We Are Here ( Apache Junction, AZ )

We made it to Apache Junction on the 10th of November. Since our return, we've gotten back into the routine here at Shiprock RV Park. The weather has been perfect with daytime highs ranging from the mid 70's to the mid 80's.
We've spent more than a few days on the golf courses in the area, and have done our fair share of dining out, We just got back (yesterday) from a couple of days at Parker, AZ. with a group of 20 from the park. We played 18 holes each day, and stayed at the Blue Water Resort on the Colorado River. We all had a good time.
It's only 3 weeks until we head back to Seattle for 8 days. We will have quite a bit to look at, and quite a few decisions to be made at the new (old) house. Work has been progressing well there, and we are looking forward to seeing it, and everybody back home. The weather will probably be a little hard to adjust to as we've only seen rain once or twice since we left on the 1st of September.
We've been neglecting the blog, but there really hasn't been too much happening. We may be getting too comfortable with this lifestyle. We haven't even been taking many pictures.

Heading Accross New Mexico

Sunset at The Park

All Set Up Again

We'll try to do better, Ernie

Back In Texas

On Saturday October 27th, we left Savannah and headed to New Orleans. We spent Sunday wandering around New Orleans, and Monday morning we headed west to Duson, Louisiana. Monday evening we all went out for some good Cajun cooking and a little Zydeco music. Joyce and I had been to this restaurant 4 years ago, and we thought it was worth another visit. Everybody seemed to enjoy it, and some even spent quite a bit of time on the dance floor. On Tuesday, we hooked up with a local Swamp Tour guide for a 2 hour tour and dissertation on life on the swamps and bayous of Louisiana. It was another big hit among the tourists from Washington and Idaho. After the swamp Tour we headed over to Avery Island and took the Tabasco factory tour. Had a little lunch and learned all we needed to know about Louisiana's #1 pepper sauce.
Wednesday morning Joyce and Mike, & Jim and Marcella took off for Corpus Cristi, Texas. Joyce and I stuck around for one more day in Duson. We went to Breaux Bridge and checked out antique stores, and relaxed a little after our busy schedule the past couple of weeks.
Thursday morning we headed off to Carmine, Texas. We checked out a couple of antique stores, then found a place to eat. The next morning we left for Austin. We got together with Kristin and Cody Friday evening, and went to dinner a a chicken place that was very good. Saturday Joyce and Kristin went to Ikea while I took care of a few things. I even got propositioned by a hooker while getting gas in the car! That evening we went to dinner again with Kristin and Cody, Cody's parents, & his sister and her boyfriend. After dinner we taught them (Kristin & Cody) how to play fast track. And true to form, the guys won all 3 games.
Sunday evening we went to Kristin and Cody's for dinner, and played a new game (for us) called Banana grams. Joyce and I got skunked on that one.
Today (Monday) Joyce and I went to Lockhart to have lunch at the most well known BBQ joint in Texas, Kreutz's. The food was all very good, and I would say that other than the Salt Lick, this is the best BBQ I have had in Texas. This evening we will be meeting up with the kids again for dinner at a Cajun place in Austin. Tomorrow we'll be back on the road heading to Fort Stockton, Texas. Wednesday we will be in Carlsbad, New Mexico and joined back up Mike and Joyce, & Jim and Marcella. Thursday we'll see Carlsbad Caverns, and Friday we've got a tour scheduled at the Spaceport in the White Sands Proving Grounds near Alamogordo, New Mexico. Saturday we all head for Apache Junction, and that will bring to a close this phase of "The Big Adventure".

A shop on Bourbon Street

Downtown New Orleans

Loisiana Bayou. This would make a great screen saver.

Since 1900, but the building's only a little over 10 years old

Like it says, "No Kidding"

Where to start!

Look for the next update from Hot, Dry, & Sunny Apache Junction.     Ernie

Getting Out Of Harms Way

This morning we will be heading out of Charleston,South Carolina as Hurricane Sandy approaches. We will be somewhere in the vicinity of Talahassee, Florida this evening, then we plan on staying just north of New Orleans for a couple of days. When we came through Louisiana in 2008, New Orleans was being evacuated due to Hurricane Ike.
We've been in Charleston since Monday. The weathers been warm and humid. We took a bus tour of the city, and a boat tour of the harbor. Wednesday was spent on the golf course, where it became obvious that laying off golf does not improve ones game. We've only played a few times since starting this trip, which will be 8 weeks ago tomorrow. Yesterday we drove down to Savanah, Georgia for the day. We took a Trolley Tour there. Neat old city. We could spend a lot more time around here, but our goal is to be in Austin, Texas next Friday. We eliminated our planned stop in Asheville to make more time for Charleston/Savanah. In retrospect, we probably stayed about a week too long in Maine. It would have been nice to have more time between here and Austin.
When we leave Austin, we are going to head to Alamagordo, New Mexico on the way to Apache Junction. We don't expect that this route will be much different than I-10 to El Paso, but it's worth a try.

Taking The Bus Tour

Fort Sumter From The Tour Boat

One Of The Town Squares In Savannah

Joyce;s Chocolate Soda At Leopold's in Savannah

Time to move on, and I'll post some pictures this evening.   Ernie

Heading South

We spent a few  days in Amish Country in the Gettysburg area of Pennsylvania, followed by a couple days in Maryland near Washington DC. We're now getting ready to head south to Williamsburg, Virginia for the next 4 days.
The amount of history in this area is phenomenal. Houses and buildings that date back to the 1700's, Civil War battlefields all around, and sites where President Lincoln made speeches. We could easily stay here for a month, and still not take it all in. We will have to come back to this area again, and spend more time. The Northern U.S. and the New England area have been better than anticipated. It's so different from the Northwest.
We spent a couple of days at Gettysburg touring the battlefield and to take in the visitor center. We also checked out some of the surounding communities. Then we moved closer to Washington DC to visit our old Seattle neighbors, the Boyers in DC. They are on a year long sailing adventure, and will soon be heading to the Bahama's. We visited the Department of Engraving to watch money being printed, then went to the Holocaust Museum. DC is another place that we need to come back to. So much to see.
The weather should be warming back up to the mid 70's as we begin heading south to Williamsburg, Virginia. From there we'll be headed to Ashville, North Carolina. Then it will be Charleston, South Carolina followed by Savanah, Georgia. By the 1st of November we'll be heading West toward Arizona.
Meanwhile, the house is progressing nicely back home, and we're anxious to see it in December.

Washington Monument

Aboar the "Anything Go's" with the Boyers

Gettysburg Battlefield

Robert E. Lee Memorial

Culture Clash

What a life;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;Ernie

Leaving New England

Yesterday we left Maine and began heading Southwest toward Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The plan is to stay 3 nights there to take in the history of the area.
We ended up staying in Wells, Maine for 12 nights. We took the commuter train into Boston on Monday. Then we took the subway out to the JFK Library. We were a little dissapointed in the library. It wasn't nearly as interesting as the LBJ or the Reagan  libraries. After the Library we took the subway downtown and had lunch at Cheers. The TV show was filmed in Hollywood, but looked like the real bar.
We drove in to Boston earlier in our stay and took the Fenway Park tour. $28 to park the car was just like home. It is the 100th anniversary of the park. Reminded me of old Sick's Stadium with the columns blocking the views from some of the seats.
This past weekend we drove out to the very tip of Cape Cod. We learned that this is where the US Coast Guard got it's start. The weather cooperated most of the day. It's been cool and wet about half of the time here. But looking ahead, it's 70's and 80's once we get into Virginia and continue heading south, then west to Arizona.
The Fall colors have been less than anticipated. Maybe it's been a bad year.


Fenway Park (obviously)

The Ladies with a unique sign in Maine

The Colors (again obviously)

Mayflower Recreation

Us at Cheers

Heading Down The Road

 Getting ready to head out, so I'll add some pictures tonight.    Ernie

Heading South

Today we begin to head in a southerly direction. We're going about 150 miles to the southeastern corner of Maine, to the town of Wells. We will be about 50 miles North of Boston. The plan is to stay in Wells for the next 2 weeks, as there is plenty to explore from there. While there, we will plot out our route down the East Coast.
It's definately feeling like Fall here. The trees are turning colors fast, and we woke up this morning to a pretty heavy frost. Daytime high temperatures have been in the mid 60's. The past couple of days have been sunny, but there's a bit of a bite to the wind. We've managed to make it out onto the Golf Course a couple times, and that's still a work in progress (for me).
Wednesday Joyce and I took a drive to Campobello International Park. This was the summer home for the Roosevelt's. FDR spent his summers thereas a child, then used it as his retreat during his presidency. This "summer cottage" has 14 bedrooms! The property is on an island which is part of New Brunswick, Canada. There was a little bit of money there. From there, we took a drive inland where we drove about 125 miles through the trees, back to Ellsworth.





The Roosevelt "cottage"

Lobster Pot Floats

Loster Chairs

    And we're off,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Ernie

The "Maine" Event



Joyce at Camden harbor

 On Monday we left the Niagara Falls area and made it to  Northeastern New York State.  We left the Great State of New York on Tuesday, and passed through Vermont and New Hampshire, and rolled on into Maine. Wednesday was to leave us a short ( 175 mile ) run to Ellsworth, Maine. But, the gremlins popped up with slide out issues for both Mike and Joyce, & Jim and Marcella. I had just commented the day before how we had made it all this way with no issues! The good thing was that it wasn't us with the problem. This delayed our departure by a couple hours, but we all made it to Ellsworth by 5:00 p.m.
We went out to dinner, and I had my first lobster in Maine. It was a one pounder, and quite a bit of work to get from shell to stomach.  The following day the guys played 18 holes at a nearby golf course, and the ladies went shopping, etc.  That evening we went to a recommended lobster joint where I ordered the 2 lobster dinner ( 1 lb.each)  for $17.00  What a deal, and I'm getting the hang of separating the meat from the shell.
Friday we took a drive into Bar Harbor with Jim and Marcella, while Mike and Joyce (Sr,) visited Joyce's relatives. Today Jim and Marcella headed north into Canada to visit Nova Scotia, and Mike & Joyce were off visiting more relatives. So Joyce and I took a drive down the coast to do a little sight seeing.
The weather has not been cooperating the past couple of days, and reminds us of Seattle in November. We seem to be right in the clouds. It's been foggy, drizzly, and rainy. The forecast is calling for sunshine on Monday and Tuesday, so we'll try to take advantage of that.

The colors are just beginning to turn, but should be full blown by the first of October. We'll be heading south to Wells, Maine on the 28th, and will be staying there for 2 weeks. We're going to try to take a tour  of Boston;s Fenway Park in our travels.

Tomorrow's another day.     Ernie



Foggy Camden harbor

How many have taken this ride?



LIVE!! FROM NEW YORK, IT"S,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,joyce & ernie

Today (Saturday), finds us in New York. We are about 25 miles from Niagara Falls. Tomorrow we will go over to the falls to check it out. Upstate New York isn't what I had expected. It;s very green with rolling hills. Much like the hill country in Texas. We drove through the "Amish Trail" along the way, and saw several of the buggy's on the road. Some of the houses are from the early 1800's, if not from the late 1700's. We could easily spend a few days here, but not this time, as we are scheduled to be in Maine on the 18th.
Yesterday we were in Cleveland where we spent the day at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. We could have spent a second day here to take it all in. Cleveland was a pleasant surprise. We did not see any graffiti anywhere. Yesterday was also the first day that we've seen rain since we left home.

At The Henry Ford Museum

The Lincoln JFK was riding in on Nov, 22nd 1963

Us again. At The Rock N Roll Hall Of Fame

Thursday we spent the day at The Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan. It is a really well done museum that was started by Henry Ford in 1929. It documents the history of the Airplane, and the Train, as well as the car. All makes and models of cars were represented. The cover of the museum brochure had a Desoto on it. The young lady at the desk had never heard of Desoto, and assumed that it was a Ford model. There was also lots of machinery from the 1800's and early 1900's. I had never seen steam engines of that size. Hard to believe that someone had the ability to build them back then. They'd never be able to today.  Monday will find us on the last leg of the Journey to the Atlantic Ocean in Maine. We should be there on Wednesday. We're all looking forward to Lobster!

Out Of Minnesota

Today finds us in Michagamme, Michigan. We left Minnesota in the rear view mirror as we headed northeast. We spent 4 nights parked at Barney and Ginny's in Pequot Lakes, Minnesota. While there, we played some Fast Track, took a drive out to Bob & Sheila's, got in a round of golf, fired up Barney's smoker to make a rib dinner for 12, and put a dent in Barney's Apricot Brandy.  Everybody had a good time!

All the kids around the campfire

The view from our campsite

Winter Arizonan's in Minnesota

Tomorrow we will be staying in St. Ignace, Michigan. From there, we will be crossing the Mackinac Bridge which crosses the point where Lake Michigan and Lake Huron join. Wednesday should find us in  Monroe, Michigan where we will visit the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn. From there it's on to Cleveland for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, then Niagra Falls, New York. Then we'll be hanging out in Maine until about mid October.  Stay Tuned.

Mt. Rushmore & Devil's Tower

We spent two nights at Mountain View Campground in Sundance, Wyoming. Yesterday (Tuesday) we visited Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota, and Devils Tower in Wyoming. We also visited Deadwood, South Dakota. We had a full day of sightseeing, and to top it off, had a fantastic dinner at a small cafe in Aladdin, Wyoming.

Today we continued our eastward journey, and at this time we are in Aberdeen, South Dakota. Tomorrow will find us in Pequot Lakes, Minnesota. We will be visiting some friends from Shiprock RV Park in Arizona for a few days. From there we will be heading toward Detroit to visit the Henry Ford Museum.

Back On The Road

We finally got the last box packed and moved out of the house Friday afternoon, and hit the road about 4:30 in the afternoon. We couldn't believe our good fortune in the lack of traffic until it ground to a halt just east of North Bend. It took close to 2 hours to make it over Snoqualmie Pass, but when we made it to Easton, it was wide open again. We made it to Moses Lake about 9:30 Friday night. We pulled out of Moses Lake Saturday morning, and are currently in Missoula, Montana. We will be heading for Reed Point, Montana today. From there we will head to Sundance, Wyoming where we will stay 2 nights to take in Devils Tower National Park, Mt. Rushmore, etc. While there we will be able to get the coach organized, as we kind of just threw everything in Friday afternoon just to get going.

The trip to Missoula was uneventful, under sunny skies with temperatures in the low 80's. We woke up to about 40 degrees this morning. The sun is shining, and soon it will be back in the 70's. So in order to get ready to hit the road, I'll just add a few select pictures, and update from Sundance.

The "New" House

We took possession of the "new" house on Monday the 13th.  On Thursday the 16th we had a permit in hand to begin the remodel. We started the demolition on Tuesday the 21st, and by Friday the 24th, the house was gutted in and out, and the yard was cleaned up. The attached pictures show the before & after.
Joyce has been busy getting the "old" house packed up as we have to be out of here and on the road on the 31st. Kristin has been here helping with the packing. She leaves for Austin next Wednesday, and by then things should be in pretty good shape.So far I have just moved some of the garage stuff as I've been busy at the "new" house. We've pretty much made the decisions relating to new window size and locations, siding type and color, etc. so the work can progress in our absence. We will be heading out in the motorhome on the 31st, headed for the east coast. When we come up from Arizona in December, the house will have new windows, new siding, new electrical, new plumbing, new heating system, and sheet rocked. Then we will need to know what we want to do for cabinets, fixtures, appliances,  trim, paint colors, etc. When we get back from Arizona in the spring, we're hoping that it will really be a finished "new" house. We have total confidence that Randy will get it done.

After

During

During

Before

After

After

Before

I will be bringing the motorhome down this weekend as we need to get it loaded up too. We are scheduled to be in Maine on the 18th of September, and plan on staying there for 3 or 4 weeks. Then we will move down the east coast where we will most likely pick up I-10 to head west. We will probably arrive in Apache Junction around the middle of November. We'll be traveling with 2 other couples. Maybe then, we'll be able to sleep more than 4 or 5 hours a night!
Don't know why the picture post in the middle of the text, but here are some before & after shots.

Renters

We are now officially renters. Our sale was final yesterday (Friday), and our "buy" will be final on Monday. In the interim we are renting back our ex-house until the end of the month. The 31st will find us headed east in the motorhome with the state of Maine in the windshield. It seems a little odd to know that we no longer own the house that we've occupied for 20 years. It looks the same, but seems weird.
As for the replacement house, we will have possession on Monday. With a little luck, we should have a permit to begin the remodel work on Wednesday. We plan to start work as soon as possible, and consult with the Electrician, Plumber, and the HVAC person before we head off into the sunrise. If all goes per plan, the house should be habitable by the time we get back from Arizona in the spring. We have a lot of confidence that Randy will "Git Er done".
On another front, Kristin and boyfriend Cody arrived from Austin Thursday night. This is Cody's first visit to Seattle, and he's trying to get acclimatized. Seems odd for someone to be wearing a long sleeved flannel shirt when the temperature is around 80. He's used to 100 degrees with more humidity. He finds it interesting that he can wear a jacket in August. But for me, it's perfect shorts, sandals, and Hawaiian shirt weather. Cody heads back to Austin this Tuesday, and Kristin is here until the 27th. We'll be putting her to work with some packing and moving. Since we're only going about half a mile, we can do it all with a pickup truck.
Today we're having a BBQ for some of Kristin's friends. Josh, Brynn, and Colt will be here. He was 2 weeks old yesterday, and starting to look a little bigger. Mom and Dad aren't getting much rest yet, as he's on a pretty intense feeding schedule. These will be their "good old days!!"
Enough for now, and I'll try to get some pictures of the "new house" for the next edition. Ernie

A Big Day

We were just getting settled in last night  for another exciting evening of TV watching about 9:30pm and the phone rings.  It's Brynn telling us  Josh is on his way to her workplace to pick her up to take her to Overlake Hospital in Bellevue.  Seems as tho baby will make his appearance earlier than expected.  So along with Brynn's parents we settled in for a long night of waiting.  After over 10 hours of labor, Colt Elijah Fowler arrived  on July  27, 2012 at 8:40 a.m. weighing exactly 7#0oz and 19" long. 

He is beautiful from head to toe with lots of hair of a golden hue with a tinge of red.  Nurses said if he had waited for his due date he would have been an 8 or 9# baby and longer, so Brynn was happy he arrived early.  Brynn did really well thruout the process along with encouragement from Josh.  Both of them are overjoyed at their new addition.  Now granddog Jake will have a brother.

I'll also include a picture of Ernie and I with the 'sold' sign outside our house.   We took this same picture 20 years ago when we bought it (I just have to find it!).