Leaving Paradise

I guess Nanaimo is not really paradise after all.

For the last few days the rain has returned - not great quantities, but enough to keep the rain forest reputation intact.

Tomorrow, we leave for Edmonton once again. Medical appointments that were made months ago have to be attended lest they get put off into the sailing season. Hopefully the ferries will not be too busy first thing in the morning - the big hockey game and closing ceremonies are not till later in the day. With any luck we will be well out of Vancouver before they close all the roads.

Olympic impact

With the spring-like weather here, you would never guess that there are some Winter Olympic games going on just a few miles away.

However, one look at the ferry overflow parking lot would give you an idea that something must be going on. This is winter here, and normally the ferries are running (if they are not cancelled altogether) at very light volumes. In years past, I have been on late ferries with less than 10 vehicles on them. This lot never has a car in it, let alone having no space at all available. Suddenly all that has changed, as people who are not even necessarily going to the games are heading to Vancouver to join in the party. I guess we could hop on the ferry and join in the fun, but we have never been much on fighting our way through crowds. So for now we will continue to just watch it all on the tube.

This week has been nothing less than spectacular here, with blue sky and sunshine every day. The air is so clear that you can easily see the mountains across the strait. We definitely picked a great time to be back on the island.

Home Sweet Home

First, a short drive to the border, where we anticipated the worst but experienced the best crossing in years. Probably as a result of the Olympic games in Vancouver, the border was fully manned with every lane ready to receive traffic. As a result, there was no wait at all and we were through in under 5 minutes.

Then, on to the Tsawwassen to Duke point ferry. By this time it had started to rain again and when we arrived in Nanaimo it was coming down in buckets. We turned on the heat on the boat and retired to the Pub for supper. It was a cold, wet welcome to the coast, prompting us to wonder why we came back. The boat looks fine though and not much worse for wear for all the neglect for so long.

But, oh what a difference a day can make. We awoke to sunshine and blue skies and warm (12C) temperatures, making us wonder why we ever left. It was nicer here than a lot of the places we have visited in the last three months.

Over the last couple of days, the weather has been a little cool, but overall pretty pleasant. We have settled into our old routine, taking long walks to the harbour for coffee and such. It is a little surprising to see the trees are already starting to bud, and there are already some flowers in bloom. And the grass is that colour of green you only get in a rain-forest.

For the next while we are not planning any great adventures, just paying bills, doing some boat maintenance and trying to get used to the idea of not living out of a suitcase.

And, of course, we are watching a lot of the coverage of the Olympics, what with them going on just across the straight.

Time for the Ark?

All day driving in the rain.
Buckets and buckets of rain.
Non-stop rain.
Can't see the car in front of you rain!
I'm not sure why Oregon and Washington have not slid into the ocean by now. Sorry, no pictures - have I mentioned the rain?
We made it as far as Everett, Washington before we stopped for the night. Tomorrow we should be home in Nanaimo (assuming we can get through customs at the border tomorrow morning).

Luck Running Out!

Reno, Nevada

Yes, our luck ran out in Reno.

Not at the tables mind you. Our car, which has been flawless for this entire trip decided it did not want to leave the parkade at Harrahs casino. We checked out of our room this morning and loaded everything into the car only to discover it would not start - a combination of someone (who will remain nameless) leaving the dome light on for two days and a battery that was on its last legs, resulting in a bit of a delayed departure. Thank goodness for the our AAA card. Within an hour, we had a boost and a new battery installed on site, and we were on our way.

After going over the Donner Pass via Interstate 80, we headed through north-central California's nut growing orchards until we encountered Interstate 5, taking us into Oregon.

Our luck ran out with the weather as well. Fortunately it was fine over the pass (just some scary 20-foot snow banks along the sides of the highway). The real fun started on the last stretch into Oregon, with a very depressing rain on the twisty interstate. At least there was no snow!

Big Little City

We awoke in Gallup to find that it had not snowed overnight after all.

We quickly took off westward to see if we could beat the weather to Flagstaff. Indeed, we had perfect driving conditions all the way. As we neared Flagstaff, it began to look like a building snowstorm in front of us, so we made an abrupt turn northward and motored to Utah via the Glen Canyon Dam. Incredibly scenic drive through the painted desert and some inspiring rock formations before arriving at the Dam itself.

In many ways, this is at least as impressive a canyon as the Grand Canyon itself - not as wide but very dramatic.

We then motored on through a small piece of Utah and Arizona again, to arrive at Mesquite, Nevada for the night. The usual cheap hotel and casino just over the border. Great buffet.

In the morning, we left on a direct route from east to west through Nevada, in a large part on the Extraterrestrial highway (look it up if you don't believe me). It does not appear that a lot of people go this way this time of year as we encountered a total of 3 vehicles in a 150 mile stretch through the desert. A pretty cool road to drive - narrow two-lane, 70 mph speed limit, with the odd open range cattle wandering about. Not sure where the aliens were though. The weather throughout the day was perfect - a bit cool (around 10C) but blue sky and sunshine the whole way.

We are now staying at Harrahs resort and casino in Reno for a few days to rest and recuperate from our long drive thus far. The weatherman says we may have a couple of days of light rain here as the next storm front makes its way from the Pacific.
It is strange how when you have come this far just how much it feels like we are home now, even though we still have a ways to go.

Much Too Far North!

Leaving Amarillo in the morning, we spied the famous Cadillacs at the Cadillac Ranch just before the fog set in.

The fog stayed with us most of the morning, then lifted just before we arrived in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It actually got warm enough that we started to think we made the right decision in choosing this northerly route.

Since we were in Albuquerque, the home of the world's largest balloon fiesta each year, we just had to stop at the Balloon museum.
It was certainly different and a refreshing change from all of the war-related museums that seem to be everywhere in the south. Worth spending an hour even though balloons are not necessarily our cup of tea.

Then we motored on west through New Mexico, admiring the startling red mesa cliffs that shadow this route.

We are holed up in the town of Gallup for the night. The main claim to fame of this town is that it is on the old Route 66, full of cheap motels and eateries - actually pretty cool.

And speaking of cool, the weatherman says that we are in for a major snowfall here tonight - not what we wanted to hear. I guess we shouldn't be too surprised as Gallup hovers at an altitude of 6500 feet and the storms in California are heading east (so they can dump more snow on places like Washington DC), and they have to go right by here on their way.

Anyway, I guess we shall see what the morning brings...

Too Far North?

Leaving Mobile, Alabama in the rain, we had to make a decision on which way to go.

We would have liked to have spent a day or two in New Orleans but with the torrential rains and constant flash-flood warnings, we thought that it would be prudent to use a more northerly route, at least till we blast through this latest front. Really, I am not sure I ever want to be in New Orleans during a heavy rainstorm, based on past performance. So, we headed northwest through Mississippi to Shreveport (pictured here in the rain). We crossed the border into Texas and stayed overnight in the town of Marshall.

In the morning, it had stopped raining but was still cloudy and cool, so we pressed on through Texas, again on a northwest heading. The sun broke out around Dallas and it turned into a very nice drive for the rest of the day. Later in the afternoon we started to see some snow on the fields and started to wonder if we had gone too far north.

When we arrived in Amarillo for the night, there was little question about it. Our only hope now is that we can get far enough west in the next day or two to avoid the worst of the approaching storm front coming in from the coast. Or, with any luck, we should be in the desert by then, and we all know it never snows in the desert.

At least Susanne has found a nice cozy spot in the room, so she is happy.

Alabama Bound

Pensacola

Before leaving Florida for good, we did want to stop at the National Naval Aviation Museum at the Naval Air Station in Pensacola. We had noticed it on the way down and had promised ourselves we would try and see it later.
This museum is exactly the type of place we like, with lots of really cool stuff to see and touch, and it's all free!

Our guidebook said to allow at least 1-1/2 hours but we ended up spending the best part of the day there. This place has so many planes on display that it is a bit overwhelming. And they have lots of other related displays as well, and a trolley tour to a nearby field where they keep a bunch more planes that would not fit in the buildings. Truly this is the best aviation museum we have yet seen, and we have seen quite a few.

Oh ya, they let you climb in and fly them too. I copied my technique from Tom Cruise in the movie Top Gun.

And a real bonus, we were able to find a new prop for our boat. We just have to see if we can squeeze it into the trunk for the trip home.

Tonight, we are staying in some random spot along the interstate, just outside of Mobile, Alabama. We are not sure where we are going tomorrow as the weather is threatening to turn against us again.

Florida Express

Like a replay of the start of this trip, we drove for two days in the rain. At least it was warm.
Yesterday we got through the keys, across the everglades and north to Tampa.
Today, we hugged the gulf coast all the way around to Panama City. The sun broke out in the afternoon, so I am sure we have left the bad weather behind us once and for all!
Since we had not been here before, we had to do the usual walk around, mostly after dark, and found a nice seafood restaurant overlooking a marina. Its almost as if we are home already.