Sunny and warm, temperature in the mid to high 70's, a perfect "June 18" day.
This morning we left the campground at Deschutes River State Recreation Area and headed east just a few miles on Interstate 84 before reaching Hwy. 97 again. We turned north on Hwy. 97 and crossed the Columbia River from Oregon to Washington. Goodbye, Oregon ... see ya in about a year.
At Toppenish we stopped at Safeway to buy some groceries. We had lunch in Safeway's parking lot, then I napped briefly. We refilled with diesel at a fuel bar next door to Safeway. We dumped our waste holding tanks at the town's RV sani-dump station. At Yakima we stopped at Wal-Mart and picked up a few items that we did not get in Oregon. DARN ... had to pay sales tax in Washington. At Quincy we stopped at ... wait for it ... a panaderia. WOO-HOO ! Mucho pan dulce por gringos ! HA HA HA !
I still want to get a bumper sticker that says "I brake for panaderias". HA HA HA !
As we were driving we discovered a wood tick embedded in Bo, the second in as many days. We stopped at the next rest area nad ( F*** ! ! ! ... Why can't my fingers lose that muscle memory ? ? ? ) I plucked the wood tick off him. Since we were already stopped, we decided we might as well go for a short hike to have a break from driving. As we hiked a trail through the scruffy sage desert behind the rest area, Bo squatted and defecated. Right over a gopher hole. HEY ... A HOLE IN ONE ! ! ! PLOP ... down the gopher hole the turd went ! HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA ! Well done, Bo !
Our destination for tonight was a rest area just west of Quincy. We've boondocked overnight there a few times, both southbound and northbound. When we arrived there tonight about 7 PM ... the rest area was closed for renovations. AW ... **** !
I was already tired and hungry, and now we had to go off in search of someplace else to stop for the night. We headed for Wenatchee. Before arriving at Wenatchee we found a highway weigh scale with a large truck parking lot that was empty. We pulled in there and spent the night.
Monday ; Quincy - Wenatchee weigh scale to Okanogan, Washington
Sunny and very warm, temperature reaching into the low 80's. What a lovely day for exploring.
Joanne's plan for today was to explore three different areas of interest as we drove today. And so that's what we did. After leaving the weigh scale parking area this morning we drove to Wenatchee and crossed over the Columbia River, heading in the "wrong" direction, west on Hwy. 97 to the picturesque town of Cashmere to visit the Aplets & Cotlets factory. When Joanne worked in a couple of fruit stands in Keremeos and Cawston a few summers ago she kept being asked if they had "Aplets and Cotlets". Until today, she didn't really know what that was. She had assumed it was some kind of "fruit leather" product.
Well ... aplets and cotlets are a fruit confectionary product made in Cashmere, Washington. Since 1920. The Aplets & Cotlets factory is now owned and operated by the third generation of the founders, two immigrants who came to the area in the early 1900's, one from England and one from Turkey. They bought an orchard. The man from Turkey decided to utilize the orchard's surplus product and lesser quality product in a modified "Turkish Delight" recipe. And so Aplets & Cotelts was born. Apple and / or apricot juice and pulp slow cooked with sugar and pectin ... yes, just like jam ... mixed with nuts, poured into shallow trays, cooled until it has hardened, rolled in and coated liberally with icing sugar, and cut into bite sized pieces. Something akin to "gummy bears", but much tastier ... and healthier.
We toured the "factory", including the "kitchen". Surprisingly small for a facility producing over two million pounds of product per year. Still all hand cooked. Still all hand packaged. Not very different from the way it was done in 1920. Except now the large cooking pots ( and there are only four of them ) are stainless steel instead of copper. Not surprisingly ... we bought some ( probably too much ) of their products.
From Cashmere we returned to Wenatchee then drove north on Hwy. 97 ALT, the highway on the west / "wrong" side of the Columbia River. to our second stop of the day, the Rocky Reach Dam. We spent longer than anticipated on the dam's self guided tour and museum and exhibits. They do an astounding job of salmon "enhancement" there, with very well done fish ladders to allow adult salmon to return upstream from the ocean, and a salmon "waterslide" for salmon fry heading downstream to the ocean. Additionally they do a pretty amazing job of salmon fry "research", including surgically implanting salmon fry with microchip tracking devices. In their "theater" we watched an episode of Discovery Channel's "Dirty Jobs" with Mike Rowe doing maintenance on a power turbine, and microchip implant surgery on a baby salmon. filmed at the Rocky Reach Dam.
Final "exploration" stop was Columbia Breaks Fire Interpretive Center, a forest fire research and education center near Entiat. We hiked the interpretive trail through the Ponderosa Pine forest, with many interpretive / educational kiosks along the trail. Consequently, Bo thought the hike had too many "stops". "Hurry up, let's go !"
Our initial plan was to spend the night at Lake Chelan State Park. However, when we arrived there and saw the outrageous fees for overnight camping, we decided not to stay. We did, however, refill our freshwater tank and ... pay our respects to the spirit / memory of Teddy, our cat before Sully. Five and half years ago we put the box of Teddy's ashes in our campfire on site 17 at Lake Chelan State Park. Seeing the view from site 17, and its peace and serenity reminded me today of why we left his ashes there, in addition to it being the place where Teddy enjoyed the final campfire of his life.
We continued north on Hwy. 97 ALT until it merged with Hwy. 97 where Hwy. 97 crossed from the east side to the west side of the Columbia River. Shortly after was the confluence of the Okanogan and Columbia Rivers at Brewster. Hwy. 97 follows the Okanogan River northward from there. Almost home !
We stopped to boondock overnight at the Okanogan Casino at Okanogan, Washington, about fifty miles south of the Canadian border. We've always appreciated the Okanogan Casino's free, pull through, electrically serviced RV parking spots. Thank you, Colville Tribes.
Tuesday ; Okanogan, Washington to Keremeos, British Columbia
WHEW ... we're home !
Today was sunny and warm.
We left the RV parking lot of the Okanogan Casino and drove about five miles north on Hwy. 97 to Omak. To Wal-Mart, of course < sigh >. After a teensy bit of Wal-Martin' we drove across the street and refilled Lanoire with diesel. Then ... north on Hwy. 97 to the Canadian border at Oroville, Washington.
No line up at the border. WOO-HOO ! The Canadian border agent asked a few more questions than usual. Once across the border we drove into Osoyoos to have a late lunch at Bo's favourite park, on the Lake Osoyoos waterfront. Bo LOOOOOVES that park ! I don't really know why.
After lunch we headed west on Hwy. 3 to Keremeos. We ran some errands in town before driving home to Riverside RV Park Resort. First stop was Similkameen Agencies to get a new license plate and insurance for the minivan. Then I went across the street to PharmaSave to order prescription refills. Then over to the Keremeos Review office to renew our newspaper subscription. Last stop was FasGas to refill both of the truck camper's propane tanks.
We arrived home late in the afternoon. Within a couple of hours I had our park model manufactured home "summerized" and ready to live in again. We took Bo for a walk and ended up visiting with our neighbour and friend Jeanine for awhile in her home. In the evening Joanne worked on unloading the truck camper and I worked online, getting caught up on e-mail and finances.
Wednesday ; Sunny and mild.
Well ... we're home. Today was filled with "return home" chores. As will the next few days as well. We also chatted with some neighbours. I prepared the minivan for use and Joanne used it to go to town to run some errands. She did a lot of moving stuff from the camper into the house. I did a lot of online work, including downloading, printing, and reconciling our April U.S.$ MasterCard statement. In the evening we watched Survivor. And Catfish. Now that was an interesting episode of Catfish !
Thursday ; Cloudy and chilly.
The "return home" chores continue. It saddened me to dispose of Sully's litter box that was still in our bathroom at home. A potential client phoned this afternoon, perhaps requiring a fifth wheel trailer to be hauled from Vernon to Osoyoos ... tomorrow afternoon. Maybe ! He'll let me know tomorrow by 1 PM.
Friday ; Mostly cloudy, some intermittent light rain, chilly.
We spent the morning on "return home" chores. I was hoping that yesterday's potential client was not going to call back, as I really didn't want to do a day long trailer delivery, especially starting in the afternoon. At 1 PM he phoned. < sigh > He had concluded the fifth wheel trailer purchase near Vernon and wanted it picked up and delivered immediately < sigh >. From 1 PM to 2 PM we removed the camper off the truck, installed the fifth wheel hitch in the truck, and had a very quick lunch.
We left home at 2 PM. We returned home at midnight. We covered a total of 458 km. / 286 miles, from home to Vernon to Osoyoos to home. We were tired ! And we didn't have supper until close to 11 PM after we had finished delivering the trailer in Osoyoos. The trailer was extremely difficult to hitch up, and remove from its location. And then
I had to back it down a steep, winding driveway. < sigh > Some trailer delivery jobs are easy money. Some aren't !
At the client's home in Osoyoos I had to back the trailer off the highway and down his driveway ... blind ... in the dark. As we fussed and fiddled with getting it positioned exactly where he wanted it, he finally asked if he could jump in the truck and do it himself. Sure ... go ahead ! He opened the truck door, jumped up into the driver's seat, and ...
Bo bit him !
Holy shit, Bo ... < blink blink > ... what the **** were you thinking ? ! ? ! ? In his eleven years of life, Bo has never bitten anyone before. Just goes to show ... any dog can bite !
Fortunately the client was a "dog person" and blamed himself more than Bo.
He realized he should have looked at Bo and spoken to him before jumping into the truck. Bo was tired, and anxious / worried, as he gets when we drive too long in the dark. When suddenly, some stranger jumped into the truck and shifted it into gear. "HEY ... some asshole is stealing our truck and kidnapping me. I should bite him !"
I suppose it made sense to a tired, old dog.
Saturday ; Cloudy, cold, intermittent light rain. BRRRRR ... that's why I hate returning home before the end of April !
We had a lazy start to the day, tired from yesterday's trailer delivery, and not eager to face a cold, rainy day. We did more indoor chores today than outdoor. Our friend Jeanine came over this afternoon to get the pet medications we bought in Mexico for her little dog Charlie. She visited for awhile. I walked her home and then delivered the pet medications we bought in Mexico for Jimmy, another neighbour's dog.
After supper we had a movie date ... ( The 40 Year Old Virgin ) ... then had hot chocolate ... and sex. HMPH ... it's about time ! Haven't had hot chocolate in ages ! HA HA HA !
DSK
No comments:
Post a Comment