November 1, 2005

November 1, 2005

Victoria, B.C. to Port Angeles, Washington

YEAR 2 DAY 137

 

Today was cloudy and cool, with rain in the morning.

This morning I got up, fed the animals, walked Bo, showered, and prepared to leave for the ferry to Port Angeles, Washington. I did preventive maintenance, and we pulled out of the Sears parking lot shortly after 9:00 A.M.. We found our way to the ferry terminal, arriving at 9:35 for the 10:30 ferry. It was already full, and we would have to wait for the 4:00 P.M. ferry. DARN ! There were many RV's in line for the ferry, so I guess November 1 is a popular day for Canadian "Snowbirds" to head south for the winter. Remind me not to choose November 1 next year as our day to enter the United States, particularly by ferry. We parked in the line up for the 4:00 P.M. ferry, I went into the terminal and bought our tickets. I went into the trailer, did some accounting, finished yesterday's journal entry, and started today's.

We read, I napped, we had lunch, then read some more. Kind of a long, boring day waiting for the ferry. The 4:00 P.M. ferry crossed the Juan de Fuca Strait from Victoria to Port Angeles, Washington, arriving at 5:35 P.M.. We were pre-cleared by U.S. Customs while still at the ferry terminal in Victoria, but still had to clear Customs again upon arrival in Port Angeles. Our original plan for today was to get to the Escapees park in Chimacum, but since we weren't able to get on the early ferry, we decided to stay in Port Angeles overnight. We found our way to Wal-Mart, and did some shopping. Oh boy, Bo says, finally, some dog food. We also bought Bo one of his favourite tug toys, "Foxy", which wasn't available in Canada. Prior to coming down here, we stocked up on some items that are only available in Canada. Next spring, before we cross back into Canada, we'll have to stock up on some of our favourites that are only available in the United States. We left Wal-Mart after determining that it was okay to stay overnight in their parking lot, and we drove to a nearby 24 hr. Safeway. I wonder why Safeway and Wal-Mart in the United States are open 24 hours a day ? We bought a lot of groceries, as we had run our supply of groceries down to nothing in preparation for crossing the border. We drove back to the Wal-Mart parking lot, and found a suitable spot to park for the night. There are 2 other RV's here tonight. One is an Escapee that I was talking to while waiting for the ferry this afternoon.

We put away all our Wal-Mart and Safeway purchases. Joanne prepared supper while I took Bo for a walk, then worked on today's journal entry and accounting.

DSK