Hi All. Our latest adventure came to a close when we arrived home Tuesday afternoon.
Lorraine took a picture of the little green guy at the end of our driveway on Bone lake. This last picture added to her picture taking for the trip. 9,500+ pictures she took along the way. I did some math and if we watch every picture for 10 seconds it will take 26.5 hours to view them all, non stop.
What a fantastic adventure we had. We saw some beautiful sights and met some very nice folks along the way. Still it is really nice to see family and friends back home again.
Some statistics for you from a very detailed log that Lorraine kept.
We slept in the camper the entire time. We did not dine out very often.
A 2 month journey
Total miles driven 10,415
Average mpg 10.7
I put gas in the truck 65 times
Lowest cost of fuel $1.99/gal in North Dakota
Highest cost of fuel $5.74/gal Jasper National Park Alberta. That cost is converted from liters
Changed oil in the truck once
Greased the wheel bearings on the trailer 3 times.
States and provinces. Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Montana, Idaho, British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon, Alaska, Washington.
Full hook up with the camper 3 times, electric 6 times, Used our Honda generator or just the camper battery the rest of the time.
We camped at private campgrounds 5 times, the rest were state and provincial campgrounds.
We also camped at a few Walmarts along the way plus 3 nights camped in the Render's driveway in Idaho.
Camping prices; Private campgrounds $38, $25. .
State and provincial campgrounds. $16 to $7 Walmart and friends free.
We had zero tire problems but we were prepared for them. We carried 11 gals of gas in jugs in case we ran short.
We benefited from the USA and Canada exchange rate which is about 75 cents Canadian to our dollar.
We would take the trip again and maybe will. Lorraine says we need to go back with a longer lens for her camera.
We will see you some where down the road.
Bob and Loraine
Saturday, September 10, 2016
Monday, September 5, 2016
On the home stretch
We left Merritt B.C. Saturday morning and headed for the USA. Peachland and Pentiction B.C. had vast fruit orchards and fields of vegetables. This area must be an ideal growing area for these crops.
Crossed the border into the USA at Osoyoos. Good luck saying that word. I answered the usual customs questions guns, liquor, fruit, with my usual answer NO. We had to pull into an inspection area and another customs agent came over and asked to look in the refrigerator. The apples, bananas and lettuce were OK. He was looking for dog food bought in Canada, peppers, onions and tomatoes. Maybe he wanted to make a salad.
I showed him the freezer and he said "looks like you caught some fish." No problems we were on our way. Was really scary at the time!
Through Spokane then spent the night camped at Tom and Jane Render's driveway in Coeur d' Alene Idaho. They were out of town so we went ahead and enjoyed the view of Hayden lake from their deck. (With their permission, of course!) Thanks again for your hospitality! That day we were in British Columbia, Washington state and Idaho!!
The next morning and another long day on the road - 649 miles found us at Miles City Montana Walmart.
Now in Fargo N.D. for the night and you guessed it -- Walmart. God willing and if the creek don't rise we will be home by tomorrow. The 3 Amigos are alive and well. It was a beautiful trip with many awesome sights and we met a lot of wonderful people, but there really is "no place like home"!
Stay tuned for our summary, total miles, mpg etc.
Crossed the border into the USA at Osoyoos. Good luck saying that word. I answered the usual customs questions guns, liquor, fruit, with my usual answer NO. We had to pull into an inspection area and another customs agent came over and asked to look in the refrigerator. The apples, bananas and lettuce were OK. He was looking for dog food bought in Canada, peppers, onions and tomatoes. Maybe he wanted to make a salad.
I showed him the freezer and he said "looks like you caught some fish." No problems we were on our way. Was really scary at the time!
Through Spokane then spent the night camped at Tom and Jane Render's driveway in Coeur d' Alene Idaho. They were out of town so we went ahead and enjoyed the view of Hayden lake from their deck. (With their permission, of course!) Thanks again for your hospitality! That day we were in British Columbia, Washington state and Idaho!!
The next morning and another long day on the road - 649 miles found us at Miles City Montana Walmart.
Now in Fargo N.D. for the night and you guessed it -- Walmart. God willing and if the creek don't rise we will be home by tomorrow. The 3 Amigos are alive and well. It was a beautiful trip with many awesome sights and we met a lot of wonderful people, but there really is "no place like home"!
Stay tuned for our summary, total miles, mpg etc.
A mystery lake in B.C.
Beautiful Montana
Not a single glacier in North Dakota
Lake Coeur d' Alene Idaho
Saturday, September 3, 2016
Haines and beyond
We are behind in updating our blog. Getting a wifi signal at the right time can be a problem up here.
Haines was good to us with nice weather and lots of bears to look at near the Chilkoot river where we were camped. We took a ferry to Juneau for the day toured around there. Visited the Mendenhall glacier. We saw Orcas and Humpback whales and other wildlife on the trip down and back. Maggie stayed with a Russian lady in Haines for the day. I think she has stories about that if she could talk.
On the road after Haines we went through Whitehorse again and on down the Cassiar highway. We camped in Stewart AK. for 2 days. Not a single bear at their famous viewing station. We drove to the end of the road out of Hyder and the view of the Salmon glacier and others made this whole visit worthwhile. The Salmon glacier is the 5th largest glacier in North America.
Down the road again, Smithers, Prince George, Cache Creek and now this a.m. in Merritt B.C.
Lorraine has now taken 9,000 pictures. That makes for a challenge to pick out a few for the blog.
When we get home come on up to the lake and watch them. Two days of steady viewing I'm sure.
Looking back at Haines on our ferry ride to Juneau
Haines was good to us with nice weather and lots of bears to look at near the Chilkoot river where we were camped. We took a ferry to Juneau for the day toured around there. Visited the Mendenhall glacier. We saw Orcas and Humpback whales and other wildlife on the trip down and back. Maggie stayed with a Russian lady in Haines for the day. I think she has stories about that if she could talk.
On the road after Haines we went through Whitehorse again and on down the Cassiar highway. We camped in Stewart AK. for 2 days. Not a single bear at their famous viewing station. We drove to the end of the road out of Hyder and the view of the Salmon glacier and others made this whole visit worthwhile. The Salmon glacier is the 5th largest glacier in North America.
Down the road again, Smithers, Prince George, Cache Creek and now this a.m. in Merritt B.C.
Lorraine has now taken 9,000 pictures. That makes for a challenge to pick out a few for the blog.
When we get home come on up to the lake and watch them. Two days of steady viewing I'm sure.
Snowing up high on the continental divide
Just a few of the bears at Haines
Lorraine and the Salmon glacier
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