On the Road Again -- this time in the U.S.

Day 1 – Carson City to McCloud

Sunday we slept in until about 6:00 a.m. and then went about getting ready to leave on our much anticipated cross-country adventure. We had spent the previous two days intensively finishing up the loading phase of our thirty-foot Tioga motorhome. I had spent several weeks figuring out just what should be brought along in the basement area of the coach. Things like wooden blocks to aid in the leveling at camp sites, tools for (hopefully) any occasion, and water and sewer hoses and attendant fittings, as well as more mundane things like folding chairs and a table, firewood, and a ladder to aid in extending the awning. For the two days before our departure, we had concentrated on a bit more cleaning and then packing our clothes and all the needed groceries and other supplies that would allow us to survive on the road.

It has been at least two decades since Concetta and I have been camping and, for me, well over forty-five years since I had been RVing. When I was teenager, my parents had begun traveling the west in a Ford pickup and a small, borrowed, aluminum travel trailer. I think it could not have been more than twenty feet long and was perhaps even shorter. I remember it as a sort of aquamarine and white, in stark contrast to Dad’s 1963 red and white Ford Pickup.

Because stretch cab pickups had not been invented yet, Dad had fashioned an aluminum canopy over the pickup bed and, for seating, acquired an old brown and cream-colored Studebaker front seat where brother Cliff and I would ride as we wandering the byways of the six or seven western states. Here Cliff would sleep and I would be studying each and every passing rustic town, farmstead, and roadside attraction. At that time I was absolutely addicted to western Americana. Dad seldom stopped but I took in as much as I could from the bed of the pickup. Actually, I didn't mind being out in the open air at all. I got to see more, I think, than I would have in the cab. Cliff and I even slept under the canopy at night.

Our current adventure finally began just after 10:00 a.m. as we headed north on Hwy 395 through Reno and on toward Susanville, California. The drive was through mile after mile of farm and ranch lands, punctuated only occasionally by civilization. The truck ran as smooth as glass and despite that fact that we had loaded it with every possible thing we might need, in every possible situation, it still pulled the hills with ease at 55 to 60MPH. We never tried to do more that about 65 miles per hour so as to afford us easy stopping should trouble crop up. By around 4:30 p.m. we reached McCloud and Concetta directed to the campsite she had picked out for us, a wonderful park-like facility with spaces for nearly a hundred RVs. Our camping experience was about to begin in earnest.

Concetta eased us into the evening with some vodka and cranberry juice cocktails, some cheese, salami and crackers, and a couple of comfortable chairs beneath a spreading Ash Tree. It has been a long, long haul getting to this vacation and as we sat there and clinked our (plastic) wine goblets we toasted our success. Both of us had been hired for the legislative session which mandated us starting work back in late 2010 and, for me, working through June. Concetta worked even longer, right up to last Thursday, so the coming of the road trip was especially long-awaited for her.

Dinner that first night turned out to be steak, though the RV park we chose in McCloud did not have barbecue grills so the steaks had to be cooked in the RV.
After dinner and dishes Concetta insisted that I produce the Scrabble game so we could have our usual contest played in the glow of the Coleman lantern. Miraculously, we weren’t bothered by any bugs though during our steak dinner about a dozen yellow jackets came calling. This didn’t prove to be a problem since I had purchased a bug and fly zapper that looks sort of like a badminton racket. The device runs on a couple AA batteries and actually electrocutes any flying pests if they touch it. Most of them were not inclined to touch my murder machine but after some coaxing they were quickly dispatched and dinner proceeded as before.

After the Scrabble game it was back to the RV for some much needed showers and then to bed. This was the first time, of course, that we had tried out the shower and to our relief it works fine. We had intended all along to take the RV out on a dry run for a day or two to make sure everything worked, but alas, there simply wasn’t time.

The Tioga has turned out to be quite comfortable. I’m so glad that I held out for a unit with the built-in banquette seating. Since we’re not traveling with a group of people we can leave the table set up for the banquette.

The following day, Monday, we once again got rolling around 10:00 as we made our way up I5 toward Portland and a rendezvous with my long-time hiking and traveling buddy, Charles Seims. Charles has a cute little bungalow filled with antique electric trains and other antiques and a garage full of antique autos. He and I have known each other since we were kids together in Altadena and enjoy many of the same interests.

It was kind of a long haul to Portland since we started so late so we didn't really stop for any site-seeing. We rolled up to Charles' door about dusk and then walked down the street to his favorite local restaurant for some truly wonderful Italian food and a glass of wine. After dinner, Charles and I reminisced until late over bottles of Corona and then, thanks to the wine and the beer, I had a wonderful nights sleep. This morning, after a short tour of the neighborhood in Charles' 1964 poppy-red Mustang, we hit the road once more. I think that this is the point that our adventure really begins because now we don't really have anywhere we have to be at any specific time. We just rolled off the freeway here in Washington State and once I update this blog we're headed west to the Pacific. We're going to try and stick to the secondary roads and I'll be including photographs on a regular basis. The remote connection device that I purchased to provide me with the Internet seems to connect but won't allow me on line -- at least yet. Not sure what's wrong, but I'm typing this in McDonalds over a crispy chicken sandwich and a pretty darn nice cup of coffee. So, until later, I'll say ciao.