Crab-a-Rang Bound, or “The Road to Abilene?”

Couer d’Alene, WY to Winchester Bay, OR – Sept 13 to 19, 2016

We are getting ready to undertake an adventure that is unusual for us. Meeting up with a group of strangers for a weeks activities. And the activity is one neither of us is sure about. Dipping for crabs. Now EJ loves Alaskan King Crabs,

so we figured a crabs a crab, right? We contacted the organizer Diana Ruelens to let her know we were coming.

Then it was time to get out of Couer d’Alene, ID. We didn’t want to waste any time as we wanted to arrive early and possible snare one of the “prime” spots on “C” Dock which was to be close to all the action.

So this meant we had about 6 days to make the trip. Time enough to explore for a day or two if we found something really interesting.

We left without a firm destination for the first night, much to the chagrin of EJ. This means more work for her along the way as she has to figure it out. But, she found an possible location near Umatilla, OR. A BLM park named Plymouth Campground in Washington, just across the Columbia River from Oregon.

But on our way there we had a few moments of panic. There are several things that strike fear in the heart of an RVer. A blowout, not enough room to turn around and a low clearance bridge to name a few. Most bridges have a minimum of 13 foot 6 inches clearance. But here, we encountered a bridge that looks too low, has no clearance information, and has no place to turn around. Arghh!!!

We drove slowly forward, already committed. There was no turn around space, so we may as well unhook right at the bridge if the clearance isn’t enough to clear Big Guy. We ease right up to the bridge and discover that because the railroad bridge is at the low point of a dip in the road, it gives the illusion of being lower than it actually is. We clear it and drive the next half mile to Plymouth BLM CG where we get our 50% geezer discount.

Luckily there are a couple of spots left and we grab one. This is a popular fishing spot and the campground is almost full. We get settled in and go for a walk. Gabby is very unhappy.

The next day we continue on Oregon Hiway 14 on the northern shore of the Columbia River. Its a beautiful drive, peaceful and interesting, unlike the Interstate on the other side of the river.

But alas, we soon cross over and join the crowds on their mad rush to Portland or some other big city. That’s Ranier in the background.

The Columbia River from Interstate 84 going west.

The cats have assumed their travel positions.

Once again we find ourselves mulling over where to spend the night. We hate having to make reservations because we may want to drive fewer miles or more miles as the day goes on. We’re still trying to save a few bucks and stay away from the commercial campgrounds. So we pick a state park near Portland and pull in only to find it’s full. None of the other campgrounds in the area meet our price criteria so we press on. Unfortunately it’s rush hour as we approach Portland.

We fall back on our old standby, the  Elks Lodges. we find one in Vancouver, so we find ourselves back in Washington again. As we pull in, there is only one spot left big enough to comfortably accommodate us.

We busily set about unhooking Sunny from Big Guy and disaster struck. Sunny went completely absolutely unresponsive. It wouldn’t start, it wouldn’t go in neutral, all it would do is set there still connected to Big Guy.

The clock is ticking, it’s been a long day, we’re both tired and I’m convinced our spot at the Elk’s will disappear. We try jumper cables. Nothing! Here we are blocking the entrance to the Elk’s Lodge and we can’t move because we can’t get Sunny unhooked and it’s stuck in park.

Finally I resort to the Internet to seek a solution. This is what I find. There is a super secret location where you place the electronic key fob when your 2014 Ford Explorer gets stupid. Apparently this spot has a direct link to the “brains” of the car. Suddenly everything works again. It’s MAGIC!!

We are able to joggle the car enough to unhook it and move Big Guy to the empty spot. Whew! That was plenty enough excitement for one day!

The next day, head on to Tillamook. There is another Elks Campground there about 5 miles south of town. We call ahead and they can accommodate us for 3 nights but then we have to skeedaddle because they have a big group coming in.

But it’s OK because we discover plenty of neat stuff to do. For instance, a brewery…

Gorgeous coastline…

Playing with the ocean…

Hillside towns…

Just goofin…

Watching sunsets…

And of course no visit to Tillamook is complete without a visit to the Cheese Factory.

Our bounty…

The coast is so beautiful, here we just to have to spend some more time visiting it. So a picnic on the beach is just the thing.

As we have been driving back and forth to the campground and we keep seeing this huge structure.

It turns out to be one of two blimp hangers at this site. Actually it’s the only one left, the other having been destroyed in a fire. The hangars were constructed during WWII and because of material shortages, were constructed entirely of wood. It is the largest wooden clear span structure in the world.

8 large blimps were staged here during the war and were used for anti-submarine patrols and convoy escort. The blimps traveled slowly making it easy to spot submarines and drop torpedoes in the water.

We also found an obscure waterfall near Tillamook that made a hike worthwhile. Munson Creek Falls State Park is at the end of a long dirt road. But it was definitely worth it.

Our time is up in Tillamook and we move on to another Elks Lodge in Newport, OR. This one is close to the harbor area of Newport and we spend an afternoon exploring it. Surprise, it has a tap room/restaurant.

And a west coast harbor wouldn’t be complete without a colony of seals.

Time to head to Salmon Harbor and the Crab-a-Rang.

Poking around Pocatello

Sullivan Mobile Home and RV Park, Pocatello, ID – 7-31 to 8-2-2016

EJ, ever deligent in her quest to hold down our camping costs, used the Passport America guide and

found the Sullivan Mobile Home and RV Park combination for $15/nite.

And, they weren’t picky about the number of days you could use the 50% rate. Since it was a mobile home park, we weren’t expecting much, but we were here to do research, not enjoy the ambience.

It appeared they had 6 sites for transient RVs (that’s us). But when we arrived, 2 were filled, 2 were reserved, and of the 2 left we could barely squeeze into one of them, but we did. We tried to find someone to pay, but the office was deserted. So we stuck our payment for two days into the mail slot on the front door and hoped they got it.

It was scorching hot so we were thankful for the full hookups and crank the air conditioning down to get comfortable. Our spot was shaded from from about noon on so that helped with the heat.

We made a supply run to Walmart and picked up dinner from Panda Express to take back to the RV. We were beat after a long day, and the heat wasn’t helping any. And it could have been the anxiety over our lack of direction.

We are still not sure about where to go next. 10,000 feet, like Leadville, is not entirely off the list, but if we can find somewhere lower, but still cooler, that would preferable. Fires and smoke are a major deterrent. Several places we would like to go either have access blocked by fire or are covered with smoke from the fires.

Meh! EJ thinks maybe Frank will get out of his funk if he goes to a micro-brewery. Using her trusty computer, she finds one right here in Pocatello named Portnuef Valley Brewing.

The owner decided to put her chemistry degree to good use and opened a brewery. It’s the only one in Pocatello and it is quite popular. We are trying to be good and keep the carb intake low so we order an antipasta salad and it was YUUUGE! And good! So were the brews.

Our two days are up and we think we have a plan. But at the RV Park we run into a guy who claims to be the manager. He asks if we are leaving today. Well it is about noon, and we aren’t unhooked yet. So I slip him another $15. He quickly lets me know that with tax it’s $16. What? Nowhere did it say anything about tax. But he generously let’s us off the hook for not paying tax for the previous two nights.

We use the extra day to firm up our decision to head to Sun Valley. Nina and Paul over at Wheelingit.us had mentioned that Ketchum was an interesting place to visit.

But as we begin plotting our course, I want to go one way, and the Rand McNally GPS wants to go another. Now the frustrating thing about this GPS, is that when it gets really obstinate, like it is now, it’s has always been right. But it wont tell you why. I like my way better, because it is much shorter. But no matter how much I search, I can’t figure out why my route won’t work. More on this in a later post.

For now, we are pointed towards Arco, ID and the Atomic Museum.

Wandering Aimlessly

Alred Flats NFS CG, Smoot, WY – 7-28 to 30, 2016

Thursday morning is here already and we haven’t decided where we are going. Every where we look is hot or getting hot. We briefly consider heading to Cedar Breaks National Monument in Utah because at 10,000 feet it was going to have some very pleasant temperatures. But we both were unhappy with our stamina at that altitude. We needed cooler weather at lower temperatures.

One thing that our stay at Warren Bridge taught us is that with the low humidity if you can stay in the shade you can stay comfortable. So we need to find a shady spot at around 5,000 feet.

Also getting away from the crowds for a few days seemed like just what we needed. We choose two possible sites, one in Afton, WY and one near Smoot, WY. Our decision made, it was time to pack up and head out.

First order of business is the dump and fill routine. We pull up to the dump station and wonder of wonders, we are the only ones in line. We take care of the dump part, then pull up to fill with fresh water and then the crowds converge.

One thing that is sorely lacking at Gros Ventre is adequate capacity to handle the volume of RV’s that need to do what were are doing. There are 325 sites and two dump stations but only one water fill spigot. And the pressure at that spigot is pitiful. we sat for about 20 minutes trying to fill the tank before we finally gave up because no one could leave until we did. We’ll try to catch something down the road.

We ended up bypassing our first choice for camping near Afton because we never found any signs locating the campground. We continue on to choice number 2, Alred Flats.

We find it and it is partially occupied, but still plenty of spots to choose from. Circling through the campground is pretty tight in Big Guy. So we stop, unhook Sonny, park Big Guy and make another loop around the campgound to find the perfect spot. And we do.

The site is somewhat unlevel, but we manage. We can still get into Big Guy without having to use a ladder so we’re OK. There’s plenty of shade, but for several hours during the day we’ll get plenty of sunlight to charge the batteries. Oh, and satellite reception is adequate. There is no Verizon signal, but life is still good. We sign up for 2 days. Now it’s time to relax.

The next day we travel back to Afton to check out the stores and see the sights. The main attraction is the largest elkhorn arch in the world. It’s pretty impressive and while we are there 2 tour buses regurgitate their cargo that immediately swarm the sidewalks and stores bringing normal commerce and travel to a halt. Fortunately they are only there for about 30 minutes.

Try as we might, we find nothing we must absoultely posess so we head out of town.

That evening we take a short hike back into the woods and discover a beaver damn.

As we walk back, a grouse comes strolling by.

Right outside our dining room window we catch these two little fellows exchanging secrets.

We have enjoyed the peace and quiet here so much we extended our stay by one more day. But finally, we decide we need to do some more research about where we are headed next and the internet is necessary to do that. So it’s time to move on.

Grandeur of the Tetons vs the Crowds of Jackson

Gros Ventre NP CG, Kelly, WY - July 24 to 27, 2016

We said our farewells to our new friends Debi and Randy and old time friends Steve and Nancy. Highway 191 to Jackson was now open so we decided to visit the Grand Tetons one more time since we were this close. (Notice how we are straying from our original plan of going no further than Colorado?) What can I say, we wander. Its what we do.

Smoke from the Cliff Creek Fire is still an issue as we head up 191 to Jackson from Daniel.

The hot shots, forest fire fighters, are camped along the road. Talk about tough. These guys are not getting a break this season. It seems as though fires are breaking out every where. These encampments have mess tents, showers and toilet facilities so they get cleaned up, eat, sleep and go out and do it all over again.  We hear they are working 12 hour shifts.

Driving through the area after the fire has ravaged the forest.

We make it to Jackson, Wyoming.

We only had a light snack for breakfast so we looked for restaurants on the drive up here. The only one we found didn’t have room to park Big Guy and Sunny so we waited until we got to Jackson. By this time Frank was starved and didn’t care what we ate so long as it was food. In a pinch a McDonalds big breakfast with pancakes, sausage and square eggs will do.

But, as is the drawback to any popular tourist town, the hoards of non-english speaking foreigners have taken over. We feel like strangers in our own country. Our timing was bad as two tourist buses had just disgorged their loads overwhelming McDonalds.

Ok, we got some food, now its time to head on to the Gros Ventre NP campground (pronounced “grow vaunt”). But first, the road takes us through downtown. And yes, it’s packed. Well, we’ve seen Jackson before and we don’t imagine the shops selling the tourist doodads have changed all that much since the last time we were here. Unfortunately we need to resupply so that means we will have to revisit town.

Upon arrival at Gros Ventre NP CG, we are assigned a site. This is primarily a no hookup campground except for one loop which has electricity at a premium cost. Since we don’t feel the need to pay an extra $20 or so per day to run the AC for couple of hours we go for the dry camp sites. If it gets warm, we can run the generator for about $1 an hour and we’ll only need to do that for 2-3 hours a day at most. But it means we’ll have to get picky about our site so our solar panels have good sun exposure to charge our house batteries.

That was a long winded way of saying the site they assigned us did not meet our criteria. So we scouted around and came up with several that would do and went back to checkin asking to be relocated. There was no problem as that is more or less standard procedure. They assign you a site based on the size of your RV then you tell them the site you really want. It’s first come first served so get there early. As we get set up this raven clucks at us the whole time. Maybe this was his space?

As you know, we are suckers for lattes, mochas, and macchiatos. Well, last time we were here there was a small coffee shop/cafe about 2 miles from the campground in the community of Kelly. For lunch the next day, we decide to see if it is still there. It’s called Kelly’s at Gros Ventre and yes, it was still in business, although much more popular than it was the last time we were here. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a chance to talk to the owner this time, much too busy, but the sandwiches were amazing.

Afterwards we made the dreaded run back into Jackson to do what EJ referred to as “Combat Grocery Shopping”. Frank doesn’t go in the grocery store because he figures the store is crowded enough with him clogging up the works too. Plus he has a very low tolerance for people who block the aisles and are oblivious to the presence of others. So let’s just say it’s better for everybody if he doesn’t go into the store.

To avoid having to drive back to the RV through the circus called Jackson one more time, EJ finds us a way around that mess. But even here obliviousness is rampant. Trailers are prohibited on this road, but you can see the van on the right is, yep you guessed it, pulling a trailer. The young lady manning the booth was very upset that they slipped by before she saw the trailer.

We are craving a hike away from the crowds and EJ is hoping to see some wildlife. The popular trails are out of the question as we don’t enjoy “Combat Hiking” where you are elbow to elbow on the trail with others. If we want to hike in a crowd, we’ll just go to downtown Jackson. But Frank does some research and thinks there may be a trail along Clear Creek way out past Kelly. Since there is no mention of the trail in the park literature, hopefully it won’t be crowded. Along the way EJ spots a Pronghorn.

Then we drive by the Gros Ventre Slide. In 1925, following the melt from a heavy snow pack, weeks of rain and earthquake tremors the land slide occurred. It blocked the Gros Ventre River and formed Lower Slide Lake

We found a little shade and set up for a picnic. In the shade it’s very comfortable and even a little breezy. The view is awesome.

Then we continued on to our hike destination admiring the hills and colors along the way.

There ended up being a fairly well worn trail right next to the creek. It wandered through a couple of campgrounds while hugging the creek most of the way. The only folks we encountered were 2 fly fishermen and a couple of sunbathers. Nice and quiet, just the way we like it.

After our walk it felt good to peel off our boots and socks and go for a wade in the creek.

On the way back to Big Guy we passed a herd of horses enjoying to sprinklers. We guess you could say they were enjoying horse showers.

We saw very few animals this time, and no Bison. Which struck us as odd because when we were last here it was the same time of the year almost to the day. We wonder if it is because of the onslaught of tourists that the critters are staying away. Mormon Row goes right through a prime Bison range. Last time we saw herds of them here. This time, nothing. Every where in the park and town we went there were many more people this time than last time.

The next day, wanting to see what a local town looked like that wsn’t over run by tourists, we took a trip to Victor, Idaho. Wow! What a difference! No frantic pace. Folks are genuinely friendly. No crowds to deal with. We found a tiny home community and drove through it looking for that perfect spot. We wandered the downtown area, had a wonderful burger and fresh cut fries with fry sauce. They claim the fry sauce is uniquely Idahoan, but it is a mixture of mayonnaise, ketchup, and secret spices. And it is quite tasty.

Well that worked up a thirst and it was time to find the local brewery. It turns out Victor has 2 breweries. Grand Teton and Wildlife. The second was closed when we drove by so we stopped by Grand Teton. It was the perfect setting, sitting on the porch, mountains in the background, sipping a couple of micro-brews.

On the way back to Jackson we did a little sight seeing. Never did figure what this big wall was on top of the mountain.

The Cliff Creek fire still burns in the distance.

Black Eyed Susan?

EJ has a mischievous grin on her face. No telling what she’s been up to.

Then it’s back to the traffic to Jackson.

To lighten the mood we enjoy some purple wildflowers.

One final look at the Antler Arch at the park in Jackson and we’re on our way to Idaho.