Nov 04, 2015
Back in the USA
We took our time getting organized and leaving this morning. It was -3C and we certainly became aware of that fact when we brought the slides in. Sheets of ice fell off the slideout awnings. Yup, it was that cold. Certainly time to turn the wheels toward the south. We were on the road by 9:15AM. Pretty good timing with no stress involved.
First stop was at Freightliner in West Kelowna. We needed to pick up an air filter for the engine which Colin will need to change before we leave Mexico, as well as antifreeze and engine oil. The trip to Winnipeg last June threw us off our regular maintenance schedule. A ‘posh’ couple were hooking up their hummer to their very expensive Newmar. Talk about attitude.
It was spectacular to see all the colors of the vineyards. Fall is such a colorful time.
Carmeh was great with the ramps, Caeli not at all. However Carmeh would not settle down and there was just the one area that she could jump up and down, about 10 inches and she did so repeatedly. Within 4 hours we had that blocked off. ( I’ll do a photo tomorrow ) We really want her to make it the the beach. She just never stops moving.
Finally after 3 hours she took a nap in the sun on the dash. So very sweet.
We had a quick stop to pee the girls and make a quick fruit snack for us. Carmeh needs to stop more often. Just before Summerland we were honked at and passed by our friends Pat and Gord. We passed them once when they stopped for lunch and they latter passed us when we stopped for fuel but we never did meet up. It was also neat to know that friends Janet and Grant were just a few hours ahead of us on the same route, also on the way to Mazatlan. They are traveling in a car so will get there well before us.
Aha, the US border. Two lanes were open and both only had 2 vehicles ahead of us. It was obvious that the interrogation was serious. Everyone ahead of us was sent to secondary inspection.
The young blond and very handsome border agent asked a multitude of questions in such a fast tone that I missed half of what he said. Somehow the ‘do you have any alcohol on board’ went over my head for two more questions. Wait I said, I do have 2 bottles of wine on board. That did not deter him, who owns this RV, have you ever been jailed, have you ever been convicted of a crime or pardoned for anything, do you have drugs or narcotics on board ( it wasn’t till several miles down the road that I realized that I did have morphine with us in case I need it for Carmeh ), do we have any firearms on board, do we own everything inside, do we have money over $10,00.00, where are we going, how long will we be in the USA…..so rapid fire that my head is still spinning. Then we were to pull over so that the agriculture guy could come in and check us out. He only looked at the fridge and freezer, was disappointed that we had nothing illegal. As he left he asked if we had lamb in the dog food. That was it. Welcome to the USA. Certainly better than last years crossing.
Not long on the road when we saw this. The driver must have fallen asleep at the wheel. Fortunately by the time we arrived on scene a detour had been conceived so we were not delayed.
We did stop for fuel at one point and it was nice to see that it was a full $1.00 less than last year at this time. It seemed to take forever to get to our destination for the evening. We are in the Walmart in Moses Lake, WA and happy to be here. It is currently 44F and going down to 29F so it will most likely be a cuddle night for the C’s 😉
Unfortunately I had a major issue with my ATT hot spot device. Long story short, I was on the phone with ATT for just under 55 minutes and was dealing with the 4th level of technical service. Problem solved, not my fault but it did affect me. Back on line now and as I type this, it is 10PM. Dishes need to be done and showers taken. Tomorrow is a long day for us and we need to be on the road at 7AM 🙁
Beautiful scenery just before Soap Lake.
Today we drove from home to Moses Lake, 257.3 miles.
Caught the sunset over the lake just before we landed.
A long day indeed but we are so happy to be on the road in our RV. We love it.
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Welcome back to the open road! So glad you made it out and that the crossing wasn’t horrible.
Aw, sunset pictures – God’s paintbrush at work. Thanks for sharing and enjoy the trip.
NIce that you had and easy border crossing and are on the road. Enjoy the journey.
I love that dashboard sleeping area. My hounds would probably try to get up there but wouldn’t be able to of course. Good job on the border answers. 🙂 Lamb in dog food???
Have a safe trip. We’ll be a few weeks behind you, trying to stay warm.
I think maybe Carmeh and Caeli have an idea where you are off to and are just anticipating the first sight of their home away from home. 🙂 Kind of like kids, you know? 😉
Safe travels and keep up updated when you have a chance.
So jealous. Wish I was in your shoes (even if you don’t have a Newmar Motorhome and a Hummer Toad) lol I think your setup is absolutely fantastic!!
Sure would love to be heading to Mexico instead of facing a cold winter here in Alberta. Enjoy your trip and only a few days until you are on the beach!!
Welcome to the US of A. Glad to hear the bordering crossing went so well. But lamb? Did the girls behave themselves? Ours would bark their fool heads off.
Happy to see the C’s on the road again! Always enjoy traveling along!
On the road again. Boy, you guys seem to move fast. Seems u were just making lists and starting to get ready and now you are gone already… Think you are leaving just in time, we are supposed to get snow Monday!! (in Redmond, Oregon) Can hardly believe it is that time of year. Take Care and Safe Travels!!
Nice to see you back on the road and happy to hear your border crossing went so much better than last year. Won’t belong and you will be in warmer weather once again.
Ruth