November 16 to November 22, 2002

Saturday November 16:

This is a heavy computer day.  After shopping at K-mart, we move to Sam's parking lot and walk to the airport terminal with kitty bags and health certificates to make certain we will have no trouble at flight time.  This is NOT a large airport.....

Everything seems OK to the check in lady at the right most check in gate at 11:20 AM MST.  Claire shopped Sams, got travel cash from the Sam's ATM, shopped Walmart.  It took me most of the day to finish the website and complete the net business, but after dinner we moved to Fry's lot for the night.  It was dark when we pulled in there;  there were no other RVs there.  We made ourselves at home under the street light that would not stay on;  at least it was not clear WHEN it would come on.  :-)  I finally reached the Campground where we intended to stay for two nights before the flight;  I had envisioned it was closed after repeated calls got what appeared to be a lady's personal cellphone voicemail.  It was the manager's number, but I guess few people call on business.  :-) We were told they have plenty of space though the Passport America rate is up by $3 from last year.  :-(  Sleep seemed to come hard for both of us this night....trip anxieties?

Sunday November 17:

In the morning I was up early uploading the website.  Both main and mirror sites went easily, and shortly after Claire awoke my net business for the weekend was finished.  We shopped Fry's for a few things, mainly fresh veggies, then discussed going to Alodones Mexico for the day before going back to Sqaw Lake Campground for two nights.  I wanted some terrycloth rags from Sam's before we left, and needed to check Pep Boys for a battery hydrometer calibrated in real specific gravity numbers.    On the way out of Sams, Claire wanted to check at the airline terminal to see if we could POSSIBLY take a backpack on the flight in addition to the kitties and her newly purchased BIIIG purse. To save walking, I pulled into a deserted commercial truck lot with much open space this Sunday.  She found the airline would allow the small backpack too.  :-)  As I pulled out onto the street over the steep berm in the driveway, I heard heavy scraping from under the RV.  :-(((  Fortunately I was going slowly, and I quickly backed up, and got out to inspect for any damage.  I had bad thoughts about broken sewer lines or valves, but apparently the muffler had dragged first;  we repositioned to go over the berm at a more oblique angle, and reached the street with no further problems.  Pep Boys parking was easier, I bought a hydrometer, and they said they DID accept crankcase drain to recycle..  :-)  Now to change the vehicle engine oil, and we'll drop off all the waste oil before we store.  By the time these "trivial" tasks were finished around 1PM, we both decided that Mexico today would be too much.  We opted instead for Historic Yuma, along the river that we needed to cross anyway to get to the BLM lands in California.  We found the visitors center closed (this IS Sunday, after all), but that left plenty of room for us to park. We took the bikes down to tour the historic area; we found the historic district was almost deserted.  One shop owner said the antique dealers were usually closed on Sunday, and Monday as well. The area has it's pretty spots;  this fountain is one.

 However, Historic Yuma did not appear to be a big tourist destination...  :-)  We did step into Lute's Casino, mentioned as an attraction in "Road Trip USA".  This may have been a Casino in old Yuma; today it is a quirky family restaurant, with lots of kiddies running around.

 The elk head looking down from the high ceiling caught my attention...  :-))  It was the only busy place we saw in the historic district, other than the line in front of the vintage movie house.  It appears this is the place for casual family relaxation on Sunday in Yuma;  it does not seem to be attracting crowds of weekend tourists.  :-)  We proceeded back to the RV, electing to skip the footbridge across the river to a mission in California.  We replaced the bikes on their racks, and the GPS revealed we had traveled 1.2 miles round trip to see historic downtown Yuma; at least we encountered no traffic jams.  :-))  We crossed the "mighty" Colorado river (well, it's pretty mighty for a desert)....and drove on towards Squaw Lake campground.

On the way past the acres and acres of vegetables we came upon a pair of wild burros feeding on hay apparently dropped in the field to feed them.

This guy looked like he would approach for a handout, but per direction, we don't feed the animals on federal lands...  :-)  I do wonder if they are fed to keep them out of the vegetable fields?     We checked into Squaw lake and ate dinner, then decided to drive back to the high ground after dark to use the cellphone.  I had a few emails to send, and Claire had some calls she had not completed.    We completed our business, and as we drove back down the hill to the campground I suddenly noticed some motion at the fence on the dam we were crossing, and in a flash a deer with quite a few points on his antlers climbed over the fence, and started across the road 50 feet in front of us.  I hit the brakes FULL HARD as Claire struggled to find the right words of warning....  We looked down on the deer that seemed to crawl low across the road in front of us;  fortunately it ignored the bright beams of our headlights and kept moving.  Before the RV could reach a full stop, the deer had disappeared into the shadows over the opposite side of the earth dam.  We rode much slower across the rest of the dam, and down to our campsite.  After backing in, I walked back to our bedroom;  the mattress had slid up against the bedroom doorway due to the deceleration of the braking.  I am not pleased we had to test the brakes this way, but I'm sure glad they worked when needed.  :-)    Sleep was again difficult tonight; more anxieties?  :-)

Monday November 18:

This morning we planned to return early to the high ground to make some calls, but  I decided to try first from the campsite, and got through on the second try.  we do NOT have to move!  I started waxing the decals;  Mcguire's wax works easily and well.  Still, this job wears on you after a while.  :-)  I got all the decals, the front end to make the bugs slide off easier :-)), and the plastic parts on the roof.  I got started on the blue storage bay covers, but a lady who full times with her husband and two cats mercifully engaged me in conversation until it was too dark to do further work.  Her story was interesting; they've been full time RVers for 7 years.  Two years ago their pickup truck pulling their fifth wheel Alpenlite trailer caught fire near here, on Rt95 in Arizona; the whole rig was soon engulfed in flames.  Their Siamese cat disappeared into the brush, and could not be found.  They thought to look under the burning trailer, and there it was. The lady just crawled under the burning trailer and grabbed the cat, MOMENTS before the propane tank exploded.....she did not consider that an act of bravery, but said that in desperate times like that you just do not THINK....I'm sure she had some thoughts when the propane tank went up.     She is happy she saved her cat, but as Claire commented later to Pookie; if YOU do something as dumb as that, don't expect ME to go after you....  :-)  It does point out the fragility of our mobile existance;  The Yuma Proving Ground fire department who responded to their smoke cloud could not find the cause of the fire, which apparently started in the back of the diesel pickup truck and spread to the trailer overhanging the bed.  The wood and styrofoam construction of these beasts means fire spreads fast and is impossible to put out once it gets going.  These folks lost all their worldly possessions in this fire but thankfully escaped unhurt and with their pets.  They are now in an older Southwind motor home she describes as a "fixer upper" until they recover financially.  Their insurance settled, but as usual in such cases they did not have enough coverage to come out whole. She is still working summers in an Oregon fish camp to assist in that recovery.  We had left over chicken and gravy, squash (to ease the load bringing it home) and rice.  It is Claire's night for dishes so I took Pookie and Purry for their walks.  It is full moon, and I saw the large gray form of a bird as it turned away from it's glide in off the water, shoulder high, fast, and SILENTLY.  I could not identify it in the dim light, but a few birds gave out warning croaks from nearby trees; I would speculate it was an owl.  Pookie came close and rubbed my legs.  I suggested we go home, and he followed willingly until we got out from under the trees, when he led me running at full speed until he was under the RV;  he may not be the brightest bulb in the pack, but he recognizes a genuine threat when it comes near!  Purry did not show the fear of being in the open moonlight, but he did not walk too long before asking at the steps to come back in.  I found my bed immediately thereafter.  

Tuesday November 19:

Battery is low this AM; 60%, but we enjoyed LOTS of TV last evening.  Today we'll move to the campground early and PLUG IN for two days.  We really do need to get these batteries FULLY charged and equalized before storage.  The plan is to leave as soon as we are comfortably settled to do so, dump and fill water on the way out then proceed directly to the campground.  We can continue our chores while the battery charges.  The dump and fill went fast.  I was looking for the water leak while we filled, and was amazed to see sunlight coming in around the fill hoses;  they were not SEALED where they enter the RV; no wonder they leak when we fill.  :-((  This may need to wait until January, but it can be fixed!  We were fortunate to be filling when the sun was low on the eastern horizon and shining directly into the fill port.  It sure did reveal the weakness; my boat background just ASSUMED that all external fittings would be sealed....one more time that ASS U ME does it's dirty work....  :-((    The drive back through the Imperial Valley is, as always, quite pretty;

This time the red foliage of a tree catches my eye; it contrasts nicely with the nearby green foliage and gray mountains of the background.  We stop in Yuma on the way for a few things we need, then head for Gold Rock.   The California fruit inspector questioned where we were coming from, and how long we had been there, and asked if we had any fresh fruits aboard.  I said I thought we had some bananas.  He then asked if we had any pets other than Purry sitting in the Navigator's chair on Claire's lap; when I said we have two cats, he waved us through. On the road to Gold Rock, we passed the federal Dunes Monument and Pichico Recreation areas; RVs were visible parked in the desert on these BLM lands.  Also noticable were the flash flood warnings for the next 20 miles. This is FLAT land;  I'm not sure I fully undestand the flood warnings, and hope we do not find out...  Gold Rock Ranch is in the desert boonies alright, roads are all gravel, but the cellphone has 4 bars of digital signal.  :-))    

The lady on the desk is ultra hospitable, if a bit disorganized.  She offers us the spot next to her right at the entrance until she finds we want to wash the roof;  then she also suggests we might like some of the open spots further back, and her husband takes me in his golf cart.  I choose a spot away from others and we try to check in; she has no forms at the desk, and they cannot accept credit cards as there are no phone lines here;  YIKES, I'm glad cellphones work!  We settle into the site and the man who showed me around comes with the forms filled out, and a receipt for cash.  I complete our home address and Passport America number, and hand him the $20 bill for two nights.  Then we proceed to set out chairs with rugs in front of the RV to block the wind, and set about changing the oil.  An improvised aluminum foil funnel/tube with wide moldable top flap avoids the wind blown oil problem we had with the generator, and we are soon finished, with all the plastic bag drop cloths and oily waste disposed of;  not one drop spilled either!  We're learning how to deal with WIND that never stops.  :-)  The roof needs washing before we can apply UV protectant;  I am a bit worried about splash onto an unoccupied trailer downwind of us, but we have the new long handled washing brush that runs water out through the bristles.  I'm hoping this will reduce spray.  

We decide to use the alternate cleaning solution, 20 mule team borax, as it is less offensive if it does not soak into the ground here.  It cleans fine, and there is no blown splash, either when scrubbing with borax, or rinsing with the water flowing through the brush bristles.  The water flows nicely through our roof gutters to the ground at the back of the RV, just in front of a 2 foot high rock wall that stops any splashing onto the downwind trailer.  :-)))  This job is completed much faster and easier than I expected, thanks to the brush; this is a tool worth the weight and space we devote to it!!!  Dinner is pork and collards, deliciously tender; we planned not to leave any left overs, and I'm up to that task.  :-)  I'm not up to photographing the moon rising over the mountains;  it's too dark when I notice it.  Perhaps tomorrow night.  TV works fine but all I want is my bed tonight.

Wednesday November 20:

Today I must spray the UV protectant on the roof while Claire cleans the refrigerator for storage.  I'm hoping the plastic doormat we use under the cat's litterbox will act as a wind screen to allow the spray to reach the roof before it blows away...  :-)  After all, UV protection is not a BAD thing for a litterbox pad is it?  The roof job is VERY tiring, yet it does not seem like it should be so.  I think exposure to the wind itself is fatiguing.  The job took a bit less than half a gallon of 303 protectant.  Hopefully it does the job.  I stopped half done to refill the spray bottle and rest.  Took a break and went to the area of the Historic Gold Rock office/store and took pictures of the exhibits of old mining equipment.

There were tent poles left by General Patton's troops when they trained here in 1942 before embarking for the deserts of North Africa.

 The poles are the long ones at the top of this picture.  I returned and VERY reluctantly went back at the roof.  The wind was down a bit, but it did not compensate for increasing fatigue.  :-(  The job got finished, but I am glad our fixed departure date is near;  these "get ready" tasks tend to grow to fill all available time, and I'm ready to be finished.  :-)  Tomorrow we leave here after vacuuming, cleaning a few more areas, showering, then dumping.  We kept our water tank filled from Squaw Lake, as the water here tastes a bit salty.  We do not want to leave the tank full anyway.  I checked the battery with the hydrometer and the cells were mostly 88% charged, with one at 92%.  I decide to do another high (14.4) voltage charge cycle to try to force it higher and more equal before storage.  Still, that may be as good as four year old batteries get....  :-)  

Thursday November 21:

Awoke at 6AM, still dark.  Dawn broke at 6:45.  It's warm.  When Claire awakes, the computer is going away until we reach home.  I found a big piece of urethane foam to wrap it before packing it in my backpack.  It's better that way than chancing loss in checked baggage.  The Pelican case would surely protect it from damage, but after our last experience with airlines we have no faith in the security or honesty of the baggage service. :-(    The RV is as shiny as it has been since we bought it;  the morning sun glints off the fresh wax.

Even MORE than appearance, the wax will protect the finish against the strong southwest sun during storage.  Lots of things to do and remember; we MUST remember to put our pen knives in the checked baggage, not leave them attached as usual to keys and pocketbooks.   Hopefully I remember to photograph the going home list before we leave, for reference when we must remember everything to bring back in January.  Our experience with lists is they always get lost on the trip....  DUHHHH.  :-((  When we leave here today around noon, we must go to Home Depot in Yuma for a garbage container to store our non perishable food away from pests, dump our waste oil at Pep Boys, and Claire will do a final laundry while I start to pack. On the way to overnight at Fry's Market we will fill fuel at Walmart. We will be ready to go into the storage facility at 6AM when the code lock door opens.  Then we must throw away all uneaten food, cover the overhead hatches with foil to keep sun out, finish packing, disconnect the batteries, put the plant in a dishpan full of water covered with foil to slow evaporation, and place it inside where it gets a little light but no direct sun.  We need to put the bikes and bike carrier inside.  THEN we are ready to call the taxi and "convince" Purry and Pookie to enter their carriers.., then trek the pile out to the street to await the cab.  The rest is up to America West.  :-))  We left Gold Rock pretty much on schedule, and noticed the mine tailings marking old mine tunnels in the hills as we drove out.

The light colored flat topped piles of rock are the waste dumped as the tunnel is dug deeper into the mountain.  We followed our plan pretty well through Home Depot, and the laundromat, dropped the drain oil at Pep Boys, and stopped briefly at the airport to be CERTAIN they would allow two checked bags per person in addition to the kitties, and find the max weight; it's 70 pounds.  When we arrived in Walmart and parked so I could refill the cash card for gas, I had not left the drivers seat before we were approached by a knock on the door and the cry "Walmart".  We were asked not to park there, if we wanted to stay overnight we should park on the edge of the lot...HUH?  This is the same Walmart that told us it was against a city ordnance to stay here two weeks ago?  Well, we changed our plans right now, fueled, then pulled in where suggested near a semi.  We had a few things to buy, but mainly needed to PACK.  Now that we knew what we could bring for weight, we could finish.  I was determined to bring the old converter back, as it is 50 pounds of unneeded dead weight on the RV.  When all was packed we had 4 cloth bags stuffed for checked baggage, AND Claire's specially bought big purse, a small backpack with my computer, and TWO kitties in carriers to carry on.  WHEW!  I was worried about the weight of the big bag with the converter;  it might exceed 70 pounds.  We decided to sleep on that problem; it is already way past our usual bedtime!

Friday November 22:

Flight home day!  We awoke by alarm for the first time in 9 weeks, at 5AM, and immediately fed the cats so they would complete their morning cycle early, hurriedly washed and ate breakfast.  I wanted to try at Walmart to see if the big bag was overweight; they said they had no scale I could use.  We drove past the airport AGAIN, I carried it in, asked at the counter if they could weigh it;   the lady just hefted it, and said it was OK.  She insisted she could tell....  Alright, I hope she is still on at 10:30!!   We drove to the storage lot, the entry code worked, and we were inside.  Uhhhh...WHERE is our space?  It is still full dark, and I walked around with the flashlight looking.  Finally I found it at the far end of the lot, and waved Claire to drive on down.  We carefully backed it in...not even enough room to fully open the door with the trailer parked next to us!  But we only have to get ready, and get our stuff out, then it sits for 7 weeks.  I immediately started to drain water, both the hot water tank and the fresh water tank, covered the overhead hatches on the outside with aluminum foil to keep the sun off, removed the bike rack, to store it and the bikes inside, turned off propane at the tank, sealed the gas heater, water heater, and refrigerator exhaust ports with tape and plastic against insects that like to take up residence there, packed our staple food in the plastic storage container we'd bought to keep mice and ants out, and charged the battery with the generator one last time to replace the charge used for lights this morning.  The area looks to be dusty;  there is a wind guard on the fence, and a dirt road around the outside.  We seal the hatches on the inside as well to keep any dust intrusion to a minimum.  It is time to call the cab, get the bags out, the bikes in, and close up.  I waited for the cab at the gate to let him in, while Claire closed up and locked.  She was about to declaire "Done" when she saw a curtain flutter; the driver's window was still open!  Oh well, that's why we double check.... The cab came when scheduled, the trip to the airport was an easy $8 ride, and we were happy to find out our baggage was not selected for detailed examination.  We could now put strapping tape around all the bags, lock them, and make sure they all had name tags.  We would hopefully next see them in Boston....  The plane will not start boarding for 40 minutes; time for coffee!  The kitties seem alert yet comfortable in their bags.  Boarding time...kitties come out and bags get xrayed.  I set off the alarm as always with the shoes I chose to wear;  DUMB decision, but I wanted these dress shoes back home and they are big to pack.  We get shunted aside and Purry gets hand scanned in my arms, patted down all over by the agent, and then gets handed to Claire to put back in his bag.  I get scanned carefully and my shoes and every rivet of my jeans sets off the scanner.  My shoes must be taken off and passed thru Xray.  I get well patted down, then my shoes and I are released to board.  We are told we must repeat this procedure in Phoenix too......  :-((  Claire suggests I take my shoes off and pass them thru Xray before going thru the metal scanner...now why didn't I think of that? ...DUHHHH!!!  The plane seats were a bit restricted in leg room with Purry & Pookie in position, but this flight is only an hour.  There is a bit of motion in the kitty bags as the Turboprop engines rev up for takeoff, but no audible yowls. :-))  We land in Phoenix after an uneventful flight, and anticipate another painful search....but we reach the gate without going through security!  This airport has corridors between gates that are INSIDE the secure zone!!  :-))   We had coffee  and ice cream while kitties sat on the table next to us;  we had learned that bags on the floor do not get adequate respect in airports.  Other folks roll their wheeled carts right over and against them; that is not nice treatment for kitties!!! We secure seats for all four of us, and wait the boarding for Boston. This day has started way too early for all of us; Claire looks like I feel...  :-)

The plane boards on time.  We take our middle and aisle seats; as the plane fills a gentleman asks to take his window seat in our row.  Claire mentions that she hopes he is not allergic to cats;  he says he is, this will not do for him, asks us to push a call button, then panics and says he will do that from further back.  That is the last we see of him; the kitties buy us a very welcome extra seat space for this 5 hour flight!!!  :-))  They seem quite comfortable in their travel bags tucked under the seats.

Claire recognizes Mount Humphreys near Flagstaff, and the Grand Canyon's North rim reflecting the red afternoon sun; the snow covered mountains of southern Colorado are spectacular also.  

It is a long flight, into forecast rain in Boston.  We arrive in the Boston area on time, but traffic delays put us on the ground almost 30 minutes late, at 11 PM.  I was concerned for our bus connection to Framingham, and asked a driver who was leaving when the last one ran; he assured me there would be two more, at half hour intervals.  We waited for the bags, selecting a quiet corner for Pookie & Purry.  When the bags started coming, I found two, and was dispairing on finding the others when Claire announced she had them!!  :-))  We MADE IT!!  Claire secured a rental cart, and we piled it high.  

The bus came exactly 30 minutes after the one we had asked, and we were on the way; 45 minutes later we were in Framingham, bought round trip tickets for the return ride in January, and secured a Taxi.  The driver was quite helpful, and even insisted on lifting the heavy bag into the car.   The driver helped carry the bags into the house at 1AM .  He also noticed the alarm go off, when I was still wondering what was going on....  I had forgetten to turn it off when we entered, and honestly had even forgotten it existed!  Too many hours awake for this guy!!  Claire mentioned the cats as we left the cab, and we were informed the driver was allergic to them too....I'm VERY glad she waited to mention them!!  The driver earned a generous tip for this ride, and really, by taking us the shortest way, charged us less than I had paid for the same ride while travelling on business years before, even INCLUDING his tip....   The house felt COLD!   What now?  I looked at the fuse panel, noticed nothing amiss, but took time to identify the specific fuse for the furnace;  I unscrewed THAT fuse, and it became apparent it had blown very violently, obscuring the normal appearance of a blown fuse.  Replacing the fuse started the furnace!!  :-)  We will ponder the reason for the blown fuse at another time!!  It is time to sleep.  Claire grabbed an extra quilt from an empty bed, we found thermal uinderwear that had been resting since LAST winter, and jumped into bed.  Claire remarked it felt like were were camping outside;  :-))  a 44 degree house feels cold even UNDER many layers of blanket, and the cold walls will require more than a day to warm to normal.  It did not take us long to warm the bed and fall asleep this night (Morning?)  We're back home, and with the busy holidays ahead this is the last you'll hear of this trip.  Next one starts mid January, ready or not; we already have the flight reservations!!  For now,

"That's all, Folks!"