FRED AND ROBBIN
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The (mostly not terrifying) trip down

11/10/2018

 

Delayed but undeterred 

Tuesday 
Oak Harbor to Pendleton
A non-eventful day, which, considering we went through Seattle, was a very good thing. Stayed at Wildhorse Casino. Very nice. 
​Quiet parking lot, clean casino, and buffet was only $9. But we just went on Weight Watchers (Fred's already lost more than I care to know about) so we could eat all the fruit and salad we wanted. And not much else.
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Wednesday
Pendleton to Twin Falls
Other than a little snow in the pass on the way to La Grande, this was a simple trip. It was a little hard to find the RV park, but it was so plain (and cold) I didn't even take photos.
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Snow on pass out of Pendleton
Thursday
Twin Falls to Vegas
Cold, scary, mostly beautiful

First of all, there are a lot of cows in Twin Falls. You can smell them long before seeing them. I love meat so it’s not right to complain. But I’m really glad they’re here and not at home. Also, it’s cold and windy in Twin Falls.
It was 29 degrees when we left at 7:43 AM. Not sure how cold it got overnight, but am sure that our electric furnace in the RV failed.

We took this route because we thought it’d be easier and faster than going down through California. It did end up taking just four days. But that’s largely because we skipped a night in Ely and pushed through to Vegas. Why? Because it’s 6 degrees in Ely on any given November night and our Winnebago isn’t designed for the arctic.

Well, the road was mostly two-lane and mostly OK. But getting behind a slow truck was predictably painful. But we saw a few cool things. Such as a herd of sheep alongside a traditional sheepherder’s wagon with rounded roof topped with a wood stove pipe. No photo, driving too fast…Then there were the double-semi trucks that roared past us at 70, crossing over double yellow lines. 

Having left so early, we got to our planned stop, Ely, at lunch time. Went to McDonalds and found it bustling with Army troops getting chow. I asked the clerk if there was a base nearby though I hadn’t seen one on the map. No, he said. They’d been getting a couple bus loads a day for a few days. Heading to the border. To hold off the caravan from Mexico. What do you say to that? “Wow,” I said.

​Beautiful. Except for the pee bottles
Passengers on long drives have a lot of time to observe the side of the road. That’s not always a good thing. Prime example: I noticed that a lot of people deposit pee on the side of the roads between Twin Falls and Las Vegas. Either that, or a lot of people are tossing out apple cider in various recycled beverage bottles. 

Who do you suppose would do that? I gave this a lot of thought (I know, it's weird) and here’s what I concluded. I think it's people who travel this road a lot (truck drivers) who aren't deterred by a $500 littering fine, particularly given the lack of rest areas over a several hundred mile stretch. Having seen gallons of pee, I started feeling very sorry for the road maintenance crews who have to recycle the bottles, so to speak. No way do those bottles fit the definition of "litter."
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High rollers at the Riviera (RV Park)
Once upon a time the rich and famous stayed at the Riviera. Built in 1955 and demolished in 2015, (and where Fred and I stayed years ago during a business trip) the Riviera was quite the luxurious place long before the themed mega casinos popped up.
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The casino is gone but even if you've lost your grubstake  you can still stay at the Riviera (RV park.) And you’re actually in luck if you get in, because there are very few RV parks in or around Vegas. Although old, it was fine: Cheap, clean, and quiet.
Friday
​Las Vegas to Gold Canyon
We drove down the strip on our way out of Vegas. The place just feels unsettled and hectic, mostly because there is a perennial tearing down and building up.  One thing stood out amidst the chaos: The Trump casino. It stood out not only because it was a Trump property, but even more so because it was off the strip in an area devoid of neighbors. Solitary, you could say. Just interesting. And gold.

​To me, it's a sad, plastic town and as usual, leaving Las Vegas felt good.
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Now you (don’t) see it
So who’d imagine you’d go by Boulder Dam and not be able to see it? Not me. I was there in 2008 or so, and we could still drive over the dam. At the time they were building a huge new bridge on the west side of the dam. So I looked forward to seeing the finished bridge with the dam down below. Well, we saw the asphalt of the bridge, but that’s all. 
OK, that was terrifying​
I’ve been around a long time and had a few adventures. But I have never, ever sobbed in terror until November 9, when we were caught in a side wind on the roads around Kingman AZ. We were pushed nearly off the road a couple of times. I’d seen one too many pictures of semi trucks tipped on their sides and kept wondering how bad the wreck would be when we tipped over. In an RV you present a large sail that catches a gust and tries to grab the wheel out of your (Fred’s) hand.

I seriously considered staggering back to the bed to grab all our pillows to pack in around us to help cushion the crash. I know, silly. And Fred was surprised that I was so scared. I imagine I’ve been in much worse situations and wasn’t smart enough to be afraid, so I figure it all evens out over time. Clearly, we made it without getting killed. But the tension wasn’t over, because we still had to endure… the abandoned Nissan.
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Oh Lord, all that to end up stuck in Kingman
Picture this: You’ve just come through a wind storm and are feeling shaky relief. You have a long way to go before the end of the day. But you need gas. When you’re driving an RV and towing a Jeep, you’re not particularly agile. So when you commit to a gas station line, you’re not getting out of it until the way in front of you is clear. We wiggled into the only line we could fit in.

There were three pumps in front of us, with a black Nissan parked closest to us. After a couple minutes the other two pumps were vacated, but no movement from the Nissan. We’d seen a woman get out of the car and take a couple little girls into the mini-mart, but figured there was a driver in the car. So, after waiting for a few minutes for the car to move, I got out and rapped on the window. The windows were so darkly tinted, I couldn’t tell if there was anyone inside. Without an answer, I figured if there WAS someone inside refusing to acknowledge me, I didn’t want to meet them, so gave up and went back to wait in the RV.

Another five minutes passed. Foul language started flowing freely. I finally gave up and went into the mini-mart to find the lady with the kids. It took a minute to get her to understand why we’d want her to move her car, but eventually she came out. And moved it up by one pump. It took some stern advice from Fred to get her to move all the way out of the line of pumps. Whew. It was a huge relief to get the diesel and move on. Wonder if the lady learned anything about courtesy?

Gold Canyon
If you didn't read last year's story, here's what it's like at Gold Canyon. This is not a fancy place: people rent pads and either put an RV or a modular home called a "park model" on them. That's a euphemism for "short single wide." Some of them have additions called "Arizona rooms." When they're attached, they make the home feel larger. When they're not attached, they're called a shed. Many people outfit these sheds with washer/dryer, bathroom, and guest accommodations. Others use them for storage, workshops, or a little bit of everything. Overall, people's homes are between 400 and 800 square feet.

The majority of owners here are snowbirds, coming down from all over the country in winter months. All are 55 or older. There's a healthy sprinkling of people at the lower end of the range, so the place has a vibrant if vaguely arthritic feel. The mood is cheerful and you hear greetings and laughter throughout the day. There are tons of things to do catering to a variety of interests. I'm working in the woodshop. Fred likes the card game groups. I love swimming, he likes the exercise room. The views are amazing, and, of course, it's warm. At 4:30 on the afternoon of November 17, it is 85 degrees inside (we'd rather be warm than turn on the LOUD RV A/C. Anyway, it's probably the mid 70's outside.

We're on the outskirts of Phoenix so it's much less hectic (that place is CRAZY). But being close to a large city and surrounded by such beautiful country, there is always somewhere to go and something to do. We've been here a week and this is the first day where we didn't go somewhere.

In short, we like it here. We'll be back. May even buy a place someday. It's an affordable way to enjoy the desert without committing to a full blown house. After all, we like it in Washington too. 
  • Home Page
  • Travel Stories
    • Heading south 2018
    • Exploring the Apache Trail
    • Tonto Cliff Dwellings
    • 4 Wheeling 4 Peaks
    • Bouncing through Box Canyon
    • Montana Mountain
    • Jerome
  • Arizona Stories
    • Life in Arizona
    • Woodturning Guide
    • Southwest 2017
    • What it's like at Gold Canyon
  • Boating in the Northwest
    • Broughtons 2017
  • The Neighborly Lane Story