While driving in the rain over Blood Mountain (on the way to Hiawassee) a little bell went off on the dash…something about oil pressure.  Once we were parked, Al made an appointment to get the truck checked.  We drove up to Murphy, NC to the GMC dealer and they checked it.  As the story Al tells goes — he knew it was bad when the mechanic was standing next to the service writer to give him the news that the fuel injectors were shot and that it would cost $5000 to replace them.  As he was recovering from the shock, they added that GMC had an extended warranty on the problem, so it wouldn’t cost us anything.  Just as Al was recovering, they also said they would pay for a rental til it was fixed.  It’s running a lot better now!!!

We enjoyed our week in the mountains of North Georgia.  The weather could have been a little nicer, but we did get to spend time with Al’s sister Loretta who is convalescing from a stroke.  Al had spent time with her when she was hospitalized in December, and he was anxious to see how she was doing.  Fortunately she is doing pretty well and slowly getting where she needs to be.  Her dog Dutchess has been a help by calming down.  She’s a bulldog who loves to play, and she can be extremely playful, but she is calm around Loretta so worries that she would knock her down weren’t necessary.

From North Georgia we drove to the Marietta area and stayed at the McKinney Campground on Lake Allatoona.  It’s a Corps of Engineers park so the price is right, and it’s fairly near to Al’s father.  We’ve stayed here before and we like it.  Our visit with Al’s father was the reason for this leg of the trip.  He’s 95 and still doing pretty well.  He likes to go out to eat on occaision (a break from his frozen dinners), and Al likes to indulge him so we hit some of his favorites like I-HOP and Folks.  Ever the genealogist, Al is always trying to get family details and stories, and Leonard usually remembers an awful lot.

Al took the opportunity to schedule an appointment with Camping World to check why we couldn’t get reception from the antenna on the downstairs TV.  They discovered that the previous installation of our satellite dome had been done with spliced wires.  They made dedicated lines and now Al is happier.

We also spent time with Al’s younger sister Barbara and her husband Tony.  They brought along Hank their youngest who will be graduating from HS in June.  In August he goes into the Marines (following in the footsteps of his two older brothers).  He’s even been doing boot camp activities in his spare time!!

We have passed from Winter to Spring, but you wouldn’t know it by the weather.  We have half of our wardrobe that we haven’t worn yet this trip because it hasn’t really been very warm.  The one thing we are enjoying is the flowering trees are in full bloom, and the dogwoods have just started to pop out.  Al’s still looking for the Azealas.

We’ve decided to name this our breakdown trip.  We noticed a slow drip under the RV and took it back to Camping World to check it out.  Our plan was to get it fixed and be on our way to Kentucky.  Unfortunately, it was the black tank valve that needs replacement (no extended warranty on this one though) and they have to order the part.  We came back to McKinney for the night and hope to get it fixed and on the road tomorrow.  We seem to be getting a new RV piece by piece.  Actually we look at this as our second home and things need to get fixed from time to time (just like our other home), but since it goes over our wonderful highways and byways, it experiences minor earthquakes every time.  No wonder things need to get fixed.

We arrived in Perry, GA on Sunday March 9. We suffered a little “jet” lag because the clock had changed to Daylight Savings Time and we had driven into the Eastern Time Zone also!!! We had a day to recover before we went in to the Georgia National Fairgrounds to begin our volunteer positions. Our orientation started the eve of the 10th. Our job was parking RV’s. It’s lots of fun standing on the road and telling big rigs where to go. You never quite know what will happen when those same big rigs are coming at you and not always paying the best attention. The hardest part is having to set the alarm clock to get up at 0615. We’re retired and alarm clocks are not part of our routine.

We met some new friends who were parked around us and immediately established happy hour. We sat around and told stories (no campfire due to the rules) and shared drinks. The couple on the left in the picture (Chuck and Cindy from Pennsylvania had their RV for a couple of years, but didn’t know much about it. They were picking the brains of the seasoned travellers. Their biggest concern was dry camping for a week and not being able to empty tanks. We tried to reassure them, but still think they didn’t take many showers in fear of filling the gray tank. A lot of the fun of the Rally is sharing of information between RV’ers, and meeting new people. It has kept us coming back for more.

We had some really good entertainment every night, but the best was Bobby Vinton (big in the 60’s and 70’s for those who don’t remember). If you haven’t ever seen him…he sings, plays 10-12 different instruments, and does impersonations. He is still quite a showman. Another night a female singer from Orlando named Jaimie Roberts gave a great performance also.

Last year we tried for a Guiness record for whoopie cushion sitting, but we didn’t make it. We know, it’s hard to visualize, but it was interesting. This year we went after a record for most couples dancing at the same time (doing a box step for 5 minutes). The previous record was in Venezuela with 476 couples. We unofficially had 1178. Now if the Guiness people certify us, we’ll be in the record book!!

A while back we had sustained damage to our awning, and on the way through Texas, a bad wind caught it again and we found it flapping in the breeze when we stopped for lunch. One of the great things about the Rally is you can get things fixed. We flagged down the travelling awning guy and ordered a replacement. Two guys came to our RV site and totally replaced it in about 40 minutes. That sure beats having to take it in to the shop. Now all we have to do is remember that it’s been fixed and we can actually use it again.

After 10 days in Perry, the Rally was over for the year…to reconvene next April in Albequerque, N.M.

We are always amazed that it takes three days to park all those RV’s, but they can all leave the area in a matter of hours. We also picked up and headed out with the usual — “see ya down the road”… ! We made a short trip to Forsyth, GA to rest up for a day and then headed on to North Georgia. We stopped at the Georgia Mountain Fair Campground in Hiawassee, a place we’ve been before and enjoy the location. It’s in the Georgia mountains. We’re here to visit with Al’s sister Loretta. More on that to follow.

Alabama is an interesting state, especially the more rural parts, and we explored many of them.  In Al’s quest for genealogical tidbits we visited libraries, county courthouses, cemeteries, and distant cousins in places like Camden, Monroeville, and Greenville.  Karen’s personal favorite was a visit to the library in Haneyville.  We walked in the front door and were shocked to see a totally untidy place with a lady asleep in a chair at the desk inside.  Another lady helped us, and an elderly lady with her coat and hat on (the librarian we think) came in and dug out a book on bride/groom lists from a desk drawer.  She was as helpful as can be under the circumstances, but we went over to the courthouse and found the document Al was looking for.  Karen suggested he stop back at the library and tell our very helpful librian about his success, and she gave him a homemade muffin.  You just can’t beat Southern hospitality!!! 

We had a little incident with our RV brakes in Montgomery…they locked up.  We ended up at Airport Trailer where they mostly work on horse trailers, but fortunately they knew trailer brakes.  It turned out a nut had come off inside and had been clunking around(Camping World put new brakes on last year) and the brake was shot.  The great group at Airport had a new brake on in no time.

One thing we won’t miss about the South — the tornado watches.  We went through 3 of them, and there was no where to run or hide at two parks. 

 Al finished his research in AL and we had two weeks until we had to be in Georgia for the RV Rally in Perry, so Karen suggested we head south to the Florida Panhandle for some sun and warm weather (we didn’t get far enough south for that though) and new territory.  All the State Parks Karen put on the list were booked, so Al did his homework and found Big Lagoon State Park in Pensacola which is a voted “best” State Park a couple of times, and we agree.  It has lots of boardwalk trails through the wetlands, picnic pavillions and waterfront on the big lagoon.   It turned out to be a great find.

Just around the corner we found the Naval Air Museum on the grounds of the Pensacola Naval Base (which is just a couple of miles from the campground).  We weren’t expecting much but the museum exceeded all expectations.  We took an outside tour led by Dave the retired Marine who was a hoot.  He drove an old trolley they had bought from town for $1.  He had stories to tell about the planes…especially interesting was the plane that Bush had landed on the carrier after the invasion of Iraq was there, having been retired from service two weeks later due to age!!  Inside there were planes everywhere, hanging from the ceiling, on the floor and coming out of walls.  We had lunch in a re-creation of a club used by pilots in Subic Bay, Phillipines which was a museum in itself (and the food was great).  Al took a simulator ride (he said once was enough).  And since Pensacola is the home of the Blue Angels, there were four hanging in formation. 

 Across the lagoon from us was Perdito Key which is one of Dr. Beach’s top 10.  It is beautiful with white sand and expansive beach area, but the weather did not warm up enough to really enjoy it all. 

 We spent time in Panama City, Mexico Beach (where it rained so hard we woke up with the RV surrounded by water, and Destin.  We pretty much checked out the whole Florida Panhandle.  Our biggest problem right now is the price of Diesel is out of sight.   When we left Denver the price was $3.20 and we’ve had to pay as much at $3.92 recently.  Is there no end in sight to the escalating prices?

 Now it’s on to Perry, Georgia for the annual RV Rally.  We are volunteers so we go in early and then help park all the RV’s that show up.

We made a brief stop in Crockett, TX (so named because Davey Crockett passed through there on his way to the Alamo), but Al was unable to find any documentation on his family tree search. We then headed to Westwego, LA which is on the other side of the river from New Orleans. We camped at the Bayou Seguette State Park, which is a quiet spot in the suburbs with good sites for big rigs, but more importantly it was just a short drive to N.O.

A timeshare in the French Quarter was our final destination, but we had to find a parking space for the RV (w/ electricity for the fridge). For $9 a night, it ended up costing about half what parking in N.O. cost us!!! Our timeshare was on Ursaline St., just a half block from Bourbon St. It was very quaint with high ceilings. old wood floors, and kitchen cabinet doors that were falling off, but it served our purposes just fine. We got a lot of walking in on our travels around the city (the biggest day was 20,000 steps). Our great location which was also about four blocks from Jackson Square made it easy to get around and not have to get the truck out of the expensive parking lot.

Of course we visited the great tourist spots…O’Brien’s for hurricanes and piano music, Cafe Du Monde for beignets, French Quarter/Bourbon Street. and Riverwalk. The weather was cold and rainy, but we did get a couple of days of nice warmer weather. An unexpected benefit was that Mardi Gras parades started the week we were there. The parades start 2 weeks before Ash Wednesday, and they take place in 5 or 6 locations. There must have been 35-40 on the schedules. It was Karen’s first Mardi Gras and we both got into the spirit. We were able to see several of the early parades (the best ones happen after we left) and collect more beads than we ever expected. Karen’s favorite was the D’etat because of the irreverant float themes. There were so many beads that we gave up trying to catch any more. What a happening.

Al wanted to visit the National WW II Museum New Orleans, so we found our way there and ended up spending the better part of the day. Did you know that a man named Higgins invented the Higgins boats (landing craft on D-Day), and we met a docent who was a WW II vet who had history with the man and the boats. The museum gives an overall very well organized story of both arenas of the war. This is one of the highlights (if you like military museums) of the trip. There is a restaurant just down the street called the Dirty Dog. It’s a locals place with a piano and guitar decorated with beads glued all over, but they have the greatest barbecue.

We also drove down to the Ninth Ward area to see what it looked like. There were definate signs of life with people living in houses and businesses open, but there were a lot of empty lots with foundation blocks still sitting in place. Many of the buildings still had the FEMA markings on the side, and there were still FEMA trailers next to structures. It was hard to see how it could have been flooded, but you can’t see the levees from where we were.

Our timeshare came to an end, we packed up our beads (don’t know what we’re going to do with them — maybe a party) and we drove north to Vicksburg and Jackson, MS, but Al struck out on his document search, so we went to Mobile, AL. We had been there before, but only for a day. On this visit we found it to be a city we really enjoyed. It helped that Al finally had some success in his search, but we also found interesting dining spots, and drove all the way around the bay and took the ferry back to Mobile. Another day, we went to the US Alabama Battleship Park where you can tour the entire boat. They have done a great job of setting it up as a museum and you get a real feel for what it must have been like to have served on the ship. As we were exiting the ship, we witnessed hundreds of Boy Scouts and their chaperones with their bedrolls going on board to spend the night!!

We are now up in what Karen calls the lumber truck capitol of Alabama. It seems to be a main business in rural parts of the state. It also seems a lot of Al’s ancestors lived in many of these small towns, so he is hitting the local records departments and libraries and gathering new information. We have a few more small towns to visit before we head to Georgia for the RV Rally 2008. More to follow.

We started preparing for this trip about a week and a half ago. Al knew we had a flat tire on the RV in storage, and so we went over to take it off and get it fixed. Sounds simple. We found a Discount Tire Store about a mile from the storage lot and unfortunately they discovered the leak was a puncture on the inside sidewall and unfixable. They didn’t have our size of RV tire in stock (in all of the Denver area) and so they had to place an order with a promise of delivery in one week. Fortunately, we had given ourselves plenty of time to get this little matter resolved.

We came up with Plan B which was put the spare on and drive home so we could begin to prep. This worked well. Unfortunately, the tire didn’t come in as advertised. On Saturday we paid them a visit to check on status. FedEx tracking said it was on the truck and should be in on Monday (the day we planned to hit the road). Incidently, the Goodyear Warehouse had two in stock, but there was no licensed courier available due to “truck failure” so it couldn’t be delivered until Monday.

Plan C. We called very early Monday AM and were advised that it should be in by 10 and they would call. The call came, and Al went to pick it up. They had the tire, but couldn’t find the rim we left with them way back when. Finally, Al left with the new tire and a new wheel at no cost to him. Discount Tire came through in the end and did the right thing.

We did get on the road on Monday as planned, but our start was a little late…almost 1 P.M. Along the way, I saw an unusual site on top of Monument Hill heading south on I-25. It took a minute to comprehend, but there were two relay towers that were camoflaged to look like lodgepole pines. Wonder who thought to do that. They should get an award for aesthetics.

We were able to make it to Clayton, N.M. for the night. The next day we drove to Wichita Falls, TX, and on day three we made it to Frisco, TX and our base at Lake Lewisville in the Hidden Cove Campground. Unfortunately, the cold weather has followed us (although it was warmer in Colorado when we left), and has been a challenge. We didn’t hook up our water hose, and have watched as our neighbors have ice cicles and puddles around theirs. Guess there’s been an increase in hose purchases!!

We’re in Frisco to visit with our kids Bret and Wendy Harp and the girls Jodie and Katherine. Jodie has been involved in a two day Academic Decathalon as a representative from her school…Frisco High where she is a Jr. She is one of seven on the team and they are tested on various subjects over the 2 days. We watched the final session, where the kids answered questions about the Civil War. Her team did very well and will be going to the state finals at the end of Feb.

We were also able to meet up with Karen’s second cousin Marge Anderson and her husband Gary. They live in McKinney, TX which is the next town over from Frisco. We met them in our early days of genealogical exploration (Karen’s paternal line) and have kept in touch over the years. They always take us to interesting restaurants.

A lot of our trip has been planned around Genelogical research…mostly Al’s. On Tuesday we will head to Crockett, TX so he can do some record checking.

 Leaving Forks we headed south about 100 miles to Hoquiam, WA (got to love those interesting town names).  With such a short drive, it gave us the better part of the day to explore.  We checked out the area around Ocean Shores, and, surprise, found a Casino.  It was a chance to try our gambling skills, and we finally found a casino that gave rather than taketh away.  Both of us left with a little extra in our pockets.  It sure beats our usual play/lose/leave.

Thursday we packed up again and debated whether to head home or go to Cape Disappointment.  The weather was rainy and foggy, but we decided that we may not get this way again, so we went to the cape.  It is the most SW corner of the state which means that we hit three of the four corners of the state.  There is a State Park at Cape Disappointment that is quite exceptional.  We lucked out and got space #18 which was about 50 yards from the beach.  It was a beautiful beach, and the weather completely changed to sunny (!!!) and warm.  How good can it get.  The area is another Lewis and Clark heritage site where they camped for 6 very rainy days before they moved camp to Ft. Clapstrop.  There is a museum on top of the bluff that showcases the entire journey.  We highly recommend the park…it can accomodate big rigs too.  Good decision to visit here.

 Time is catching up with us and it’s time to hit the road for home.  There are grandchildren who may be abandoned by their parents if we’re late, and we have to go save them.   Well, we think their father was joking that if we didn’t make it back in time, they would be fine on their own while their parents were frolicking in NYC.

It’s been a great trip.  We see you down the road.

You really have to want to go there to get to the Olympic Penninsula. We had a little delay in Tacoma at Camping World. Al wanted to check the brakes and it took the better part of the day. We were able to visit the Museum of Glass (while we were waiting) where we watched a visiting artist work with hot glass building her art piece. We got a late start and couldn’t get in to an RV park, so we settled for our 3rd choice…a Walmart parking lot. It was our first time boondocking at a Walmart, but we managed without any problems.

Our first stop on the Penninsula was Port Angeles. We had trouble getting a space to stay here also and ended up in a KOA next the the tenters. We kept being told this is their high season. Guess we’ll plan better if there is a next time. But there is a lot to do in the area and we spent five days travelling around. Port Townsend is an historic town on the NE corner. We checked out Fort Worden State Park and toured the Commanding Officers Quarters after being quized by the docent asking for our calling card (expected of visitors in early 1900’s). Even though we didn’t have the card, he finally let us in.

Port Angeles is a ferry ride away from Victoria, BC, so we hopped on and took a one hour fast ferry to Canada. We had been there before and really enjoyed it, so a second visit was an easy decision. We took a Grey Line tour and were suprised to see the number of very expensive houses. Left off at the Empress Hotel, we had reservations for High Tea. This had been our favorite spot on our prior visit, but this time it was too expensive and not as good as the first time…a reminder that sometimes you should just stop after a great experience. We were able to tour the Provincial Capitol of BC. It’s a visually impressive building on the harbor. We were treated to some tour theater in the form of Queen Victoria, the mayor, and the building architect (characters in costume) carrying on in the mood of the early 1900’s. Al was heard to suggest that we visit all the Canadian capitols (there’s only 9)!!!

Did you know that Sequim (pronounced Squim) is the lavender capitol. You see the most beautiful plants everywhere, but the lavender farms not only smell great, but provide an interesting beauty in the fields. Located nearby is the Dungeness National Wildlife Refuge…didn’t see any wildlife, but enjoyed a hike out on the spit. Of course the big part of the Penninsula is the Olympic National Park. The northern entrance leads to Hurricaine Ridge. Not sure how it got that name, but we tried to go on a clear day, however, the clouds didn’t get the message and were low over the mountain tops limiting our views. At 5,000 ft in elevation it was pretty chilly — in the 50’s. Guess we picked the wrong day. We did get an up close and personal view of a young buck who seemed more interested in eating than the strangers sneaking up to take a picture.

From Port Angeles, we moved to the western edge of the park. We’re in Forks, WA. Al says it’s named after the forks in the rivers. We took a day trip to the very NW corner of the United States at Cape Hattery. It’s located on the Makah Indian Reservation and to get to the trail, you have to take the shuttle from the Museum. The trail is about 3/4 mi and leads out to view platforms where you can view the Pacific and the Strait of Juan De Fuca. It’s quite spectacular. Another day trip to the coast at Rialto Beach on the first day we’ve seen totally blue skies was a real treat. It even got up to 80 degrees! The coast is rugged, the beach beautiful water tumbled stones, and covered with huge logs that have piled up over time. It’s just a beautiful and serene place.

We had enough time left to visit the Hoh Rain Forest in the SW part of the park. It’s a World Heritage Site. Due to it’s location, it rains 132 inches/yr there. Fortunately, August is the driest month. The trees grow faster and taller and are covered with epiphytes (air plants). It’s reminescent of the moss covered trees in the south. Then again, it’s kind of like the forest primevil…quite lovely.

The Olympic Penninsula is big and out of the way, but certainly worth a visit for the many sights and things to do. Tomorrow we head off the penninsula. On to the next adventure.

Recovery from the Rally took us for a short stop in Kelso, Washington where we took a day to decompensate and catch up on a little rest and relaxation. Along the way we crossed over the 45th Parallel which put us half way between the North Pole and Equator. An interesting tidbit.

Our next destination was Seattle where we settled in to the Lake Pleasant RV park in Bothell (a NE suburb). We have been here before, but we enjoy the park because it’s an oasis in the midst of the urban landscape. It’s designated a wildlife refuge although the only wildlife we’ve seen are the ducks that waddle around the campsite looking for a handout. We’re in the edge of one of the lakes with a nice view.

Since we’ve been in Seattle before, we looked for things we hadn’t done previously. Driving into downtown and paying $18 to park was a great start (public transportation is a little difficult to figure out here). Progress Park is an historic area where Seattle started in the late 1800’s and we took the Underground Seattle tour. Since the original settlements were on “swamp land” they subsequently built up the streets and sidewalks leaving the second stories of buildings as the new first story. The tour takes you down to the original level. Some buildings are using the space for commercial purposes, but the areas we toured are locked in the past and full of artifacts (and dust) interesting to see.

One of the benefits of travelling is being able to visit with friends and family. To our delight we were able to meet Chuck Ferguson (an “old” high school classmate of Karen’s) for dinner at Maggie Bluffs on the marina on Elliott Bay. Nothing we like more than a locals place with great hamburgers and a beautiful outside deck with a view.

When we were planning to attend the Rally, it became obvious that it would be a great opportunity to travel to Juneau, Alaska to visit our #50 capitol. As you may know, we have been on a quest to visit all the state capitols in the US. The only one we lacked was Juneau, but the problem was access. It is only reachable by air or sea. The best choice was a cruise, and when a good deal showed up on the internet, the decision was made.

We sailed on the Norweigan Star leaving July 28. We had a balcony room which was great…views all the time. The itinerary included four ports: Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway and Prince Rupert. The highlight was our tour of the capitol. It’s taken us about 10 years to visit all the capitols, but it’s been a great journey. We celebrated completion of our capitols quest with Chateaubriand in Le Bistro on the ship. Our next goal is the Presidential Libraries!

In addition, we were able to take a trip on the White Pass Railway out of Skagway. Al, the history buff, is always interested in the Klondike goldrush, so following some of the trail was of great interest. Our favorite new term is “ladies of negotiable affection” which our tour guide used often to describe ladies who were available along the trail. The scenery is just beautiful, although the sky was always cloudy and the temperatures didn’t get much above 60 degrees. We were constantly told we were lucky the weather was so good for our adventures. Being from Colorado, we miss the sunshine.

Back in Seattle we were able to spend time with Karen’s nephew Andy Larson and his wife Allison. They have an adorable 2 yr old daughter Annalise who entertained us. She helped pick blueberries for our dessert, but she was hungry and kept eating what she was picking. What a cutie.

Our travels will be taking us to the Olympic Peninsula before heading home. More on that later.

Last Sunday we packed up and headed southeast. Unfortunately the night before, Al had checked the tires and found one had gone flat. He’s getting good practice changing tires on the RV. We couldn’t find any tire store open on Sunday morning so we took a chance and moved out on the road again.

We traveled around Mt. Hood and over to Redmond, Oregon for The Rally. The drive was quite beautiful through the mountains and terrain that is much like Colorado. We crossed our fingers and the spare got us there.

When we arrived we were parked in the Volunteer lot and we got a primo location just outside of the gates to the Expo Fairgrounds. There was a volunteer dinner that night and we got our assignments for the week. We were on parking duty. All went well except for a rainy day parking the big rigs…we got pretty wet.

The Rally officially started on Thursday with seminars, vendors, and hundreds of RV’s of every shape and size. There were even a couple with price tags well over one million. We looked, but decided we will stick with our Everest a little longer.

Down the parking lot from us there is an Osprey nest on top of a light pole that is surrounded by big rigs. It was fun to watch the parents feed the two young ones who were the same size. Someone noted that the RV’s around the area are all covered in bird droppings and such. Glad were not that close.

On top of everything else, there was nightly entertainment. Each night was a little different from a singer who did impression of “Dean Martin and friends” to Suzanne Somers to Gary Puckett and BJ Thomas to Big Bad Voo Doo Daddy. Tonight there was a group that dresses like and sings Beatles songs. It was all quite enjoyable.

We even tried to make a new Guiness World Record for simultaneous Whoopie cushion sitting. It’s quite a sight to see, but we fell short of the record by a couple of hundred sitters. The plan is to try again next year.

We’ve met some great people and had a lot of fun, but it’s time to move on. We’ll take a short trip up in to Washington state and spend a day recuperating, dumping tanks, and doing laundry before we go up to Seattle.

More later

We’ve been on the road a little over a week now, and for some reason, it seems like a month. There was a little bit of a rocky start with finding out we needed new trailer brakes, having some unexpected truck transmission issues, and having a new installation of a King Dome that we couldn’t get to work. We got new brakes, the transmission was fixed and we stopped at Camping World and got the satellite system tuned to the right place and we took off on a three day drive to reach Portland, Oregon.

Along the way we blew a tire on the RV. For some reason we didn’t even know it had happened until we were getting gas in a Flying J and just happened to spot it. At that point, we decided to call this our “Disaster Tour 07″. Fortunately our spare got us the remaining 250 miles. The tire diagnosis was “dry rot” at the valve stem. This was something new to us, but Les Schwab Tires has now placed metal stems on all our tires. The good news is that the black marks on the RV fender all came off and there was no damage.

We have found lots to see and do in Portland. We drove in to the city the first day and had trouble parking, but when we found out that “honored citizens” only cost 85 cents to ride the light rail, we became MAX riders. Our first outing was to visit the Rose Gardens. Portland is the Rose City. They have the climate to grow beautiful flowers and the garden is a test garden that has hundreds of different beautiful roses. If we could only get our roses to grow half as well… Right next to the garden was the Japanese Garden which is quite exceptional.

The historic Columbia River Highway, which is the original road prior to I-84 has a lot of great scenery. We stopped at several waterfalls and hiked up for the views. The tallest was Multnomah. We visited the Bonneville Dam and fish hatchery. We had always heard about the fish ladders which allow the salmon to go upstream to spawn, but it becomes clearer how it works when you see it. Following along the loop around Mt. Hood, we stopped at Timberline Lodge (a WPA project) and looked around. They are still skiing, but the snow looks really mushy.

Thursday we went back into town to see the Chinese Gardens. It covers a city block and is walled in. It’s quite different from the Japanese Garden, but very serene. We had “lunch” in the teahouse, another unique experience. Of course there is always the serendipity that comes along, and we had a bit when we ran into the Portland Maritime Museum on our walk along the river. It’s a paddlewheel steamboat museum that is run by a private group of mostly retired Coast Guard and Navy types. We got a personal tour.

Portland is a beer town which suits us. We have found a place we would highly recommend. It’s Henry’s Tavern, located in a building that used to house the Henry Weinhard Brewing Company. They have 100 beers on tap!! They also have a great happy hour menu too. There’s not much more to our criteria list.

Tomorrow we head to Redmond, OR for the RV Rally. We’re volunteers again this year. It should be lots of fun.