Mexico Trip 2013-2014, Off to a good start. Finally!

Sunday, October 27th Leaving Victoria.


Odometer reading: 94,723 Km

Since we have had spectacular weather  at home the delays had not been too hard to take. Still nice weather but now noticeably cooler. We had parked the rig in front of the house to make it easier to load and to be
level for the fridge. Art's back was making progress but was still very sore if he moved around too much. Of course this left most of the work to Gillian (even more than usual) but her tennis elbow slowed her down a lot too! Did we mention Art's concussion? Trekker's worrying blood work? That too delayed things! (Trekker is fine as is Art, though Trekker's treatment was by far the most expensive.)

We tried to knock off Saturday evening to have a quiet hour or two, but still managed to interrupt our rest by finding a few more things to do. We finally called it a night about 11:00pm

Up at 6:00 AM. Still a lot of thing to do before we leave, quite a lot of stuff to be loaded and put away, finish tidying the kitchen, move our bedding from the house to the motorhome etc etc etc. But ready to leave about 7:30, Gillian first with dogs in the Jeep and Art about 10 minutes behind, waiting for the air pressure to come up then putting away the leveling blocks the rig had been parked on in the driveway.

Gillian arrived in the Jeep at the Coho at 08:30 for the 10:20 sailing. When Art arrived some 10 minutes later he found the Jeep park on the street. The ferry was full, we had not made reservations.

We could enter the lot at 10:30 after the ferry had departed. At least we had time for a leisurely breakfast across the street and will have time for nice leisurely dog walks and a leisurely lunch since we don't have to be back in the vehicles until 2:30 for immigration. We sail at 4:00 PM.

The good news is that the sun is shining and the Blackball Ferries have free wifi. The bad news is they had the motorhome park in the shade of large trees so no solar and we'll need the propane for heat, it's only 12 C outside. We also took the opportunity to take a few photos of our beautiful city harbour.

Beautiful weather for the middle of October. Seems we're off to a good start with the Blog Fodder material too.

Starting the engine ready to depart the Ferry, Art noted that the air pressure had dropped quite a bit more than usual. He had noted that previously that when parked for several hours the air pressure would drop more that he thought normal. On asking a friend with the same rig this summer, it appeared that it was perhaps a bit more than his, but not a big problem. Likely a very slow leak somewhere. Now Art decided he better keep a good eye on the air loss and perhaps have it looked at before we cross into Mexico. The problem is there are many places where there could be a small leak and some of them are very difficult (expensive and/or time consuming) to access, like removing the bed. Did I say something about Blog Fodder?

Off  the ferry, Gillian was through customs in seconds and set off for Safeway for the groceries we're not allowed to bring across the border. Art and the motorhome were selected for Agriculture Inspection so he had to pull off alongside the road. No problems, we know what not to bring across after all these years, therefore the grocery stop.

We met up again at Safeway fuel pumps where the motorhome took on a load of fuel then we hooked up  the  Jeep and were away at 7:10 PM. We should have been tucked in for the night by this time. Oh well, only a few hours down the 101 to Olympia and the weather was still pretty good.

It was a pleasant drive, other than a bit of wind, the gusts buffeted us around a bit but it wasn't unsafe. We were more concerned with the branches blowing off the trees--some of them were a couple of inches in diameter and ten or 12 feet long and could do considerable damage to the Jeep, especially the soft top, and to the solar panels on the roof of the motorhome.

The gusty areas came an went, and when we thought we were through the worst of it we saw in the distance a lot of flashing red and blue lights. As we got closer we could see a good collection of emergency vehicles and a couple of work trucks. We were directed into a parking lot and along a frontage road back to the highway. As we passed we could see what all the commotion was about. There was a white sedan that appeared to be nestled in the upper branches of a large tree that had fallen across the road. It seemed that the car had driven into the downed tree. As we passed through the parking lot we could see an obviously distraught woman being comforted by others.

The weather calmed down shortly afterwards and eventually we joined the I 5 at the south end of Olympia. A few miles later pulled off into the Maywood Rest Area at just after 10:00 PM. As Gillian walked past the front of the rig she asked "Where is this water coming from?" It appeared to be dripping from the dash air heater. Art dipped a finger in it to sniff for coolant but there was so much crap from the road surface he couldn't be sure it was not. Checking the coolant expansion tank showed it not at the full hot mark, but at least not empty. It would have to be checked in the morning when cold.

 Thankfully, we had a carton of frozen homemade pasta sauce in the freezer so dinner was quick and easy. We didn't even bother with the satellite dish. The TV news could wait at least another day!

Odometer: 94,995 Km

Monday

Twelve hours later we were rolling south again. The coolant seemed low but OK, the water drip had disappeared. We'll keep and eye out and pickup some coolant as soon as feasable.

20 minutes later we spied an RV and Truck Repair service alongside the I 5 so took the next exit and circled back. Confirmed "leak" to be condensation from the heater which activates the AC when on window defrost. Added the better part of a gallon of coolant to the reservoir and carried on. A little annoyed at my self for not checking the coolant lever sooner, and for the shop for not doing it when ti was in for service.


The weather continued to be acceptable so at Portland we turned East on the I 84. Our route would take us along the scenic Columbia River Valley, through Idaho and into Utah. As you can see the weather was great, except for fairly strong headwinds. The fuel was going to suffer. We usually cruise at about 100 Km/H (60+) which keeps the engine revs at about 1650 rpm.

We stopped for lunch at the first Rest Area on the I 84 (mm 49). Art took another quick peek at the dash heater just to be sure! As he reached in he felt air blowing on his wrist. THE AIR LEAK! A valve that feeds a small air tank that operates the step cover was leaking! Now we just need to keep our eyes open for another convenient Truck Stop! 

As you can see the weather continued bright and sunny though it was cold, I think only once did the temperature get over 12C.


We fueled just past Pendleton at about 5:30 and decided not to push on any further. Across the street was the Wildhorse Casino, RVs welcome to park over night. They also had a full service RV Park aroumd the back but we didn't need water or power, the parking lot was fine.

Odometer: 95,500 Km



I was going to post some more but there is an episode of Frost on the TV that I haven't seen. Post a comment if you see this and know what I am talking about!


 Tuesday morning a slow start--this is getting to be a habit! On the road at 9:55 and were soon grinding up hill, reaching  Deadman Pass, 1100 meters, 20minutes later. On the way up we noted in passing a Rest Area that was not level enough for a comfortable night.  Continuing on up with the occasional downgrade we reached the 1275 meter summit still in the clear, cold (2C)  weather but a lot of cloud to the east and west. And the snow was getting a little too close for comfort.

An hour after leaving the casino we stopped at La Grande Freightliner to have the air valve looked at. The service desk said they could get someone on it today, maybe 20 minutes, maybe a few hours. A after waiting around a while we decided to head off for some grocery shopping.

We started the Jeep. . . and the low tire pressure light came on! A check showed both right side tires at  37 pounds and both left side tires at 32 pounds. Spec is 35 so we carried on into town. On the way was a Les Schwab Tire shop! We made a note to stop by after lunch.

Shopping done, except for the blue cheese and brie that we were short of we were ready for lunch. We have found in the USA that except in the larger centers, decent cheese, like decent bread, is hard to get. The supermarket had a nice deli however so lunch was clam chowder and turkey and cranberry sandwiches and a coffee from Starbucks.

At the tire shop the tech said that the warning light may have been the temperature differential but it usually took more than that. We hoped that it wasn't the spare--that would have entailed removing the bike and the tire cover to check--and got lucky. Airing up all 4 tires to a few pounds over spec( less wear when towing) and we were good to go.


Back at Freightliner the rig was done with a nice new shiny brass shut off valve. Much nicer than the original. The system had been tested; NO MORE LEAKS!

2:45 PM we are under way again having covered so far, only 49 kilometers. In one hour!

Half an hour later we crossed the 45th parallel. We are making progress!  Then we changed Time Zones, we are now on Mountain Time so Art's watch is an hour slow. If we wait until Sunday it will be right again when Daylight Saving Time ends. As we dropped a little in elevation we came into some high plains country.

 Finally at 6:30 we had had enough and booked into the Ambassador RV park, just into Idaho.

Odometer 95,815 

 Wednesday

Must have been tired as we were up and running at 11:00 AM! The weather was changing, a few threatening clouds in the distance and sometimes not so distant! We took a couple of short Pee breaks and a half hour lunch break trying to make up for the late start.

Then came the end of I 84 and take the I 15 south through Salt Lake City. In the photo I 15 runs from left to right at the foot of the mountains ahead. Yes, we noted the snow.


We had been hoping to get past Salt Lake City and overnight well south of there which would mean we could make Bluff, in southeast Utah the next day. However, as we approached the city Art realised that pushing on a few more hours in the dark wouldn't be worth the effort or risk.




6:20 PM (Mountain Time) after a quick fuel stop at a Flying J we arrived at the Pony Express RV Park just off the 215 Bypass.  The Flying J and the RV Park are at exit 28 on the same cross road on opposite sides of the freeway. Also relatively cheap fuel. The Pony Express is a very nice clean and spacious park but unfortunately the free wifi wasn't worth any more than what we paid for it.

Besides just relaxing we had a some laundry to do. Gillian had trouble with the number pad lock so Art jumped in to help :)

How We $pent Our Summer Vacation Part 3

Portugal! 

(Trying to finish this bit before I have to start our 2013 Mexico Trip posts!--we leave in less that two weeks)

Our wake up call early enough--at about 3:45 AM if I recall correctly.

Down in the lobby at 4:10 we joined quite a large group waiting for the shuttle which ran every 15 minutes. We were cutting things a bit fine a bit fine as we thought an hour before flight time would be enough time at this time of morning, our flight was due to depart at 5:30!

By the time the bus waited around for late arrivals it was almost 4:30 by the time we left the hotel. We arrived at the airport to find a very busy departure lounge. Fortunately we travel with out checked baggage and were able to use the automated boarding pass system and when one of the officials spotted Art's stick he opened another lane and we bypassed at least 30 people in line for security!

Then the computer and liquids had to be inspected, belt removed (happily Art was able to keep his pants held up); we finally had everything back together and set off for the gate. We loaded and took off on time and arrived in Germany for our plane change for Portugal.

So much for being easier in Europe: We have never seen such an unorganised mess. Art had asked for wheel chair assistance since the long walk between gates is difficult and slow for him. This meant however that since the cart couldn't negotiate the stairs we could not use the intransit area and had to leave the secure area and go back through security once again--at the other end of the airport! We then had to catch a bus (waiting especially for us) and driven airside around, it seemed, three sides of the airport runways back to the side we had started from. We pulled up to the plane which had had the ramp retracted already and was ready to pull away! The bus driver said "Oh Oh!" and went to talk to the ground crew. A few minutes later the stairs were pushed back in place and we were allowed to board.

We took off a bit late but were able to make up time and landed in sunny Faro at 9:45.

We picked up the rental car without any fuss and set off for the freeway north. We managed to miss a turn or two--detours! Then at one point we relised it would be easier to back up a few feet that go around. . . . and Art couldn't find how to put it in reverse! No owner's manual, but after a bit of fiddling around discovered that there was a lever to lift on the stickshift.

The toll freeways were interesting; like the one in Ireland they made full use of transponders and our rental was so equipped. Unlike in Ireland however, we didn't have to worry about how to pay; Avis entered our VISA information and our credit card was charged the correct amount as we passed under transponders! Toll booths at 120 Km/H !  There was one small area to the side where you could stop and pay if your vehicle did not have a transponder.

We headed west on the A22, making a lunch stop as quick tour around of town of Lagos wandering around in and near this area. The street view doesn't seem to cover where we parked or ate our lunch but it was just a bit up the hill from the street view link. Here are a few photos of the area, our lunch stop was the pasteleria on the left.

Lunch was a beer and a cruji coque, similar to a pizza with a hard crust. Note the cutting tool supplied! Very good.

Part of the old City Wall, on the way back up the hill to the car park.

Then onwards to Salema, where we were lucky to find on street parking in front of the Hotel Residencial Salema. Close to the beach and great restaurants, and the deciding factor; it had an elevator!


We stayed here three days, made a good dent in local restaurants, could have happily done a few more.

We both agree that Lorenzos had the best food. The fish of the day menu was interesting!

We were told that their cataplana was the best anywhere and we certainly had to agree.

To say that cataplana is a fish stew is like saying that Crepes Suzette are pancakes.

Another night  at another recommended restaurant and were lucky enough to get a table without having a reservation. This time we tried a seafood pasta dish and again very were pleased.  We also about this time began to fall in love with the local vino verde, a young white sometimes frissante wine.

On the way back to the hotel we stopped to watch some young boys playing. It might just have been the vino but we found it very funny!

We detoured into our hotel bar when we noticed it was quite busy. At the bar, enjoying another glass of vino verde, Art commented on the bar towel. He was glad he did because a gentleman sitting around the corner heard him and bought him a Jameson! We went over to join them for an enjoyable hour or so and a few more drinks the up to bed.

For now I've posted this photo here since it was on the notebook, which I find hard to type on. It was taken near the end of  our Portugal trip in the town of Tavira. I'll add more text later when I log on from the laptop.

More to come.

How we $pent Our Summer Vacation; Part Two

Ireland!

Ben, one of my many wonderful nephews, decided to marry a fine Irish Girl by the name of Claire. Of course this was just the excuse we needed for the Irish trip we have been promising ourselves for decades!

Between us we had enough Aeroplan points for the trip. Having heard about the Irish weather we thought that a week of drizzle would be enough (After all, we leave home every fall to avoid this stuff!) so we should book a week somewhere warm or even hot, in order to dry out and toast our bones. The Algarve in Portugal sounded to about perfect!

We lined up Kate, our favourite dog and house sitter and off we went: Air Canada Victoria to Toronto then Toronto to Dublin, where we would arrive at 9:40 AM Irish time. While putting our carryon in the overhead rack on the aircraft at Toronto Art hear Gillian say in a surprised voice "Hi there!" Art turned around to see to his surprise, his niece Phoebe (the groom's sister) with her husband Gordon and baby son Maxwell whom we had never met before! They live in Montreal and were connecting through to Dublin. We managed a nice visit and Art and Maxwell got to know each other a bit.

We had made arrangements to meet Steve, another nephew flying in from Paris, at the Dublin Airport. We would stay at the same hotel in Dublin, tour the city that day then drive in the rental car to the tiny village of Letterfrack, in Connemara. Steve and his cousin had been close friends since childhood and had attended university together. As a surprise for Steve, they hung around at DUB for his flight from Paris to arrive. A great family reunion! 

At the airport we picked up the Avis car and drove the 2 minutes to the hotel, had a much needed shower, changed, and met Steve back in the lobby. We took the city  bus to Dublin city center then bought tickets on the Hop-On-Hop-Off tour bus. Needless to say we hopped off at the Guinness Storehouse!  Here we spent several hours and took the opportunity to learn how to pour (and drink!) the Perfect Pint. We were successful  and each earned a certificate to prove it.

Art discovered that his first and disappointing taste of Guinness many many years ago had not been the best. We would never have ordered one but we were in Dublin for heaven sake, birthplace of his Great Grandfather Patrick! Well as luck would have it, he loved it. It was not as he rememered at all. This could be the start of something!

From the Guinness Storehouse we hoped back on the tour bus back to the center of town and where we hoped to catch the bus back to the hotel. But first a bite to eat. Pizza and beer got the vote! We caught the right bus, but then as it pulled into the airport we discovered that it was the end of the line and our driver was off sift! The next bus would depart in half an hour or so! The hotel was the first stop on the bus route and only short walk but it was a bit convoluted for pedestrians so we called for the hotel's airport shuttle!

Back at the hotel the lobby bar was beckoning. We settled into a couple of comfortable chairs, nursed a couple of Irish Whiskys and headed for our much needed bed. We calculated that bu this time we had been awake for about 31 hours and it was time for bed! We told Steve we would call him when we woke, hopefully 8:30 or so.

We took a couple of melatonin tablets, which Art finds helpful to combat jet-lag, though Gillian not so much.

We slept relatively well, woke up at a good time and met Steve in the restaurant for breakfast. The buffet was very good, even the coffee!

We were soon on the road west. Our GPS guided us out of the city but the signage was very clear. Soon we were westbound on the freeway. This was a toll road with no toll booths! All vehicles had to have transponders. There were cameras to catch those without!. We had been told by Avis, that in order to pay the toll we could stop at any petrol station showing the emblem (which we had forgotten)!  As we drove Steve searched his smart phone and paid the toll on line!

We stayed three days in the Rosleague Manor   . . . . .

where many of the family stayed and in spite of on and off drizzle and some low cloud had a wonderful time. Perhaps the smoked salmon and scrambled eggs for breakfast helped. And of course the Guinness! Not to mention the view from our room (once the clouds lifted).  

And the beautiful brass bed in our room.

The wedding was on Friday afternoon at a small local church . . . .

. . . .


the reception that evening in the  lodge's beautiful dining room.  The dinner was excellent;

  then we adjourned to the lounge for dancing.

Traditional

 And some not so traditional as we were entertained by the groom's younger brother's Break Dance display.

Saturday, the bride and groom decided to have another party in a pub in nearby Clifden! More Guinness!

Sunday was the bride's birthday so yet another party was planned but we had to move on, we only had a few more days.  South in the rain to Tralee in County Kerry to find a B&B. Small room, up a flight of stairs but neat and clean and the place was quite well located. The breakfast was nothing to write home about, but we had been spoiled at the Manor!

We spent two nights at the B&B and one full day driving the Ring of Kerry and the Dingle Peninsula. Both were quite picturesque, but we agree that Dingle was a bit more scenic.

Back to Dublin, we dropped the car back at Avis and took their shuttle to the airport then from there the shuttle to the hotel to check in for the night.

A few photos to come-- they are on the other computer!