Going Home

 Once again we're on the move. Our job in Oregon ended and we were anxious to travel back to the town we consider to be our "home", even though "our home is where we park it". We had no trouble moving in the slides, unhooking the water, sewer and power hoses, and hooking up BigTruk. A couple of the residents of the park in Fairview, and one employee, came to say good-bye and to wish us well as they saw us preparing to leave. In the last few days 4 people have given us money to help us on our way! What a surprise, and what welcome gifts! People are good. We needed to stop by the Tire Factory in Gresham and get a minor valve repair as well as having the right amount of air pumped into each of the 12 tires on the 5th wheel and on BigTruk. We felt happy as we left rainy country and traveled into sunshine.

We had a scary time a few miles past The Dalles. Mr. Keith told me, over the walkie-talkie, that the orange fuel warning light had gone on. We were positive we had 70 gallons of diesel on the day before our departure. Our thoughts were that maybe someone had stolen our diesel during the night. We were near Biggs Junction so we carefully pulled into a Pilot Truck Stop and got in line. Mr. Keith turned off the motor till time to move up, and when he restarted, suddenly the gauges shot back up to say we had 61 gallons of diesel. Big sigh of relief! Back on the road we went, and happily crossed the bridge into Washington. The photo above shows us traveling down the highway into the Ellensburg valley.

We stopped for lunch and a potty break, for us and for the cats, somewhere over Satus Pass, then continued on. Before we got to Tonasket I saw the awning for the bedroom slide shoot up in the air and begin wildly flapping in the wind. Oh, no! That awning was just installed in October! We didn't stop because I could tell it wasn't detached, just unrolled somehow. We will get that fixed while we're in Wenatchee.

Here we are heading towards the Columbia River and the beautiful Vantage Bridge. We usually travel over Blewett Pass to Wenatchee, but we were unsure of the snow conditions, and we wanted to try the less mountainous route for a change. Later I figured out mileage and discovered the route through Vantage and Quincy is about the same, within a mile, as the route over Blewett Pass. Good to know!

We were so happy to pull into East Wenatchee about 5:00. The sun was still touching the foothills and the gorgeous, snow covered Cascades. The Columbia River was glowing with a reflection of the sky.

Setting up at the First Fruits Produce Market went smoothly. We love being right beside an orchard, though at this time of year the trees are bare and have just been pruned. We've stayed here a couple of times before, once for about 5 months in the winter of 2009 and again for 5 days last October. Our dear friend Bob has put in a 50 amp hookup for us. We are thankful to God for a safe trip and for this wonderful place to park for the next 2 months! We have family to visit to our heart's content, as well as the many friends we've missed since we've been workamping. Though we've made many new friends in our various places of employment, we always have to leave them when the job ends. Old friends warm our hearts and we are glad to be with them again.

Anna Bannana

 Mr. Keith and I needed a short drive to get us out of the house on our day off. We chose to get on Marine Drive which begins (or ends!) at Fairview and to follow it to the end (or beginning!) in North Portland where the Willamette and the Columbia Rivers merge. The day was sunny and cold and beautiful. Marine Drive parallels the Columbia for most of the way, crossing under the I-205 and I-5 freeways. We decided to drive into the Heron Lakes Golf Course on the Delta and were rewarded with a sighting of one blue heron, my favorite bird!

 Mr. Keith has a nickname for me — Anna Banana. Imagine our surprise when we saw this sign above a coffee shop in the old historic St. Johns area. Never mind that it has a double 'N' in the name, we had to stop!

 We quickly made a U-turn and got our parking spot right in front, entered, and ordered some lunch. Keith told the proprietor about my nickname and the man said, "Well, we have a coffee mug with the name that you might like to buy!"

  Of course we bought the coffee mug. We were amazed to find this place with this unique name. Who'd have guessed?

The drive back home to Fairview was equally beautiful, though the clouds were lowering and the afternoon getting darker. This is the Portland International Airport from the Columbia River side. 

Bozeman MT to Wenatchee WA

I am a little late putting up my blog posts. There is so much excitement and so much work travelling, setting up the rig, visiting people. Well, better late than never. This was our last day in Bozeman. We pulled into the Tire Factory to make sure all 12 tires on the 5th wheel and the truck were good to go.

Heading west from Bozeman, looking at the snow and wondering how Homestake Pass would be... there was snow right up to the road but none on the road.

This view is nearing Missoula. We've passed this way so many times. It is always beautiful.

Here we're getting closer to the ascent to Lookout Pass. There is a rainbow over us. You can barely see it in the picture. Clouds are looming and some rain has begun to fall.

Lookout Pass and the Idaho border! And a rainstorm. I know I shouldn't be taking photos while driving, but I sure like the view of my hubby pulling our house and all our earthly possessions down, or up, the road.

The rain stopped just short of the Washington border. This view isn't too spectacular, coming into Spokane Valley, but it's good to see the "Welcome to Washington" sign. Almost there!

We left the Freeway near George, passed through Quincy, and are heading down the slope to the Columbia. Now we're really getting close!

These beautiful cliffs with apple orchards at the bottom are just east of Rock Island. Wenatchee, here we come!

I can see Saddle Rock now, as we are coming into East Wenatchee.

To our surprise, there was not a single RV park with available spaces. It was October Fest in Leavenworth. So much for planning ahead! Fortunately, our friend Bob, who had put in a 50 amp hookup for us a few years ago, was happy to let us park by his First Fruits fruit stand and orchard. It's a lovely spot. We stayed there 6 nights.

Most of the apples in the area are harvested already, but not these Braeburns. We picked up a few that had fallen to the ground, but we know better than to pick the ones still on the trees. They were sure pretty to look at.

This pretty redhead, our granddaughter, is one of the reasons we always return to Wenatchee. Natalie spent 3 nights with us, which we loved. We walked down to the Columbia, just behind our parking spot.

And here she is with Grandpa. Unfortunately, I didn't get photos of the rest of the family. Silly me for forgetting my camera on most of our visits. 

To be continued...