November 4/11 - The Beginning - Bounding the Borders

As many of you know - we (Barb and Jim) decided some time ago to start working on our “Bucket List” of things to do before we croak or get too ill t do them all. We hope that this will inspire our friends and readers to do the same.

Now we had been working on some of this and dreaming about it for some time. In fact it was just two winters ago that we (inside of a month) came up with an idea. We rented our home to friends who needed one; and we left in January 2010 for almost 6 months of travel in Europe.

So knowing that we rarely plan far ahead we decided to take this winter (2011/2012) and travel in a RV to places that had weather much warmer than Calgary. In Jim’s words we had decided to “opt out of winter” and travel during our frigid months to warm places. We live in Cochrane (we call it Calgary for ease sake) and love it there and will likely always have our home base in Calgary. Its one of the safest places in the world, our family lives there (plus our new Grandson) and the economy is likely one of the best in these times of the intertwined economies of the now unknown world economy. Add to that living in the Calgary area during summer is just awesome we love it (minus the winters)!

Now knowing that we often don’t plan to far in advance winter was approaching and we hadn’t bought an RV for this “Opting Out of Winter” idea. We wandered all over looking at RV’s for sale and even went to Thorsby (near Edmonton) one day to look at one. We couldn’t seem to make up our minds or find what really made us excited?

On the September long weekend our Son (Steven) got married to Brittany out on Salt Spring Island (west coast) so we added a week onto that trip and went down to Oregon for a break.

Four days after we got back home Barb found out that there was a “SnowBird RV Show” in Abbottsford BC, so we jumped in the car and went back down to the coast. While we were there gleaning all the information we could Barb found what looked to be a great RV for sale; but it was all the way down in Seattle, Washington!

You guessed it; we jumped in the car the next morning and drove to Seattle. Well needless to say it was “Love at first sight.” As we drove up the driveway of the Seller’s beautiful acreage in rural Renton, Washington we were both making up our minds that this was likely “the one!”

The new Rig! (The day we bought it in Seattle, 32 Ft Fleetwood Bounder, Class A Motorhome)

You have to understand that we have gone back and forth on almost every type of RV available; from the fuel miser Class B Vans to Class C Motor-homes, then Fifth wheels and trucks all the way back to Class A motor-homes where we originally started dreaming.

As we approached this RV for sale in Renton we looked at each other and once inside made the decision this was actually “the one!”

It was/is a “Class A” motor-home called a “Fleetwood, Bounder.” We knew that a “Bounder” was a good choice as close friends of ours owned one at one time and we even travelled in it together to Oregon once. It’s a well built brand and known for its reliability.

The “negotiations” began & ended; the deposit was made and we told the Sellers’ we’ll be back in a couple of weeks to pick her up!

Now if you haven’t bought a vehicle in the USA to import into Canada there’s a few things you need to know and do. The whole scenario looks a little daunting to the newbie’s doing this but Jim says after all has been said and done he’d do it again for a car or an RV.

Once the Bureaucracies’ have all been dealt with, the GST paid and Inspections done we finally made it happen. “Bounder Buddy” finally became ours and was legal in Canada! The pressure had been mounting since before we bought “Bounder” because we wanted to be south and out of town before snowfall so we set October 31 as our deadline for departure!

After all the inspections, reviews and paperwork there was no time to rest. We had to start getting the house ready to leave, the Dog (Romeo) needed shots and needless to say Barb needed her hair done too!

Packing was the farthest thing from our mind but I'm sure our neighbors’ were happy to see it all finished and the “Bounder Couple” finally gone from the street which again didn’t happen on our scheduled date and time!

As it turned out we finally left on Thursday November 3^rd, a day late and not until about one or two in the afternoon. We headed south bound and we were much relieved to have beaten winter’s arrival – no snow!

Now you might be wondering why we were so worried about beating the snow? A few years ago; friends of ours decided to go RVing “Full Time” and one year they too were late leaving Calgary. They got stuck in winter’s grasp with tanks of propane burning off by the day (for heat) and their slides (walls that slide open to allow more room once parked) frozen stuck in the open position.

After seeing what happened to them we certainly didn’t want to share that same experience. Jim just wanted to get going!

So as we headed towards the south the next potential “Hurdle” was at the American Border with US Customs & Immigration. The reason we were wondering how they would react to us is because we were travelling in “two separate vehicles!”

Remember we said we were under the gun and running out of time? Well one of the things we didn’t get done was the “hook-up” for a “TOAD!” Now you’re likely wondering what the heck is a “TOAD?” That’s RVers lingo for the vehicle that you tow behind your motorhome.

As it turned out our Honda can’t be “flat towed” which means with all four wheels down on the ground using a tow-bar setup. So our other option was a “Dolly!” Now as Jim’s theory of relativity goes – you can never find a decent “Dolly” when you need one! This theory held true as we were rushing ever so close towards our departure day. So to make a longer story short; Barb drove the Honda and Jim and Romeo shared driving duties with the Bounder!

As we hit the border on Thursday evening the motorhome barley fit through the lane approaching the booth. The US Officer at the booth began to ask the usual questions and I courageously explained that my wife was in the car behind us. He didn’t bat an eye and only cared about our potential possession of weapons and vegetables. Away we went! Barb got a similar interview and too was blown through the crossing and we were in America for our first ever full winter! I should add here that we plan on being home for Christmas with our children and Grandson.

I could bore you with more and more stories on our trip south but I’ll summarize it from here on:

We spent the first night in Great Falls, Montana doing what RVers call “Dry Camping.” That means no “hookups for sewer, water or electricity. That’s ok with us as we are totally self contained.

The next day we spent the night in a “Flying J” truck stop with about 60 or so Truckers, most of which were running their diesel engines all night as it was getting pretty cold! We found out quickly that “wax ear plugs” can be our best friend!

Our third night on the road was spent sleeping in southern Utah where we ended up parked in the yard of a Trucking and Diesel Shop. The best part that night was; it was right across the street from the best pizza we had ever eaten!

Now a few things need to be mentioned here. If you know Jim at all; he has to have his morning shower EVERY single morning. For Jim this is as important as his morning coffee.

The problem was that we had to “winterize” the RV back home before leaving because of the cold weather coming. As a result we had no water on this trip! We bought jugs of water so that we had some to drink, wash our faces and brush our teeth with. As we all know Barb stays beautiful even without a shower but after day number 4 Jim was starting to look a little rough!

As the days went by Jim would walk into Truck Stops and even the biggest, hairiest truckers would step aside – just to let Jim pass!

Now; some might think it was the odor that Jim was emitting from not showering but Jim says in all honesty – it must have been that “mean beard” I was beginning to garner! Needless to say after reaching Phoenix which was on Sunday night (730 pm) one of Jim's most sought after chores was to have a nice warm shower and shave! Next time we do this - we will make sure to de-winterize before leaving and load up with enough “shower water” for use while on the road!

So as noted 3.5 days after leaving home we arrived in Phoenix.

A few things were learned along the way and I feel we have to share them with you:

1. Do not pay attention to fuel bills when driving a “Big Ole Motorhome” it serves no useful purpose!
2. We used “Walkie Talkies” for communications which was a really good idea. What the bad part was and Jim learned it quickly: Do not sing to your spouse over the air when on the road driving alone, no matter how tired you are!
3. Sleeping in Truck Stops is not a bad thing unless there’s a Wal-Mart nearby!
   We slept in one Wal-Mart once - that had more RV’s sleeping in their lot than all the campgrounds in the state!

This trip we decided to purchase an American cell phone. It was not only affordable to buy but the plans down here are very reasonable compared to Canada’s “rip-off cell systems.”

Speaking of communications we have two more phones which do our Wi-Fi & Email, a Lap Top, a Scanner, Fax, and Photocopier/Printer too! Now we don’t have internet all the time. We have to get free WiFi at coffee shops or.... At our current resort we walk over to the Community Center to get free WiFi so that we can check and send emails.

Our first day in Phoenix was a little bit off what our dreams had told us it would be. With all the trips down here we had never experienced clouds or rain. Well for our first two days here they were having un-seasonable weather and the cool rain ended up still being a welcome event.

Today (Day three in Phoenix) as I write this Blog I must say the weather was awesome. It was likely about 70F and not a cloud in the sky! Jim worked out in the “yard” all day in a T shirt - which means outside on the Motorhome doing windows and maintenance.

In the morning (Weds, Nov 9^th) we move on to the Phoenix International Raceway over on the SW corner of town. We will be “Dry Camping” at the race track and joined by Jim’s lifelong (they grew up together) friend Fred who resides in Huntington Beach, California.

Ryan & Fred at the Races!

So we will be staying here (get this $60.00 a week) and attending all the NASCAR races up and including Sunday’s main NASCAR event.

Nation Wide Race Series at PIR

We will be pulling out on Monday and looking for a new place to live. One idea will be over to Mesa which is on the east side of Phoenix so that we can go to Camping World! If you are a “Camper” you need to experience “Camping World” Jim loves it there!

One of the great things about living this way is that we have no real schedule.
We don’t know where or what we will be doing for next week but maybe we will find something to like for a few days or maybe even a few weeks?

We will know more when next week happens. We hope you are all doing well and staying at least somewhat warm!

Saturday at the races (NASCAR) with frm L to R Ryan, Gary and Jim in the back.

PS: We wont have email until Monday or Tuesday next week.

Ciao!