My Ain’t It Pretty Up Here

Yes, it was. Sometimes maps can steer you in the wrong direction by not giving you the whole picture. This was the case with Mount Rainier. https://www.nps.gov/mora/index.htm So headed out on 123 we drove past Ohanapecosh Campground, one of the campgrounds we were going to stay at, so we drove through. Spaces were way to small but there was a visitor center, must go shopping. I was having withdrawals! Inside I spoke with a real cool ranger who showed me the way we had planned on going would just skirt the park. I also said I wanted to drive through Mount St Helens https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_St._Helens and take the back way.

Well, the back way was closed due to snow (I have a picture to prove this.) More on that later. We started on our way soon we were in snow fresh snow at that, level at 4000 feet. Reflection lake was not super reflective but I caught a glimpse. Mount Rainier is the most glacierfied Mountain in the lower 48. Well worth the visit, the visitor center at Paradise was open and full of people because the snow was right there. We headed out of the park via Longmire, I was able to get some good pictures. We saw a few blue jays, one deer and an elusive fisher, not many this year. Back to Packwood via a well maintained Forest Service road.

It was late enough to not be able to drive to the main entrance of Mount St Helens so we tried the back way, got as far as the junction of 25 and 99, no view of the mountain. Something to come back for.

BRRRRRRR!!!

I have to post this and I’m sorry to my readers who are suffering through triple digits. When we were driving to our site at La Wis Wis campground in the Gifford Pinchot NF it got down to 38 chilly on June 10th.

I have to say I am glad we took a hook up spot in Pendleton, OR instead of doing free at the Wildhorse Casino. We were able to burn out the new from the heater as we are boondocking. The propane heater did keep us toasty after setting up in the rain. Today our adventure involves heading to Mount St Helen’s Volcanic Memorial and up the road as far as we can get to Mount Ranier.

I will be heading to Alaska in less then a week I’m getting excited, will be practicing today.

The Surprise is Out

for those of you who read the comments know we saw a cow elk yesterday, she was majestic standing in a small clearing on a hill overlooking the freeway. This was one of those days when Roy said you will have beautiful views, (if it were sunny). Like me he jinxes himself by telling me how beautiful things will be. I only need to bring up are trip down the Columbia River Gorge. He used to drive that and you could see the river all the way, when trees are small. I thought I see no river, sheepishly he says trees grow.

That’s ok, I almost made snow magnet happen it was cold and raining a few more degrees and could have happened. Today we head to La Wis Wis campground and exploring Mount St Helens and Mt Ranier. Look for pictures.

There’s A Reason

owner manuals exist. We have an HD antenna on the roof, we also have an HDTv so logic would say you should be able to get “over the air” stations. Key word logic. Neither one of us are up on using these. I assumed you plug the cable from the wall to the tv, switch, the channel setting to air, then scan for channels. I turned on the antenna no lights, no channels came up on scan. I even followed the directions the KOA in Ely had in the hand out. I guess I was missing something. Bottom line no TV in Ely. We are ok not watching tv when there is no cable.

Last night we were in Boise ID and Roy was posting a review on RV Park reviews and read great over the air channels. So now I’m on a mission, I will make this work. I dig up the owner’s manual and sat on the floor to get to the bottom of it. I read that you make sure the cable is going from the wall to the tv, (check). Turn on the antenna control on the ceiling , (check).

Make sure the button on the wall at the cable outlet is on, (not check). I found the button pushed it on, ran a channel scan and like magic I had TV.

So the lesson learned is if it is not working before you go crazy read the instruction manual. We are now checking for TV stations everywhere we stop.

Random Thoughts ……..

I have a few so early in the trip.

Have not seen many A-Frames or pop-ups this year. (I will always be on the lookout for these.
There is more things to pack up outside this year then inside.
Ely is still frozen in time.
Its always good to reconnect with friends.
We did see 4 wild horses yesterday but that’s it for animals.
As always traveling with Roy is a blast.

More posts, pictures, and random thoughts sooooooon!!

Just the Beginning of Pictures

As promised a few pictures from Ely NV

The sticker sign on the start of the ET Highway. You almost can’t recognize the sign

The Ely train depot nice changes. The truck was just sitting on a road in Ely

That was my store on Aultman in Ely, this is right down the road from the WORLD FAMOUS HOTEL NEVADA

Then are travels took us in search of buffalo

we found this

These are the ovens

Old Stomping Grounds

On the way up to Ely a couple of times we looked at each other and said I don’t remember this being so desolate, a whole lot of desert. I did take a picture of the ET HWY road sign almost completely covered. We decided to make reservations for two nights at the KOA electricity is good. Unhooked and set up we took a cruise around town. Ely has not changed much since we left in 2006, still one stoplight in downtown. My store Gnome Ely is a Real Estate office, our house is still standing with a few more wrinkles. The house was an assay office so there is lot of history.

Speaking of history Ely and the surrounding area is rich with mining history. We decided to drive out and see a local buffalo ranch that did change not kept up well. Down the road from there are the Ward Charcoal Ovens, follow the link for more info http://parks.nv.gov/parks/ward-charcoal-ovens If you are anywhere near Ely NV it is worth spending a day or two. If trains are your thing check out the Ely Ghost Train http://nnry.com .

Spending our last night in Ely, NV. I enjoyed pizza and a movie with Heather, KC and Alice the little munchkin, it was fun catching up and seeing how much they have both grown. Driving out to McGill I was able to stop and see Angie who also hung out at my store, they have grown. I also got to pet her ‘kid’ Sophie, just stayed long enough to watch them try to set up a pool.

It’s June 7th and we are in Jackpot NV tomorrow we will be in Boise Idaho. I will be posting pictures tonight, no animals other then cows so far. I think they are saving themselves for my Alaska pictures.

A Quest

This year we are not making many reservations thus the quest. I am up for this adventure and so is the trailer here’s proof.

The week leading up to the departure was filled with heat which made loading the trailer a slow task. That done got up the morning of the 4th hooked up the trailer and loaded the refrigerator and headed out. Of course a tad behind when we wanted to pull out.

In and Out for lunch and then north to Vegas. Thank goodness for air conditioning as it was 100 degrees at Nellis AFB home to the Thunderbirds https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Air_Force_Thunderbirds I did not see them, maybe next time.

The quest has begun so follow me and we just might find the holy BANANA.

2nd Cutest Museum

I’m just following the lead of Eric from the Morro Bay Skateboard Museum http://www.mbskate.com, he has the second largest skateboard so it’s only fitting he has the 2nd cutest museum. Everyone who has followed my blog knows there is a special spot in my heart for the hammer museum http://www.hammermuseum.org .

Back to now, I was in Morro Bay and I stumbled into this place looking for an adventure. (Ok, I was looking for things to do for the A-Frame Rally). The first thing I noticed was this large board in the middle and the sign that said 2nd largest skateboard in the world. Although to listen to Eric it could be the largest if he wanted because it is the largest skateboard in Morro Bay. He said he wanted to keep it real (that’s his story).

The museum is free and there are t-shirts and stuff for sale. If you go and talk to Eric watch the twinkle in his eye when he talks about skateboarding and the Wide World of Sports.