Trip to Edmonton and then on to Portland

Thur. June 14

Well, we began our trip on June 14, leaving Kamloops for Edmonton.  We didn’t plan on leaving home very early, and we didn’t.  We left about noon, and our plan was to travel as far as Valemount, north on the Yellowhead Highway.  Things started out well, but before long we ran into rain.  It rained in various amounts, but pretty much it poured until after Blue River.

We stopped at a gas station at Valemount and filled up, before going another kilometre or so, until we came to IRVin’s RV Park.  We’ve stayed here before, so knew what we were getting.  It is a great place with level, pull-through parking spots.  We didn’t even have to unhitch the trailer, it was so level.

On getting things organized, I was looking at the shower in the trailer, and wouldn’t you know it, the part that goes from the tap up to the shower head, broke off.  So, no showers in the trailer until we were able to find a place to get it fixed.

Fortunately, the showers at IRVin’s are very clean and comfortable, and I was able to shower there the next morning.  After that, it was pack up and take off for Wetaskiwin (the closest spot we were able to get to Leduc.

Fri. June 15

Off we went to Wetaskiwin, leaving Valemount at about 9:00 am.  We drove a lot, and things went well.  We stopped at a pullout in Jasper National Park and had lunch, and then carried on.  We seemed to be going well, and didn’t have to fuel up, even by Edson.  I thought I could make it farther, and we aimed for Entwistle.  Just made it, but it was cheaper to fill up there than anywhere in BC, so it was worth it.

Lion's Campground in Wetaskiwin

Somewhere on the way, Michael sent  us a text saying he was picking Christie up at the airport, which was good for us because we thought we were supposed to do that.  Unfortunately, we wouldn’t have been there on time, so it was much nicer to have him pick her up.
We finally found the Lion’s Club campground in Wetaskiwin, after missing the turn-off and going too far south.  However, when we found it, it was a real nice place – grassy fields and level spots for the trailers.  It was a back in site, but that isn’t too much of a problem (except one of the mirrors on the truck became loose on the trip and I couldn’t see as well as I would have liked.

Christie Sue had already contacted us through a text message, saying she was at Michael and Christie’s place.  They invited us to come over for supper, so once we got settled, we thought we should get going.  It is a long drive to their place in Edmonton, but GPS Jill got us there quite easily.  Pizza was there, and we sat back and ate and visited.  We were tired from the driving, so left somewhat early to go to our trailer and get to bed.  It took about 40 minutes to get there.

Sat. June 16

I had noticed an RV place when we drove down the highway in Wetaskiwin, so the next morning, we got up, had some coffee, and went looking for parts to fix the shower.  Strangely (for us), they had the part we needed, so we purchased it.  Then I had to find an easy-out to get the broken part out of the tap.  That cost almost 4 times as much as the shower part, and I already have a set at home, but they weren’t doing us much good while we were in Alberta.

I had to take the tap off the wall and to get the broken part out, but once I managed that, it was a piece of cake.  The connection leaked a bit, but I realized I had left the washer on the broken part, and once I saw that and put it in the right place, the leak stopped.  Nice to be able to shower again.

We had been invited over to Michael and Christie’s place, so off we went.  Christie Sue had borrowed Michael’s car, and Christie Lee had gone out to the hair dresser, so when we got there, we sat around and talked.  Then Michael got a phone call.  It was Christie Lee asking me to move our truck from in front of her parking spot.  I had guessed wrong.

They had to leave early to get the hall set up for the reception, so we were gone back to the trailer by 3:00.  We drove around a bit, and found where the hall was located (Rollyview), so we knew where to go and how to get there.  GPS Jill is fantastic.

We aimed to get to the hall at about 7:00 pm, and were fashionably late arriving.  I got a text from Michael, just as we got out of the truck in the parking lot.  There was a good crowd there already, and by the time we were introduced to many of the folks, there were at least 100 people there (likely more).  We did a lot of visiting, taking of pictures, and generally enjoying ourselves as Michael and Christie got to celebrate their wedding at this reception.

A dinner was set out, of salads, cold cuts, vegetables and dip, and desserts, and we ate.  It was great.  I ate so much potato and Caesar salad that I couldn’t eat dessert.  I also couldn’t eat any of the wedding cake that had been made and decorated by a friend of theirs.  It was beautiful.

After the dinner, there was some thank you’s from Christie and Michael, and more mingling.  As they began to clear some of the table out of the way, Dawn and I said our good byes and left for the trailer.  We were tired, and had to get back to the trailer before the gate was locked.  We also planned to leave early the next morning for south of Portland, and I already knew it was going to be 3 full days of driving in order to get there on time.

Back to the campsite and into bed by 11:00.  I think we were asleep by 11:05, or at least I was.

Sun. June 17

A Rain Wall in Southern Alberta

We pulled out of Wetaskiwin at about 9:00 am, and headed south on Highway 2A.  It was a great highway; not busy, not too many places we had to slow down, and fairly straight travelling.  Most of it was 4 lanes, and it was easy driving.  At about Red Deer, we went back on the freeway (Hwy 2) and followed it through Calgary and to Fort McLeod.  There we turned left and went towards the border crossing at Sweet Grass, Montana.

The US customs official was quite friendly.  We didn’t have to take a tour through the trailer, or put up with any unfriendly attitude, and off we went.

Things were pretty flat and boring, but we hadn’t been there before so it was nice to have a look.  There was a lot of wind, and at one time, a car passed us and the lady in the passenger seat was pointing at our roof.  I pulled over, and it appears that the wind was unrolling our awning (I told you it was blowing.  The wind was from the west and directly onto the side of the trailer).  We made for the nearest exit off the freeway (about 10 more minutes) and pulled off so we could point the other direction and get the awning rolled back in.

I wrapped a bungee cord around the end, hoping it would stop it from unrolling.  It didn’t, and about 40 minutes later, Dawn noticed it unrolling again.  I looked again for another exit from the freeway, and one showed up about 10 minutes later.  We pulled off and again turned facing the other direction so the wind was on the other side of the trailer.  I was stumped, and we had a tough time getting it to loosed up so we could re-roll it.  A fellow stopped and offered help, but I didn’t know what was wrong, although I suspected that the clutch for locking the roller up or down had been stripped.  So I thanked him for the offer, but couldn’t figure out how he could help.  Finally we were able to get it loosened and back in.  I bungeed it again, and put one on the other side, too.  Thank goodness I take our short step stool with us when we travel, so I could reach the top of the awning roller.  After that, things went well, and it didn’t unroll again.

Dick's RV Park, Great Falls

Our goal was to make it to Great Falls, Montana, and we pulled in at about 7:00.  We found a very nice RV park, Dick’s RV Park, they had room for us for the night – didn’t even have to unhook the trailer.

Mon. June 18

This morning, I called a mobile RV repair person recommended by the park, but he couldn’t even look at it before the late afternoon.  So, we tried an RV dealer in Great Falls.  He agreed with my assessment about the roller, but wouldn’t be able to look at it that day, and likely that week.  He indicated that lots of people did exactly what I had done and either used bungees or Velcro straps to hold the roller closed.

 One part of a prop for a wind turbine.

Again, we left town, heading south.  I hoped to make it as far as Boise, but with the continual wind, wasn’t able to get our speed up above 60 mph.  Of course the truck was working really hard, and we went through gas like crazy.  About 4:00, we knew we weren’t going to make Boise, so aimed for Twin Falls (which is about 2 hours before Boise).  Finally we were almost to Twin Falls when we saw an RV site that looked pretty good.  We pulled in, they had room, and we set up.  I only had to lift the trailer tongue in order to level things, so it was a pretty easy setup, once again.  It was after 8:00 pm by this time, and we ate, and then sat around for a while before going to bed.

Tues. June 19

Lunch at a Rest Area

Similar to Kamloops

We had to be to Champoeg (pronounce Sham-poo-ey) Heritage Park south of Portland that day, so got an earlier start (8:30 am).  It was another long drive, but the wind through Montana and travelling south in Idaho, had calmed, and we were able to make good time.  The terrain was similar to Kamloops for the Idaho and first part of Oregon, and the further west we went, the more similar it became to around Kamloops and Cache Creek.

However, things changed when we began the Columbia Gorge.  First the wind started to blow directly in our face, and then later, the vegetation became more lush and thick.  It became similar to Blue River or Salmon Arm.  The wind continued, which again, sucked the gas out of our tanks and we went through a lot this day, too.

GPS Jill finally recognized where we could find Champoeg Heritage area, and then took us there.  We did end up having to drive south on I-5 for a ways, around the end of rush hour in Portland.  It was quite busy, and there must have been an accident going the other way as traffic was at a standstill on the freeway, heading north.

Our Site at Champoeg

Well, finally she got us to Champoeg, and when we pulled in, we found the Bailey’s.  Faith had made the reservations, and our place was basically across the road from their site.  This was a very nice park; paved roads, paved, level sites, power and water.  There are bathrooms there with showers, so we didn’t have to use the trailer shower to get clean.  We visited with Baileys that evening for a while, but we were tired, and didn’t stay up too late.

Wed. June 20

We thought a day sitting around and resting would be good for us, so we generally stayed at the site.  Bailey’s went off on a bike ride for a few hours, and we had to find a store to do some shopping as we had basically used up all our food.

Later on in the afternoon, we played a game that Baily’s had brought.  It was called bolaball, and you had to throw bolo balls and try to wrap them around horizontal bars to get point.  It was the boys against the girls, and it was a spirited contest.  The weather was great, and we were pretty hot.

Then back to our trailer for supper, and then we played $1.35 after supper.  Dawn and I basically lost our money to Faith.  Al says that she is too lucky, but she says that she has too much skill.  We played a couple games, but Dawn and I mostly lost.

Then off to our place so we could get some sleep.

Thur. June 21

"Spruce Goose"

Today, our plan was to head to the Evergreen Airplane Museum, where Howard Hughes “Spruce Goose” is housed.  I needed new tires for our truck, and on our way to the museum, Dawn and I stopped at a Les Schwab to get a quote.  I figured we would be back in the afternoon to get them, and tried to make an appointment, but the lady told me we didn’t have to make an appointment.  It is first come, first served, and our wait would likely be about 40 minutes.

In Front of a Plane Used in VietNam

Well, as you can imagine, we spent a lot more time at the museum than we thought, but it was time well worth spending.  We really enjoyed the exhibits – tons of different types of airplanes, including old biplanes, rockets, space craft, military jets of all sorts, passenger planes both old and newer, and of course, the “Spruce Goose”.  We didn’t leave until 5:00, and I figured we wouldn’t be back before the tire store was closed.  So, I planned for the next morning.

X-15 Spy Plane

Mah Johng that evening, but I am not a great fan of this game – too much thinking and strange rules for me.

Fri. June 22

Up somewhat early so we could go and get the tires put on.  Got to Les Schwab’s at about 9:00 am and ordered the tires.  They had internet access for customers, so once I got the password, I was able to do some banking and move some money around.  I uploaded some pictures to SugarSync and gave Michael access to them.  They were photos from the reception, so hopefully they will enjoy them.

Once we paid for the tires, we left, looking for a place to eat breakfast and for Camping World, an RV place.  Well, we headed in the direction of Camping World and came upon a restaurant named The Homestead.  We decided to give it a try and went in.  It was a fairly nice place and we had a good breakfast.

Next, we had to find Camping World, but I couldn’t find it on the GPS.  We knew we were in the vicinity, but were not too sure of the location.  We got back on I-5 and headed north.  Nothing within 5 miles, so we exited the freeway to turn the other direction.  After about 7 miles, we found it just off the freeway.  Then we had to get to it, but that wasn’t too hard.

Went in and did some shopping.  There is a lot of “stuff” in the store, and I was quite happy to walk around and look.  Many things could have been purchased, but I didn’t want to put more money into the trailer, so held off.  I did have to see if we could find a latch for our big window in the kitchen area, but they didn’t have anything what I needed.

Then I noticed the time, and figured we needed to get back to Champoeg.  It was 12:15 and check-out time was 1:00.  We hurried back and met Bailey’s pulling out, just as we pulled in.  We told them we would be to Silver Spur RV Park in Silverton, as quickly as we could.
We were pretty quick, but a little late leaving.  We were out by 1:20 pm, and after visiting the sani-dump, we were off.  Well, GPS Jill took us directly there, but it was by a back route with lots of twists and turns.  Interesting, but I couldn’t re-trace the route if I had a map.

Silverton RV Park is a great place, and we are parked right beside the Bailey’s.  There is internet access here, but the signal is so weak at our trailer, I can’t get online.  However, I’m sure if I go to the office area, the signal will be plenty strong enough.  That means I can put this up on the internet tomorrow.

Bailey’s went out shopping in the afternoon, and after we set up, we sat back and relaxed.  For supper we had appies at the Bailey’s trailer.  We took a couple and they made a couple and we visited, ate, and played $1.35.  An enjoyable time.