Trailer-Goddess: August 2010

Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Heading Home

The caravan officially ended August 30 with a delicious dinner at the Hillcrest Hotel, very close to our KOA campground. Entertainment, awards and fine foods were all enjoyed. We Kathy Club members all got certificates just for being "us".

Larry got a certificate along with Chuck Banker for their fine collection (and wearing of that collection) of T-Shirts. Larry was Chuck's mentor and did a fine job. I"m sure they plan to add to their collections while we're on the Southwest Adventure Caravan next spring.

And now we are in soggy wet Mt. Vernon, Washington at the Elks' RV park. They managed to squeeze us in and we even got in on Taco Tuesday at the lodge.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Dessert at the Cookout

Building the New Trailer Road

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Winding Down

The Yellowhead 'N More Caravan is winding down and will officially end Monday night. Tuesday we shall begin our trek home!

After Quesnel, we headed for Kamloops with the parking crew. We arrived to find a newly mowed area and not much else. We were going for a true camping experience among a beautiful wooded setting. We got it!

Our first challenge dealt with getting all the trailers in to that wooded area. There was a narrow road, a berm and a pole sticking up. Not good for low-riding trailers, hitches and the like. The men had to level out the berm and put a flag in the hollow pole to warn of its presence. It all worked out, somehow. Although - some had to jack up their wheels very high to get level. If a trailer is not level, the refrigerator will not work. And, that's a very bad thing!

Our experiences in Kamloops included a tour of the First Nation museum, a trip to Costco, a stroll downtown and a musical concert in the rain at a park downtown. Celtic music, which we love! Even in the rain. We had umbrellas.

We also had the hottest weather the afternoon we arrived - and probably the coldest the days following. I had nearly every blanket in the trailer on our bed last night. Did I mention no hookups whatsoever? This was roughing it! For three days! Generators were fired up continually.

Today we drove to our last stop - Revelstoke. Most of us had to take a detour because of a fatal accident in our path. An Alpha Romeo driven by a maniac had a head-on crash with a suburban. The two in the A.R. did not survive. I always wonder how they manage to live as long as they do! The detour was absolutely gorgeous, however. None of us were sorry we had to go that way - just sorry about the circumstances.

Tuesday, August 24, 2010

The Lady Dragon Boat Rowers - and Their New Drum

The Moose, Gold Panning, and Shopping For Candy

Up They Go

Seeing Double - I GOOFED

A Day In Barkerville

The caravaners spent today in Barkerville. On the way there most of us spotted a bear along side the road, which was a great way to start out!

Once there we took a guided tour of the town and then scattered in different directions so we'd all be sure to see and do everything we could.

Our first attraction was the stage coach ride. We piled on and in - Larry up top and me inside. I'd planned to go up top, but quickly changed my mind when I found out how I'd have to get there!

After the riders were all safely disembarked, we took off down the street - shopping a bit along the way before we got to the Chinese restaurant. We'd eaten there during our visit four years ago and it's still as good today as it was then. The six at our table split 5 entrees chosen by the proprietor and it was indeed delicious!

More shopping (I didn't buy a thing) and it was time for the theatre performance. A good time was had by all!

After that, we made our way back toward the entrance for our gold panning experience. We got about 4 specks each, but the lesson in how to do it was great. Now we can really tackle our seasonal creek when we get home.

Back at the campground, we saw the local dragon boat ladies take off from the pier in rhythm to their new drum. When they began the lake was smooth as glass. The rain began about halfway through their workout while we were enjoying our ice cream sundaes before the drivers' meeting. It is now raining in earnest. Good news for the forest fires, though.

Tomorrow we're on the parking crew for Kamloops and leave at 7:00 A.M.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Larry at Pinnacle Provincial Park

In and Around Quesnel and Fraser Lake

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Creek outside Terrace, Lava Beds

Quesnel, B.C. August 22, 2010

A lot to catch up on now that we have good WiFi.

At Prince Rupert we did laundry and had a fish fry with some of the fish that Carlos, Larry, Gene and George caught in Sitka. The rest of the caravan members provided salads and desserts and it was an outstanding dinner. Then it was time to move on to Terrace.

Terrace is the spot known for its Kermodei bears. Or, Spirit Bears, as they're more commonly known. A recessive gene from each parent causes the bears to be white in color and approximately 1 in 10 has the trait. I'm not sure how often one is spotted; we certainly never saw any!

While there we toured a First Nation Heritage Centre and it was one of the better ones. We watched a totem pole being carved and a juvenile eagle provided our only wildlife sighting.

The second day in Terrace was our tour of the lava beds - about 250 years old. Pretty impressive. We also visited a First Nation community that used to be accessible only by a suspension bridge. We got the idea they don't like guests or visitors, as there were no services there either.

On to Fraser Lake and the fires. We didn't see flames, but the skies were definitely smoky and ashes fell from the skies! It was decided we'd cut our visit there short by a day and head for Quesnel a day early, so here we are! We did enjoy an afternoon painting of fish session at the Recreation Centre, where we were parked. They will be on permanent display. Mine has polka dots and the variety of styles was impressive. Larry painted a raven's head on his, but no one recognized it as such! Judy Erb said it looked more like a woodpecker!

George Scott had leftover waffle mix from his previous breakfasts, so we had one last caravan breakfast in Fraser Lake. The hot food turned cold very quickly in that temperature. The night temperature was said to be 33! We were indeed cold!

Monday, August 16, 2010

Potlatch

While on the ferry Saturday morning, I chanced to meet a man sitting at my table who introduced himself and told Gene, Kathy and me about the potlatch which was to take place in Kake.

He is a nurse practitioner from Cape Cod who married a Tklinget woman of the Raven clan. She's finishing work on her PhD and then he'll just do consulting work and go where her work takes her. On his arms were beautiful totem pole tattoos, done in honor of his wife's uncle - a noted totem pole carver - who'd died a year ago.

The potlatch was to be done by the Eagle clan to honor him and his clan. All work would be performed by the Eagle clans and the Ravens would just enjoy. At the harbor those arriving on the ferry were met by the locals. Each side sang and beat their drums and it was really neat to be able to witness it. One of the pictures I posted shows the greeting party!

Back from Juneau and Sitka

While I have decent WiFi (temporary, I'm sure) I'll try to post some dialogue to accompany the pictures.

The ferry trips to and from Alaska were great. We were on the Marine Highway and it was especially fun to watch our boats navigate "the Narrows" much like skiing a downhill slalom.

Rosemary informed us that we had to keep the red lights to the left and green lights to the right as we made our way through the water at high tides. Most of the trip took place on Saturday, August 14 (Happy Birthday, Roxy) and the day was perfect. Blue skies and sunshine. And - warm!

Sunday was hazy - due to forest fires in Alaska, we learned.

During several of the stops we were able to get off and see something of the towns. In Petersburg we walked for as much time as we could and then turned back. The walk felt good!

Ketchikan was a long stop, but it was between the hours of 12:00 and 7:30 A.M. We slept through it.

While in Juneau, we took a cruise out to the Tracy Arm Fjord to see some fabulous glaciers and icebergs. Mendenhall paled in comparison the next day, but we did see bears there.

Other destinations in Juneau were the Paradise Bakery and Twisted Fish Restaurant. The weather was drizzly and chilly - similar to four years ago.

The trip to Sitka was a shorter one. While on the ferry we met the daughter of a former colleague of mine. Karen Laquaglia, the daughter of Nicolai Laquaglia, who taught student government and social studies at McClatchy. Those name badges with our home areas listed are good for something after all! Karen looks forward to her retirement from the Alaska Ferries.

In Sitka we were separated into two groups and stayed at separate hotels. Ours may not have been the fancier one, but we got breakfast included - and we were definitely the more healthy group. Cal Meuser and Bill Miller had to be hospitalized for dehydration and Joanne Miller fell and broke her wrist. Joanne had to fly home to Texas and Bill will continue with us for the rest of the way. That was a nasty virus that made its way around! No new cases lately, fortunately.

We had a gorgeous day in Sitka to see the sights and sites. It was the first sun we'd seen in a very long time and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We had a bus trip to the Tklinget Heritage Center to see them dance - and a visit to the national park's totem poles and another to the Birds of Prey rehabilitation center. Larry and I had visited the Bishop's House in the morning - and also found time to see the Russian Heritage Dancers. Thirty women comprise the troupe and they were most enjoyable.

Larry, George, Carlos and Gene all went fishing our last day in Sitka - and were very successful.

We now have lots of fish in our freezers and will dispense with some of it tonight (Monday) with a caravan fish fry.

More in a bit after I make sure this gets saved.