to have struck out. We see plenty of “blows” but when we arrive at that spot there are no whales. Paul is a great guy and explains his reasoning as we move from place to place. As we cruise around he shows us a huge sea-lion “haul-out” and rafts of sea otters as well as a number of Grey Whales - great gnarly beasts that cruise the rock faces in search of plankton and krill.

And then, on the route back we run into dozens of humpbacks and Darlene and I burn through our memory cards shooting. ( and NO! I did not photoshop that photo! There was the cloud, the whale and the volcano.)

Tuesday, September 14th - Sitka to Petersburg

The ferry arrives in Petersburg at 3:30 am and the harbour master kindly lets us park in a loading lane until morning. (Actually, what he says is: “ We don’t want you driving that thing down our streets in the dark.”) The next day we find a lovely turnout by the Wrangell Narrows where we can watch the boats sail by and we’re back to “dry camping”. This is where our generators come in really useful.
The ferry ride was another day of serene beauty punctuated with sightings of whales and porpoise chasing salmon. Steve, a local fisherman explains the passage through which we’re moving. He’s a little weird, immensely garrulous, and incredibly knowledgeable about all things related to fishing, crabbing, shrimping ...... the man’s a fountainhead, so we learn a lot.
The day is spent exploring the small town of Petersburg. This is a serious fishing community - there are several canneries - as well they have seasons for shrimp and Dungeness crab. Lunch is at Coastal Cold Storage and I determine to learn how to cook “Halibeer Bits”. (Halibut is still more than 2x expensive than salmon. And the scallops are from Nova Scotia!)

Sea lion looking for dropped fish

There are three harbours and we roam around them all, talking to fishermen about their boats - gill netting season ended at noon - and following a couple of sea lions that are cruising around looking for hand-outs.
Big Bonus! I find a store that sells my size in Haflinger’s and I buy a pair of slippers. (The rig is cold on the tootsies in the morning.) At night, I grill some halibut, Dar makes a great salad and we get ready to sail early in the morning.

Friday, September 17th, Petersburg to Ketchikan

Oh my God, they want me to back the rig down that loading dock! Now we’re talking (1)reverse the whole football field, (2) negotiate a curve in the middle, (3) through the goal posts and then (4) another right turn in the end zone - all backwards.
 We start out poorly, my deckhand guide getting us too far to one side and then spend some time getting straightened out. Enter the stressed out loading chief who tells me “We gotta hurry, we’re running late.” and I respond ( a bit loudly) with “I’ve been sitting here for two hours, waiting!”
Eventually I shelve my ego, embrace common sense and let a young trucker back it down for me. I’m a little soothed as he does exactly as I would - except he’s 2x faster with 1/2 as many corrections. ( Later, on the ferry I am called to the Purser’s desk. It seems the young guy didn’t park the rig perfectly. Could I help straighten it out?  Now the loading chief is all smiles and actually apologizes for his earlier attitude. I do, and everyone’s happy.)
It’s a ten hour ride on the ferry. The first half is wonderful - through Wrangell Narrows and other tight passages. Then the water opens out into a broad expanse, the hills retreat into the distance and the view becomes your basic water, water everywhere.
We arrive about 7 pm. The state campgrounds are closed so we spend the first night at ............... Walmart. We’re happy to be somewhere but it’s noisy all night long. Ketchikan seems to be carved out of rock at the foot of the surrounding hills - space is precious. And so Walmart stores its stock in dozens of shipping containers at the back of their parking lot. Right about where we’re parked. At 2 am the forklifts are busy shunting pallets of goods from the containers to the store.
In the morning we look for another site and wind up in a state recreation area. Strictly speaking there’s no camping allowed -day use only - but our options are limited - either the campgrounds are closed for the season or the sites are way too small. (As I write this I’m waiting for the trooper’s knock on the door.)

At Totem Bight

This morning we drove north to the end of the road and then turned in at Totem Bight - a state totem park. Four cruise buses convinced us to continue on so we braved the masses in downtown Ketckikan. The highlight was talking to Marvin Oliver, a Coast Salish artist who works in everything from bronze to serigraphy to glass. (Oh, and checking out the Ray Troll shop - “Spawn ‘Till You Die”)
We return to Totem Bight in the late afternoon; the western sun is warm upon the totems, the water laps at the shore and seagulls cry in the distance. There is almost no one else here and we are enveloped in one of those timeless moments.

On Sunday we head the other way out of town - “out the road” to its southern end. At Herring Cove we stop to watch some seals chase salmon and spend some time at Saxman Village, walking through more totems. We’re slowly understanding more about these majestic carvings, separating them into different types and recognizing the individual features. I talk to carvers and locals whenever I can and find them willing and eager to chat with someone who cares. (Although I don’t think I was quite able to convince Woody that, in a previous life, I was a member of the Ravens.)

Dar, Marvin and our print

In the afternoon we return to Martin Oliver’s shop and decide to buy ourselves an anniversary gift - one of his prints. We have a lot of fun choosing and finally settle on a Raven image that combines a traditional story and graphic structure with modern colour and whimsy.

Monday is oil-change day. It starts auspiciously - I drop off Darlene at the laundromat and take then truck in to get it serviced. On return, we discover that she left her journal in a pile of stuff on the tonneau cover when I drove off. Heading back down the road I find everything except the journal. We walk the road several times but no luck, it is gone. In the afternoon she is frustrated in her search for a hairdresser. ( This maybe because I have been suggesting she might be a member of the Woodpecker clan.) And, to finish the day, as we drive down the highway, I watch in the rearview mirror as someone’s tonneau cover comes loose and sails into traffic behind me.
It took about a 1/2 second to realize that it was ours. Fortunately it didn’t hit anyone but the car behind us couldn’t stop in time and did some damage rolling over it. It has now acquired a bent personality and will need some serious repair. We return to the rig to find a note on the door telling us that this area is DAY USE ONLY! ( I don’t think this is official - it’s scrawled on a yellow sticky, but the question is moot; we’re spending the night at the ferry terminal. Tomorrow we sail for Prince Rupert.)

Tuesday, Sept. 21, Ketchikan to Prince Rupert.

It’s not peaceful on a ferry dock. There’s always someone moving something with a large piece of equipment that beeps in reverse. In the morning it’s a lovely trip down to Prince Rupert but it’s also a bit bland - which tells me that I’ve been spoiled by a rich diet of too much beautiful scenery.
In the morning, Dar gets her hair done and I repair the tonneau cover - and then we head up the 37 to the ghost town of Hyder, Alaska to see more bears.
There are no bears to be seen. That is because there are no salmon to be seen in spite of many assurances that they were still running. Hyder would be a phenomenal bear-viewing site if the fish were running. A long raised boardwalk follows the stream’s course allowing terrific viewing.
We’re a little disappointed but not heartbroken - we knew it was a gamble.
On to Prince George - where I hope to finally catch up with my new glasses at the Bee Lazee RV Park.