LEAVING DURANGO

What a wonderful week I had in Durango! As I mentioned previously, my condo was right downtown and I could walk nearly everywhere. I finally got adjusted to the altitude, so walking wasn't as difficult and, besides, it was good exercise! I attended to alot of "duties" this week, including getting the oil changed and tires rotated in the Roadtrek, getting a pedicure, a haircut, and doing some laundry. I think I visited every shop in Durango at least twice, bought a couple pieces of jewelry, had a couple of drinks at the Diamond Belle Saloon and listened to the Ragtime Piano Player. It's a really fun place that we enjoyed during our summer in Durango and we took all our guests there, too. On Wednesday I took a van trip to Silverton which is about an hour and 10 minute drive over some of the most beautiful scenery in the country, but on some very dangerous roads with lots of horseshoe curves, and no shoulder! It is not a drive I would do by myself, especially in the Roadtrek! I had lunch in Silverton at Handlebars, which was always a favorite of ours, did a little shopping, and then took the train back to Durango. The Durango Silverton Railroad is a coal based narrow gauge railroad and takes 3 1/2 hours to return to Durango. It's a beautiful ride through the mountains, close to the snowcapped peaks, past many waterfalls, and rocky canyons. Some of us saw a brown bear which was a real treat! It was a gorgeous day and even at the higher elevations, I only needed a coat for a short period of time. Durango had unusually warm weather at the beginning of the week, but the nights were always pleasantly cool. I left Durango this morning and it was cool all day long. I know this won't last, so I'm enjoying it while I can. I went to the Trimble Hot Springs one day which has a heated Olympic Size Pool and two natural hot springs, one at 110 degrees which is too hot, and one at 104 degrees which is just right. While there I decided to get a massage and what a treat that was! My neck and shoulders were really tense, probably from all the driving I've been doing, and a soak in the hot springs afterwards made me relax even more.

Saturday night I went to a Melodrama called "The Tavern." A melodrama is a Victorian stage melodrama featuring a hero, the villain, the heroine, an aged parent and a comic man. "The Tavern" was exceptionally good, well acted and very entertaining! Rafters and kayakers were everywhere over the weekend for "Animas River Days" and the water is still flowing freely from the melting snow. The water was really brown at the beginning of the week but has started to clear.

On Friday I went to Bayfield, a small town about 20 miles from Durango, to visit my cousin Jackie Hanson and her husband, Ted. I met her through my genealogy research about 10 years ago and she's a third cousin. Ted was a country western singer years ago and Jackie was the vocalist for his band. They traveled all over the western part of the country in a bus for 20 years and then settled in Colorado. They maintain a 300 acre ranch now that belongs to a woman and her family from Chicago. Jackie and Ted have their own house on the ranch and the family owned home has 6 bedrooms and, of course, is much larger. Ted, with the help of some ranch hands, takes care of the property and Jackie takes care of the guest house. They had an elk come to visit them this past winter that stayed in the barn with some of the horses. He still appears regularly, but he was nowhere in the sight the day I was there. I hadn't seen them for six years and we had a really nice visit. Jackie broke her hip about a month ago, but she's doing well, although moving around slowly.

As I begin my trek home, I leave with mixed emotions. The mountains here are so beautiful and look more like a picture than a reality. It was a wonderful trip, but I'm looking forward to going home and spending some time at the beach now that summer is in full swing! I just wish it wasn't so far from the East coast to the rockies! Depending on WiFi service along the way, I will try to send another Blog; otherwise, I will send one after I get home.

DURANGO, CO - MY FINAL DESTINATION

I ended my last blog in Estes, Park, CO - nearly a week ago. I left on Wednesday, May 26 and I spent that night in Denver with Beverly Winters, a friend I had met while taking ballroom dance lessons in New Bern, NC. She moved to Colorado nearly three years ago, so we had a lot of catching up to do and she treated me to a delicious dinner at the Washington Park Grill, a great restaurant in Denver. I left there the next morning for Buena Vista, CO. It was a relatively short drive but through a very mountainous area which greatly made me appreciate being a North Carolina "Flatlander!" The views were beautiful but mostly 20 to 30 mph curves with steep inclines and 6 to 7% declines so I didn't have much of an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of those mountains! I had intended to spend a couple of nights in Buena Vista but there wasn't much to do there so I spent the one night and headed to Durango a day early. The campground in Buena Vista was very nice and I've attached a picture of my campsite. Some of you reading this may not have seen my Roadtrek, so this will give you a good glimpse of what I've been driving these past three weeks! The picture of the snow on the mountains that I've attached was taking while I was driving (I know!) over Wolf Creek Pass and at the crest there was snow everywhere. There was nowhere to pull over to take a picture but I wanted to show how close I was to the snow!

I arrived in Durango on Friday, 4 June and this is my final destination. I will be heading home on Sunday but will take a week to get back to North Carolina. My husband and I worked in Durango for 4 1/2 months 10 years ago at the Alpen Rose Campground. Durango is my favorite city - and I've been to many - so it holds a special place in my heart. I spent two nights at that same campground and it's one of the nicest campgrounds I've ever been to. I walked through the downtown area and drove around - refamiliarizing myself with the area. The Animas River runs through Durango and right now it is raging with melted snow from the mountains. You can always see a raft or kayak on the water as rafting is a big business here and many places in this part of Colorado.

I'm in a timeshare now for the rest of the week and it's in a great location right downtown. I can walk to shops, restaurants, etc., instead of driving and trying to find a parking place. I drove to the Durango Ski Resort yesterday where they have many summer activities, including an alpine slide and chairlift, but not much is open except on the weekends until the end of June. It was a pretty drive, at least, with spectacular mountain views! I also stopped at Honeyville, a shop that produces their own honey in flavors like Amaretto, Maple Hazelnut, Strawberry, Cinnamon (their best seller) and it's great on toast or bagels. In fact, I think I'll have a bagel after I finish this blog!

Last night I stopped in at the Diamond Belle Saloon and listened to the Ragtime piano player. It was a fun crowd and just a short walk from here.

Tomorrow I'll be taking the train from Durango to Silverton, a 2 1/2 hour train ride on an historic steam train. I'll spend a couple of hours in Silverton, have lunch, and return by bus. We took this same train ride several times during the summer we lived here and the scenery is spectacular.

Durango is at an elevation of about 6500 feet and I'm slowly getting acclimated to the altitude. Days are warm but nights are refreshingly cool. Shops keep their doors open and most restaurants have outdoor seating since there really aren't many bugs here. It's really a delightful place! More later in the week! I hope you are all well.

This is my fifth and last night in beautiful Estes Park, CO. Not only are there snow-capped mountains surrounding the town, but around every corner are mountain streams filled with rushing water from the snow that is still melting. Fly fisherman abound and sports enthusiasts from hikers to bicyclists can be seen everywhere. This past weekend was Memorial Weekend and the town was bustling with tourists. The downtown area has many shops catering to the Western lifestyle, interspersed with restaurants, coffee shops, and many stores selling fudge, taffy or ice cream! There was a craft fair on the town square with some high end hand made items. The only thing I bought was a piece of stained glass made to look like an aspen leaf branch with five leaves. It's very pretty and almost looks like crushed leaves are inside the glass but the craftsman assured me it was all glass. This is the elk calving season and because of the close proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park, the elk and other wildlife can be seen almost anywhere in and around town. A sign upon entering the town remindsyou to watch for wildlife on every street in Estes Park. Many homes have wire around their plants and shrubs to prevent the elk from eating them. One day I saw five elk running on an actual running path at the edge of the highway. Yesterday there were four bull elk grazing at the side of the road and I was able to find a place at the side of the road to take some good pictures. That was an awesome sight! There are gophers running all over this campground and today one got inside an empty plastic cup that someone had thrown on the ground. It was so funny! Today I didn't see any elk but did get a picture of two deer in a residential district. It's been fun to drive around in search of wildlife!

Saturday night I attended a Chuckwagon Dinner right here in the campground and it was a delicious meal, followed by entertainment. We were served brisket, baked beans, coleslaw, corn bread and a brownie for dessert. Cowboy poets are popular here in the west and they tell stories and sing songs interspersed with bits of humor. Bill Barwick was the poet Saturday night, although he was more of a comedian than a singer and it was first class entertainment. I met a very nice couple from Nebraska who farm 6,000 acres of wheat in the western part of the State. DiAnna and I are already Facebook friends! If you're reading this, thanks again for your company, DiAnna and Roger!

Tomorrow I'm headed for Denver and will spend the night with a friend and then I'll be in Buena Vista, CO for two nights, followed by a week in Durango. Stay tuned for more Blogs to follow!

2010 SUMMER TRIP TO COLORADO

Friday, 28 May 2010


I've been traveling for 12 days now, and I'm finally finding time to write something on my blog. Many of you know that I left Morehead City on 17 May for a 5 week trip to Colorado, and I arrived in Estes Park, CO today! As I'm typing this I'm looking out my window at some snow- capped mountains and they are breathtakingly beautiful. I fell in love with Colorado at the age of 15 when my family and I came here on vacation. I can't tell you how many times we recalled our excitement at seeing the Rocky Mountains for the very first time! And I feel that same excitement every time I see them even after all these years!

I started my trip with a visit to Gary and Della Foster for two nights in the NC mountains in Maggie Valley. Della and I worked in the Headquarters Building together at MCAS Cherry Point for many years. They have a lovely home and we had fun catching up. Gary loves to cook and made some delicious meals. While he was at home making his own pasta, Della and I went shopping in Waynesville, a great little town with lots of neat shops and galleries. We also made a stop at the Steeplechase Olde English Toffee Shop. They have the best toffee ever!
After leaving Maggie Valley, I spent one night in a campground in Tennessee and then spent two nights at Doug and Patti Workman's in Bartlett, TN, a suburb of Memphis. When we moved to NC in 1978, Patti was a young Navy nurse and Doug was in the Marine Corps. We visited them at some of their duty stations including San Diego, Hawaii, and Bethesda and have made several visits to their Memphis home. Those of you who followed my blog last year may remember that I went to their daughter's wedding in Scranton, PA as part of my trip. Although Doug wasn't home, Patti and I had a good time visiting, and we even went to see a movie.
After another night in a campground, I spent two nights with my sister, Cheryl, in Rowley, IA. She and her husband. Buck, have driven a truck for many years and are only home two days a week, so I planned my visit to coincide with those days. When I left there on Tuesday morning, we were all headed in the same direction, so I met them at a truck stop on the way to Council Bluffs, IA where we had a late breakfast. I'm attaching a picture of them by their truck. Cheryl has a brace on her foot since she broke it several weeks ago. She says it doesn't hurt but it's just awkward to walk and sleep with it on.

Next stop was to visit my other sister, Jeanette and her husband, Joe, in Council Bluffs, IA. She took a day off work and we did a little sightseeing in Omaha which is right across the river. There's a new pedestrian bridge that you can walk across

from Iowa to Nebraska and I've included a couple of those pictures. You can actually stand in both States at the same time! There are some beautiful bronze sculptures in downtown Omaha depicting the pioneer life era. They are incredibly lifelike! One of them was made to look as if they were stuck in the mud and a little boy is behind pushing it. Jeanette insisted she take a picture of me pretending to push it, too, and I can't believe I'm going to attach it here. A rear shot is not my best image, but what the heck! We also went to an upscale Mall in West Omaha, ate at a nice restaurant, and rode the ferris wheel that's inside a sporting goods store called Scheel's.
Last night I was at a campground in Ogallala, NE and it was terribly windy with nothing but open prairie and nothing to break the wind. The speed limit is 75 but I could only go about 62 because this Roadtrek does not handle well in the wind. I got new shocks before I left and that did made a big difference, but the way it's built is not conducive to strong winds. In the midst of I-80 across Nebraska in all that wilderness and wind, a car from Florida passed me with two surfboards on top. I can't imagine where they were going unless it was to California!

This ends my first posting and the next one won't be too far behind! Saying hello to everyone from the beautiful Colorado Rocky Mountains!

I had some items in the refrigerator and since I was not plugged into electricity while staying at the Ramada Inn, I turned on the propane to keep everything cool. The frig works on electric, 12 volt or propane. However, when I checked the frig before I took the RT to the repair shop, it was not cool. The RT needs to be level so that the coolant is evenly distributed and will cool thoroughly, but it was on a slight slant and I guess that was the problem. I had more important things to worry about, so I just left everything in the frig and disposed of it later.

When I arrived at the repair shop, the mechanic determined they couldn't work on it because they didn't have a heavy duty lift. However, they called another store in their franchise that could look at it, but I would have to wait about an hour before they could get to it. I didn't care as long as SOMEONE looked at it! It was only about 7 miles away, and the owner was apologetic and wrote out the directions for me. When I arrived at the second shop, the manager assured me they would be happy to evaluate the situation but that there would be a wait. I told him it wasn't a problem - I was desperate! After about an hour, the mechanic asked me to explain the problem I had experienced the day before. He didn't see that anything was wrong with the caliper but did say that the mechanic who did the previous repair didn't clean it up very well, and there was alot of grease and other residue around that area. Twenty minutes later, they told me the RT was ready. The mechanic never did find a problem and could only assume the smoke was from the residue/grease and/or new brake pads. They didn't charge me anything! I was very thankful, but still a little leery of the whole situation. He test drove it and did alot of braking and didn't notice a problem with the steering which would be indicative of a caliper problem. I really did encounter some very nice people in that area with great customer service. Except for the woman in the campground, that is!

My next destination was Bristow, VA to spend a couple of days with my daughter, Lori, her husband, Chris, and 3 year old granddaughter, Hannah. I didn't experience any problems driving, just alot of construction and other traffic delays. At times, though, the RT just didn't feel right, and I will have it checked at the local Dodge dealer before I attempt any more long trips.

I had a nice visit with the kids and took care of Hannah all day on Thursday which was a treat for me! I had never had her for a whole day, and she's a well-behaved child and alot of fun! My son and his family live in that area, too, but their children were at Tae Kwon Do camp and had other things going on, so I will see them on the next visit.

I arrived home Friday afternoon 3,772 miles later, and I drove through 12 States and the province of Ontario, Canada. Gas prices averaged $2.58 per gallon. The lowest price was $2.37 in Kinston, NC and the highest was $2.79 in Leicester, NY. That does not include the $35 I spent for gas in Canada. I never could quite figure out how much it was per gallon since prices are listed in liters, but I believe it was around $3.80 per gallon.

Driving much of the time was not pleasant as I was mostly on Interstates and experienced alot of construction and delays and I had the added worry of mechanical problems on this trip. I think on future long distance trips I will re-think driving on Interstates, allow more time and take secondary routes. I'm getting older and my van is getting older so we need to pamper each other! The visits with family and friends, the wedding and 50th wedding anniversary celebration were all very special. I reunited with old friends at the rallies and made new friends and that's what life is all about! Next year I hope to go West again and will definitely create a blog for that trip as well. This was a new experience for me and a "chore" at times, but it was also fun and a great way to preserve the memories. I keep a daily handwritten journal, but I would not have elaborated as much with that. I hope you've enjoyed traveling along with me. Until next time.................................Ginger

WEDNESDAY, 19 AUG - LEAVING CANADA

Since I was only about 20 miles from the border, I had a leisurely drive and an easy border crossing once again. The agent asked me where I had been and where I was going and also asked for my license plate number. When I told her I had been to a Roadtrek Rally, she was very interested in the Roadtrek, wanted to know if I liked driving it, etc., since she was looking for something similar. She must have spent at least five minutes talking to me while vehicles were lining up behind me! I didn't have much Canadian money left which was lucky because, once again, I didn't see anywhere to exchange it. So I left with a $5 bill, some change which I can use in the States, and a couple of Loonies and a Toonie which I will keep for Show and Tell!

After driving in New York through quite a bit of construction I thought I smelled something again (as in the brakes!) but when I stopped to get gas, the smell has dissipated and I didn't see any smoke so I hoped it had been my imagination. Needless to say, I was a little paranoid after what had happened before and this was the most I had driven since the prior incident.

My plans were to stay at the Highland Campground near Clarks Summit, PA near Scranton and is rated fairly high in the Trailer Life Directory. Trailer Life has been my bible for selecting where to stay. It lists campgrounds by State and city and they are rated on a scale of 1 to 10 for: completeness of facilities/cleanliness and physical characteristics of restrooms and showers/visual appearance and environmental quality. I don't like to stay at a campground unless their restroom/showers are rated at least an 8. Even at that, some of them should be rated lower! This campground was rated: 7/8.5/8 which is pretty good ,and it was one of the few that was about midway between Canada and my daughter's in Virginia. I also picked up a nice brochure about the campground at the Pennyslvania Tourist Center. When I got off the Interstate headed for the campground, I was on narrow two lane roads with lots of curves and turns and I felt like I was headed for the middle of nowhere. I could not find the campground even though I was on the right road. I ended up going in a circle since the sign for the campground entrance was so small that I missed it! You would think with the amount of money they spent on advertising they would have spent more money to get a decent sign! I called the campground and gave the woman who answered the phone very specific info and landmarks as to where I was and she didn't have a clue! Well, with all the twists and turns and hills and valleys, the "smell" was returning - big time - and smoke was coming from the left front behind the tire! I went into panic mode since I couldn't find the campground and I knew I was several miles from civilization! Finally, I saw the small sign that led directly to the campground. The "office" was a small trailer and the woman I had spoken to earlier was at the desk. She was suffering from a "low sugar" attack, was very shaky and was drinking orange juice and trying to open a candy bar! (This is all funny to me now but was not at all humorous when it happened!) When I asked if they had a site for one night she asked if I had reservations which I didn't. She rolled her eyes and I thought she was going to tell me they didn't have anything available. More panic! She was unfriendly, disgruntled and trying to recover from her low blood sugar attack but she finally found a site for me for the night. I paid her and then asked if there was WiFi throughout the campground. She pointed to a picnic table OUTSIDE and said that's where the hookup was. Then she informed me that the bathrooms were right across from the site she had assigned me but that the showers were across from the office. I drove a short ways to find my campsite and saw that the sites were way at the bottom of a hill which meant I would have to walk a good distance to the showers and lug my laptop to the top of the hill to use WiFi and it looked like it was going to rain! Add to the fact that I had some kind of van problems! So I made a U-turn, didn't even stop to get a refund and left in pursuit of a motel! You can bet I will be writing a letter to the campground and also to Trailer Life about the false advertising!

My GPS directed me to a Hampton Inn about 6 miles away and the brakes were still hot but not as bad. The Hampton Inn was full but the clerk was nice enough to call the Ramada Inn next door and they had a vacancy. When I explained to the desk clerk that I had planned to stay at a campground but was having van problems and changed my mind, he took $10 off my bill. He also gave me a coupon for 10% off at Damon's restaurant next door. So I ended up with a nice room, cable TV, WiFI, a big bed and a great bathroom! It just cost me alot more than I had planned on!

On the way to the hotel, I noticed a tire/muffler/auto repair shop not too far away. I called them, told them my problem and they said to bring it in first thing in the a.m. In retrospect, I should have taken it directly there before I checked into the hotel, but it was late afternoon, I was afraid they wouldn't be able to fix it then, and I just didn't feel like dealing with it at that time. I had never heard of a caliper until two weeks ago and now it had come back to haunt me! It was the right caliper that had been replaced previously, plus new brake pads on both sides and it was the left side that was now smoking. In my limited technical knowledge, I suspected perhaps the left caliper had suddenly gone bad or that the repairs had not been done properly in Canada.

After a good night's sleep and a great free breakfast at the Ramada, I proceeded to see what was wrong with the van. This is continued on the next post.

MONDAY IN NIAGARA FALLS

Niagara has a shuttle that leaves from various points around the city, and you can ride it all day for just $6.00. It stops at the campground which is very convenient and I decided to take it in the a.m. since I wanted to see the Falls again. I had visited the tourist attractions when I was in Canada five years ago and did not ride the Maid of the Mist this time. One of the pictures is of passengers boarding the boat in their blue raincoats. It was a very hot, steamy day and I was amazed at the throngs of tourists lining the streets. I heard many different languages being spoken, so I'm assuming there were several different countries represented. I spent a long time watching the amazing Falls, did some shopping, had lunch and then headed for the Niagara Casino. When we registered for the Rally we were given a rebate in Canadian money because of the exchange rate, and what better way to get rid of it! I realize that's not the right mindset, but I'm not a big gambler, don't ever win much and I wanted to see what I could do with $20. I played the 1 cent machines for over an hour and ended up with $22. Not a bad way to spend some time. I ended up spending my Canadian money in a gift shop! I actually had planned to stop at another Casino on the way back to the campground but decided I should quit while I was ahead. The rest of the day was uneventful and I pretty much stayed in the RT in the air conditioning since it was so hot. I enjoyed a walk around the campground once it cooled off a little. I've tried to get some walking in every day and most of the campgrounds have been nice for walking. Tomorrow I will head for home!