Hiking And Driving

We got up pretty early this morning and the greeting from Mother Nature was fantastic.  You just can't wake up to a more beautiful morning when she is in all her glory.

After breakfast we put on our shorts, hiking boots and grab our gear and left the trailer behind as we went out to the Icicle Ridge Trail.  I had read about this trail and it sounded like it would be good for us.  1800 feet in 2.5 miles didn't seem like a lot on paper or in my mind.  It is obvious that there is something wrong with my mind.  Let me just say that the trail beat us this trip.  According to others we ran into we had made it a little more than half way up when my ego stepped out of the way and I was reminded that I still need to go back down.  We met several people who walk it daily so we were aware of where we were on the trail when we turned back.  It was beautiful and when I am in better shape we will be back.  I think Mia had a little left but I suspect she wouldn't have made it all the way either.

After returning to the trailer and having a bite of lunch we were off again.  This time we took a road trip through the fields around Leavenworth.  Then we went to Cashmere to get Mia's favorite candy, Aplets and Cotlets.  She was a happy camper.

The weather is changing.  We have heard that Seattle and the west side are getting enormous amounts of moisture.  Here on the east side of the mountains it is still nice, but getting cloudy and cooling down.  We are supposed to get rain overnight so we will see what Mother Nature will have for us tomorrow morning.

We had dinner and I went down by the river to take some more pictures.  All in all a very nice day with the girls.  We met some of the other campers in the park and enjoyed visiting.

Hope everyone is well.

Thanks for stopping by.

KOA Customer Service And Day One In Leavenworth

We left Gold Bar before eight in the morning on Friday and headed over Highway 2 and the Stevens Pass area.  We stopped a few times along the way to just enjoy the day.  While at one of our stops I noticed the front tire on the driver side of the trailer seemed a little warmer than than the other.  Further inspection found that the tire was down several pounds in air pressure when compared with the other tires on the trailer so I got out my portable air compressor and decided to inflate it.

Easier said than done.  Upon further examination my portable compress has about enough hose and electrical connection to reach from the cab of the truck to the rear tires on the truck and certainly not the additional ten feet to the trailer tires.  Since this compressor uses a portable power source similar to a cigarette lighter (remember those?) I had to think for a moment to come up with one I could use. Our trailer has an emergency window on the driver side and right above that window is a power outlet, for God knows what, next to an additional outlet and connection for a second television in case we become to blind to see the one over the dinette more than half way across the trailer.  I removed the screen, opened the window, fed the electrical through to the power outlet and presto I had power for the compressor which did a nice job of inflating my low tire.  I missed it at the park because we park on gravel and it is hard to tell if a tire has an issue until you move the trailer and drive it a few miles.  Problem solved and we were back on the road to Leavenworth.

Upon arrival we went straight to the Safeway store so Mia could shop for the stuff we left home yesterday when we left for Gold Bar.  While she did that, I took Honey for a walk around the parking lot and took some pictures.

The KOA campground is called Pine Village and it is straight across from the Safeway on River Bend Road.  A very nice, rather large campground with many different configurations to suit just about anyone.  When making my reservation I noted that they have a dump site so I chose a site with water and electric and didn't really pay much attention to the picture of the site on line.  There was some confusion with my two night for the price of one coupon so the young lady manning the desk told me to go on into the site and come back later for the manager to take care of the charges.  She sent me to site T7 but when we got there, someone was occupying what appeared to be a tent site that certainly wasn't going to work for my 26' Nash.  I went back to the office and after some discussion and a guided tour of some of the lots with a very nice young lady (sorry, I didn't get her name) we decided on three different lots that looked like they would definitely work for us.  When we got back to the office we discovered that they were indeed available for the weekend so we set me up in a new site.

Since the manager still wasn't in, I would have to come back and check in.  We went to the site, set up the trailer, had some lunch and went out to take Honey for a short walk and investigate the site a little more.  They have all the goodies you could want.  Pool, hot tub, cable TV, internet, barbecue in each lot, showers, restrooms, game rooms and kids play area.  It is a very nice park and we were even happier when we learn our son and his family were coming to visit us on Sunday.  I went down to the office to check in and found another very nice young lady (sorry didn't get her name) who was the manager.  She knew about the coupon but had not set it up in the computer so that it would work for the girls at the desk.  We joked about how it worked when the first girl tried it.  It actually was going to let me camp for two nights and get $55.00 back.  But all was fixed and we got registered and paid the bill, which I don't feel was unreasonable at all for all the benefits.  These young ladies were absolutely fantastic and I made sure the manager knew it.

We went into Leavenworth and then up Icicle Road to see where we are going to hike tomorrow.  After driving several miles we determined that we were lost and turned around.  After arriving back at the trailer I discovered that we missed a turn off that was only 1.4 miles up the road.  I got some nice pictures.  Isn't nature wonderful.

Time for a nice quiet night.

Hope all is well and thanks for stopping by.

Cleaning And Enjoying Spring Weather

Took a morning walk throughout the neighborhood and ended up on the power line trail that runs from Celebration Park to our pool facility around 4 miles.  Honey and I enjoy a partial walk of this trail and the beautiful day that was all around us.

When I got home I broke out my trusty pressure washer and washed and scrubbed our front porch and back deck.  Both items are the responsibility of the the owner of the particular unit.  There had been a lot of pollen this year and both were covered with it and the area where we walk had gone from the light grey color we are supposed to have to almost black in places.  I had to use a pretty stiff brush to get the job done.  Of the four porches on our building ours does stand out.

I went to Sumner RV in the afternoon and ordered some screen clips.  One of the screens in the trailer had pulled out and somehow we lost one clip and broke another so the screen wouldn't hold.  While I was there I ordered a set of locks for the compartments that use a key like a vending machine.  I was surprised to learn that just about anyone can open our compartments with their key as the manufacturers apparently don't care about security of their storage compartments and most use the same key configuration.  Live and learn.

Later, Mia and I went to the Rhododendron store.  The same lady has owned this place for years and it is huge with hundreds of choices.  I took pictures of some of her personal ones in a park like setting.  It is a beautiful place.  We bought two to take with us to the trailer.  We have an issue up there that I talk about in a later blog.

We pack up and head out for Gold Bar this morning.  I won't be updating the blog over the weekend unless the KOA park in Leavenworth has wireless internet.

Be safe and thanks for stopping by.

Two Week Anniversary

As of yesterday I have been retired two weeks.  It doesn't feel like two weeks and to be perfectly honest, I don't feel like I am retired yet.  We have had a lot to do over the past few days since returning home from the trailer and I sat Monday wondering how we accomplished all of it while we were working.

Yesterday began with the customary morning walk with Honey but it was once around the block and that was it.  Mia took her on the long walk.  Mia had mentioned a loose toilet seat so I fixed it while they were gone and went down to restart the detailing process on the truck.  I worked most of the morning on cleaning and washing the exterior of the truck which began looking like this.

I washed it and cleaned everything, or at least that is what I thought.  The final result after waxing was very nice.

Except for the minor flaw I found on the right rear quarter panel.  It appears someone swiped it as they left a parking area and scratched it down to the primer.

I try very hard to keep my stuff nice and I understand it is a utility vehicle but this person knew they did this and never stopped to say anything.  Obviously just drove off.

Mia left to get a haircut and mention something about the toilet I fixed not flushing as she ran out the door.  I went up and looked at it and found the chain had come off the handle rod.  So tightening the seat early caused this?  Now I understand what technicians feel when they fix brakes and the customer comes back complaining of poor running and feels we should pay to repair the engine because we just did the brakes.

Got a haircut and spent some time in local parts houses looking for a Jerry Can and Mount for the back of my trailer but could find nothing.  I bought this cool little inverter generator for the trailer a couple of weeks ago at Costco and I want to carry extra fuel, just not in the truck.  So the search will be up to Google.

There are countless projects to do around the condo and since the weather is supposed to be really nice I'll be choosing a couple and trying to accomplish them.  Then we pack it all up and head back up to the trailer for our trip to Leavenworth.  I suspect we will leave tomorrow morning for Gold Bar, spend the night and leave Friday morning.  I am looking forward to it.  We have a couple of hikes already planned.

Hope everyone is well and thanks for stopping by.

Fossil Update, Screens and Spring

Honey and I took our normal morning hike around the neighborhood yesterday.  I am not sure who is walking who.  She is on some kind of timer that gets her up at 7 a.m. and she is ready to go at 7 a.m.  

She does a little stretching exercise and off we go.

She keeps looking back to make sure I am with her even though we are tethered.  As we hiked I noticed that Spring is indeed arriving in Seattle.  As you can see we had a sunny day yesterday with temperatures in the high 50's, low 60's.  It was beautiful as we walked through the neighborhood.

We had a lot of shopping to do yesterday and we succeeded in completing all of it.  We got the new chairs for the trailer from IKEA, looked at Tuff sheds as a possible gazebo, hit Costco and the grocery store and went to the bank.  We also went to the Fossil store.

In an early post I told you about the Fossil watch I received from on of the manufacturers that the dealership I worked for had represented.  It is a very nice looking watch but unfortunately it didn't work.  According to the instructions in the can it was a self winding watch that only required winding if it had set for a long period of time so I followed the instructions and wound it.  Nothing…It didn't move.  We went to Fossil in Southcenter yesterday and a very nice and patient young lady took care of me.  It appears the watch had set for sometime before being given to me and the battery (yep, not a self winder) had died.  I happily spent $10.95 for her to install a new battery and make it work.  Not only does it look good on my arm, it tells time.  I remember these from before smart phones.

I contacted Northwood Manufacturing yesterday about an obscure little clip I need to hold the screen into the window near the dinette in the trailer.  I haven't heard back, but I searched Google and could come up with anything that looked quite like this.

I am hoping I will hear from them today.

After all the shopping yesterday and while Mia was fixing dinner I went down into the garage and decided it was spring cleaning time for the truck.  Because we have Honey the interior of the truck can take along time if you really try to dispose of the vast majority of the hair.  I vacuumed and vacuumed, brushed and picked, until I didn't see the point any longer.  I cleaned everything including the heater vent grilles, dash, door panels, glass, seats and carpets.  I didn't get to the rubber floor mats.  The inside of the truck looks pretty good and I'll attack the outside and those rubber mats today.  

I can't help but wonder, how the heck did we get all this stuff done when we were working?

Hope everyone is well and thanks for stopping by.

Tornados and Fossil

I awoke this morning to news that tornados had ravaged mid America.  The first image I saw was a picture of a recreational vehicle park or lot where overturned trailers lay in the path of destruction.  I certainly hope and pray for the victims of this awful tragedy.

When I retired one of the manufacturers that our store represents brought me a beautiful gold watch made by Fossil with a nice leather band.  I am not a watch guy but this watch is very attractive and while the manufacturer logo is on the dial it is very unobtrusive.  Unfortunately it doesn't work.  I followed the instructions to get the self winding unit started and nothing.  I checked with Fossil and they told me the exact same set of instructions that I had already tried.  I am going to take it in to the Fossil store today and I believe they told me three to four weeks and it would be mailed back to me.  I think it is just a case of the watch sitting around too long.

Today is a shopping day and we have a list a mile long starting with the Fossil store, IKEA, groceries, Costco, Sumner RV and the list goes on.  So we will be out and about most of the day.

Hope everyone is well and thanks for stopping by.

Final Decompression

It is Friday morning the next to the last day of this stay at the trailer.  We don't have much planned today but one thing on our list this trip was going up the to Stevens Pass summit to hike a trail built from the old Great Northern Railroad bed.  It is cold, but there is no rain and the weather appears to be breaking, at least for now.  We load up our gear and head up the mountain.  Apparently this trail is flat and easy enough for an old man with knock knees to walk.  There are three trail heads, two are accessible from Highway 2.  While we didn't plan it, we ended up at the Martin Creek Trail head and using the lower grade trail we walked roughly two miles down towards the Interpretive Center.  Our walk took us just past mile mark 1719.

This is an impressive trail.  The volunteers who worked on this road bed did a fantastic job of bringing together a walk in the forest with the history of the rails that crossed the Cascades in the early years.  There are real remnants of the old tunnels and some objects laying around.  We thoroughly enjoyed our trip on this trail.  Less than 100 years ago this was an active rail.  Tunnels overgrown with vegetation as nature takes back what is hers.  It is a walk into the past.  A time when men by the sweat of their brow and the strength of their backs dug tunnels, dropped trees, cleaned brush, prepared a road bed, laid ties, put down rail and added ballast. 

One of the quotes you read as you walk the trail is from James J Hill, founder and CEO of the Great Northern Railway, Empire Builder.  It states, "I will make my mark on the face of the earth and no man will ever wipe it out."  He forgot about mother nature who made this road bed an extremely dangerous way to cross the Cascades and it was eventually left as another, safer route was found.  The history of this route is available in a PDF file at http://www.irongoat.org/guidebk.html

We intend to walk the whole trail in the coming months.  

I'll let some of the pictures speak for themselves.