Month: April 2011

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The Roving Delicatessen

Fraserway RV in Airdrie, just north of Calgary, was having an open house today with good sales, including 25% off all parts under $300! Gary and Jody go every year and invited me along. I’ve been desperately needing a new pigtail for my propane system (ie. a hose that goes from my auxiliary tank to the Extend-a-Stay tee), but have been procrastinating since the one I bought in Osoyoos in the fall of ’08 was so expensive. I decided that this was the day to pick one up, so that gave me an excuse to go. 🙂

We started our day at Willow Creek municipal campground because Jody wanted to see if the prairie crocuses (Anemone patens) were in bloom, which they were:

prairie crocus (actually not a crocus but rather a member of the buttercup family)

We headed out after towards Calgary and Gary started to rustle around in the back seat. I turned to discover that a delicatessen had sprung up back there!

Gary’s Roving Delicatessen

This is how they travel; Jody drives, Gary makes sandwiches! And delicious ones at that!

We got to Airdrie and stopped at another RV place so we’d be able to compare prices at Fraserway, then headed for the open house. Turns out Fraserway had better prices, even without the 25% discount!

Between both dealerships, we must have toured close to a hundred rigs. I discovered another type of fiver that I really like. It has a proper bedroom at the front, a bunk room at the back, and a loft above the bunk room. I could see going with something similar in a toyhauler motorhome, with the bunk room of course being a garage and the bedroom being my office.

den and loft with ladder (Starcraft Lexion)

I found the pigtail I needed in the parts department (with no help from the very rude salesgal) and it came to only $13 after my discount and tax!

Having had our fill of RVs for the day, I was then whisked away to Bass Pro Shops, which is more of a museum than a store! They allow photographs, so I tried to capture the feel of the place.

front end of the cariboo herd

We ended the day by making a very quick stop in Mossleigh to visit with Ken and Donna.

Another awesome day with my local guides! Thank you!

More pictures below.

prairie crocus (actually not a crocus but rather a member of the buttercup family)

prairie crocus (actually not a crocus but rather a member of the buttercup family)

that prairie azure and gold I love so much...

that prairie azure and gold I love so much…

that prairie azure and gold I love so much...

that prairie azure and gold I love so much…

that prairie azure and gold I love so much...

that prairie azure and gold I love so much…

entrance to Willow Creek municipal campground

entrance to Willow Creek municipal campground

the grass looked like hair or fur!

the grass looked like hair or fur!

the grass looked like hair or fur!

the grass looked like hair or fur!

campground with river

campground with river

river that winds around the campground

river that winds around the campground

campground

campground

prairie crocus (actually not a crocus but rather a member of the buttercup family)

prairie crocus (actually not a crocus but rather a member of the buttercup family)

a crow or raven met its end here

a crow or raven met its end here

these guys posed for pictures

these guys posed for pictures

Gary's Roving Delicatessen

Gary’s Roving Delicatessen

gorgeous lake (manmade, I think)

gorgeous lake (manmade, I think)

gorgeous lake (manmade, I think)

gorgeous lake (manmade, I think)

I asked Gary for an additional half sandwich. He thought this open faced version would be funny.

I asked Gary for an additional half sandwich. He thought this open faced version would be funny.

that organizer is a better use for the space in a class C loft than is a leaky window!

that organizer is a better use for the space in a class C loft than is a leaky window!

den and loft with ladder (Starcraft Lexion)

den and loft with ladder (Starcraft Lexion)

first rig I saw with a loft and a den below it (see previous picture)

first rig I saw with a loft and a den below it (see previous picture)

LOVE the Harry Potteresque cubby hole under the stairs!

LOVE the Harry Potteresque cubby hole under the stairs!

nice little den below the loft

nice little den below the loft

proper stairs up to a loft!

proper stairs up to a loft!

Jody climbing proper stairs to a loft

Jody climbing proper stairs to a loft

I laughed at the awkward placement of the toilet paper roll holder!

I laughed at the awkward placement of the toilet paper roll holder!

exterior of Bass Pro Shops

exterior of Bass Pro Shops

entrance to the store

entrance to the store

amazing light fixture

amazing light fixture

first floor of the store

first floor of the store

all the murals are hand painted

all the murals are hand painted

antlers

antlers

I want a rocker like this!

I want a rocker like this!

sea plane

sea plane

front end of the cariboo herd

front end of the cariboo herd

there's a guy in a duck blind in the tree

there’s a guy in a duck blind in the tree

back end of the cariboo herd

back end of the cariboo herd

'general store' at Bass Pro Shops

‘general store’ at Bass Pro Shops

driving into a storm

driving into a storm

driving into a storm

driving into a storm

driving into a storm

driving into a storm

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The Potato Chip Experiment

Jody and Gary needed to go to Fruitvale, BC, yesterday and insisted I come along for the ride. It was a fun little overnight trip and we obviously aren’t yet ready to kill each other since we’re road tripping again tomorrow!

The title of this post comes from something Jody likes to do when she drives this route. It takes you to the Salmo Creston Pass, which is a full mile above sea level. The change in air pressure is remarkable and well evidenced by bringing a bag of potato chips, then watching it swell as you climb up to the summit. Potato chip delivery drivers are not allowed to take this route because the bags, being crowded into boxes, often explode!

I would not want to do this route, highway 3, in an RV at any other time but a very dry summer day; not only is it a long, steep climb and descent, but there is no guard rail along a good chunk of it. There was a lot of snow at the pass yesterday.

I got up at oh-dark-thirty to do two flier routes, with the other two to be done tonight. It figured that these were extra-large batches where I would be paid a supplement but which would take longer! We took off around 9 and with a bunch of stops made it to Fruitvale at five MST, four local time.

We pushed on a little past Fruitvale so I could see the former mining town of Rossland, then we had dinner in Trail at the delicious Chinese ‘Double Happiness’ restaurant.

On the way back today we stopped in Creston so I could see the sasquatch at the Kokanee brewery. Pity there were no tours today!

We got in around, oh, nearly fiveish and Jody went out with me so we could do my fliers in record time. Thank you!

random MyCatsAreSoCute! pic

random MyCatsAreSoCute! pic

snow at the summit of the Salmo Creston pass

snow at the summit of the Salmo Creston pass

snow at the summit of the Salmo Creston pass

snow at the summit of the Salmo Creston pass

crossing the Columbia River into Trail (yes, the same river as that in Oregon/Washington)

crossing the Columbia River into Trail (yes, the same river as that in Oregon/Washington)

welcome to Trail

welcome to Trail

daffodils in Trail

daffodils in Trail

public walkways in Trail all have this red covering; you can see them going up the side of the hills

public walkways in Trail all have this red covering; you can see them going up the side of the hills

welcome to Rossland

welcome to Rossland

Rossland mine

Rossland mine

nice building in Rossland

nice building in Rossland

BC has bright green grass

BC has bright green grass

bag at the bottom of the pass on the Salmo side, very flexible, no problem creating the crease

bag at the bottom of the pass on the Salmo side, very flexible, no problem creating the crease

air pressure is still low

air pressure is still low

air pressure is still low but changing as we climb up

air pressure is still low but changing as we climb up

air pressure keeps mounting

air pressure keeps mounting

nearly at the top and the bag is getting very hard

nearly at the top and the bag is getting very hard

white-out conditions at the summit

white-out conditions at the summit

cresting the summit, the bag was fully inflated

cresting the summit, the bag was fully inflated

on the Creston side of the pass

on the Creston side of the pass

on the Creston side of the pass

on the Creston side of the pass

Creston, nice dump station

Creston, nice dump station

Creston

Creston

fountain at rest area in Creston

fountain at rest area in Creston

IMGP1841

"Beer Run", the Kokanee Sasquatch

“Beer Run”, the Kokanee Sasquatch

RV park right across from the Kokanee Brewery!

RV park right across from the Kokanee Brewery!

Cranbrook sign, similar to the one in Sparwood

Cranbrook sign, similar to the one in Sparwood

we saw lots of these goats on the highway

we saw lots of these goats on the highway

coming up to the short tunnel

coming up to the short tunnel

short tunnel

short tunnel

IMGP1849

election sign: Vote for Bush! (as an independent)

election sign: Vote for Bush! (as an independent)

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Two Different Versions of the Same Life

Even though I’ve been on the road now just shy of three years, I’m still only beginning to figure out how I want to full-time.

A recent post by Tioga George led me that conclusion. He’s in southern California right now and having a hard time finding a place to spend the night without getting evicted in the wee hours of the morning. He seems to be having fun playing cat and mouse with the cops and still holds onto his preferred method of full-timing: moving around several times a day.

I thought about that for a while. His idea of spending the day in a prime, scenic, location and then moving to an overnight spot makes sense. I’ve even done that a couple of times.  Then it hit me: I hate packing up the rig to move it, but I love being underway.

I used to have two very different visions for my life. In one I was a homesteader and the other a nomad. RVing really fused those two dreams, but I’m still caught in a tiring dichotomy. When I am parked somewhere for a long spell, I am very glad to be back to an easy life where my toughest decision is what I’m going to make for dinner. But then I get myself back on the road, where every moment is challenging, and I don’t want to stop because I feel so alive.

It’s like mornings. I have a really hard time getting out of bed but once I’m dressed I’m unstoppable. It’s hard for me to build up momentum and once I do it’s important to get it going. Otherwise, I fall back into my old habits and I start to coast through life again. I find myself slowing down as soon as I spend as little as two nights somewhere. Yet, these periods stopped in one place are important since they allow me to do long term projects and really get to know an area.

Another thing that George’s post made me realise is that I pretty much hate driving the rig. I find it very constraining. I love driving both my vehicles separately, but together they take away as much freedom as they provide. So I doubt very much that I will ever succeed in creating my ideal full-timing life with my current setup.

All that pondering aside, I am still more content than I ever dreamt I could be, living, as Froggi Donna would say, my imperfect todays rather than waiting for my perfect tomorrow…

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Playing Hostess

Donna, Ken, and Midnight drove down from Mossleigh this morning to spend the afternoon with me. I’m not accustomed to playing hostess, especially not in the RV, but we made it work. I served up a pasta casserole, a loaf of homemade bread, and some of Jody’s carrot cake. A camping chair worked well for additional seating and we’re all used to eating from our laps so the lack of table was no issue.

Mossleigh isn’t right next door, but it is an easy less than two hour drive, so we’re all as good as neighbours and hope to see a lot of each other this summer. It’s amazing that for all the vastness of our country we still managed to end up in nearly the same spot this summer.