Les and Gloria leading the way at Vantage, WA as we cross the mighty Columbia River.  

Little Zena getting her first look at the inside of her new home for the next year or so.  

Almost ready to hit the road! Les and Gloria's coach is on the left and our Pace is on the right.  

Gloria saying goodbye to her youngest son, David. 

11:00 AM Wednesday May 18, 2005

We are sorta settled in at Moses Lake. We left about 11 AM and arrived at 4:30 PM. We stopped for a half hour at the Fort Lewis weigh station and had lunch, provided by Gloria who had the forethought to cook a beef roast and some chicken the day before in her crock pot. The problem is that Les's hot water heater has decided to malfunction and they are unhooking now so it can be driven to the RV repair facility. Let's hope it's a quick fix

Our new Kargo Master and boat ... ready to travel.  

My beautiful granddaughter, Megan with me beneath a magnificent Wysteria tree after a lovely dinner at Alderbook Inn. 

10:14 AM Monday May 16, 2005

All systems are nearly go and as of this minute, it appears tomorrow is THE day! Les and Gloria's motorhome is at the garage for some last minute tweaking (they think it's the alternator) and Phil is reloading the back of our Ranger. His new outboard motor is padlocked to the bed of the truck and his new 12' aluminum boat is padlocked to the Kargo Master on top of the truck. He's considering a padlock for the canopy door but there doesn't seem to be a way to do that without defacing the truck. I guess we can take as many precautions against thievery as possible and hope for the best beyond that. Our friends, Ardella and Don have been held up in Arizona but assure us they will catch up ... probably somewhere in Montana. Since we'll be moving very slowly it should be fairly easy for them to find us.

We feel much loved and our hearts are filled with joy from all the family gatherings and visits as we count down to this departure date for our next trip. As excited as we are about leaving, we can't help but think about how much we will miss everyone but we will stay in touch via cell phone and e-mail. Also, our family and friends can ride along and share our adventures via this website, "Backroad Chronicles", which is the primary reason for creating and maintaining the blog.

I'll do my best to write at least a couple times a week, more if I have time. Here we go ..........

Bob from HQ Electronics in Shelton installing our new "Dish" TV systerm. 

The Pace with her "ears" up ... "Dish" Satellite TV and Data Storm Satellite Internet. We are really connected now!  

Camera shy (since when?) great granddaughter, Carly and her grandma, Bobbie (Joy's youngest daughter) came to visit at our motorhome. 

My great granddaughter, Carly and her "little grandma", my daughter, Bobbie.  

Three generations: Joy's daughter, Bobbie, Bobbie's daughter, Auntie Sara (Class of 2005!) and Bobbie's son Joe's daughter, Carly (Joy's great granddaughter).  

Joy's daughter, Bobbie and Bobbie's granddaughter, (my great-granddaughter ;-), Carly out to lunch at McDonalds. 

L-R: Joy's sisters, Dixie and Robin and Joy 5-12-05.  

L-R: Joy's daughters, Bobbie and Violet; Joy's sister, Robin; Joy; Joy's sister, Dixie and Dixie's daughter, Tammy 5-12-05. 

L-R: Joy's daughter, Violet; niece, Tammy and daughter, Bobbie 5-12-05. 

Phil doing the "Happy Catch Dance". His latest trophy; a 23" trout out of Lake Nawatzel. This one was too good to "Catch and Release".  

L-R: Joy; her sister, Robin; her niece Tammy (she's on her knees); her sister (who is also Tammy's mother), Dixie; her daughters Violet and Bobbie at Vern's Restaurant in Shelton for lunch on May 12, 2005. Fun day!! 

9:06 AM Thursday May 12, 2005

We’re coming down to the wire. Our next trip has been scribbled into notebooks and mileage noted for the first leg. We’re almost finished unloading superfluous cargo and doing our best to lighten the load in the Pace. Almost everything but the basic necessities has been put into our little storage unit (a bargain at $20 a month) with just a couple more plastic tubs to fill and we’ll be ready. Counting days now instead of weeks ... ;-)!

Where are we going? Thought you’d never ask! East my friends … east! All the way to Maine and then after a few weeks in New England, we’ll move south. If our calculations are close regarding our time and travels, we’ll be there for the fall colors.

I usually don’t write about our plans because I’m just a wee bit superstitious but I know my readers have been wondering, “What’s up?’ so decided to bring you all into the loop. Our coach is tuned, tired and tested and we’re ready to trust her again. If we’re wrong about her reliability, we’ll find out soon enough. Stay tuned!

My beautiful niece Tammy and her friend Steve cleaning the kitchen after cooking dinner for a family gathering.  

Our new "low rise" toilet that Phil installed. Much better fit for my short legs.  

Visiting deer across the street from our motorhome at Gloria and Les's RV Park in Shelton. Simpson Timber Mill in the background. 

12:56 PM Saturday May 7, 2005

After our motorhome was trailered to McKay's, because it was after hours, Phil and I spent that night in a motel in Albany. We drove over to the facility the next morning to wait while the competent crew assessed the damage and gave us a ball park idea how long the repairs would take. By noon, they told us about a week depending on the availability of parts so we decided to drive to Shelton in our Ranger pickup and stay with friends, Gloria and Lester to wait for the repairs to be finished. Our friends made us welcome and totally comfortable so I felt like I had a mini-vacation as we ended up taking advantage of their hospitality for 12 days before our home was ready to roll again. The extra time was added because we had them put new brakes all around which included two new rotors on the rear and turning the front ones as well as four new calipers. They also found some burnt wiring (they repaired and added a heat sheild to keep it from happening again) which accounted for our occasional starting problem AND they found and were given the go ahead to weld a cracked core support which has improved the steering tremendously. After they were finished repairing the broken suspension they examined the undercarriage and all other suspension parts and took her for the first of several test rides. With all the work that was done and the care they took to make sure we were safe to go, we felt the total bill of $3,200 was fair and much lower than we had anticipated. Thanks again to the crew at McKay!

Tom (service mgr.) and Rick (suspension expert) giving Phil last minute details and advice regarding the repair work done on the Pace. Thanks guys! 

If you are in the area and need any kind of RV service, we heartily recommend McKay Truck and RV Center at 6225 Old Salem Rd. Albany Oregon 97321. tel: 541-928-333.  

10:54 AM Sunday, May 1, 2005

First, I apologize to my faithful readers for the recent lack of posting.

“You pays your money and you takes your chances” is an old saying that’s been around a long time. I’ve always taken it to mean that there are no guarantees in this world … unless you want to consider our inevitable demise. Joy and Phil paid for their wonderful 1991 Pace Arrow motorhome proclaiming they found a great deal in June 2004 and in spite of some recent high dollar expenditures, they continue to feel the same way. They knew she wasn’t new; they knew she had more miles than they would have preferred but they believed them to be gentle miles; they knew she had been loved and well cared for and they were willing to take their chances. Consequently, for four and a half months, they have had an interesting ride. Their latest adventure follows …

Nearly three weeks ago, on our northbound trek back to Washington State, at 50 mph on Interstate 5 just north of Albany, OR … the rear suspension on the driver’s side of the Pace collapsed. Many reasons have been chewed over but no clear cut cause stood out from the others. It might have been caused by age and metal fatigue; or being overweight (a slide was added aftermarket about 5 years ago); or the beating her under-carriage, tires and shocks took on the terrible roads we’ve traveled that are masquerading as our nations super highways; or possibly a combination of all of the above. The mechanics couldn’t tell us so we’ll never know for sure. Phil had rehearsed this type of scenario many times in his mind so with incredible self-control, he kept us straight, slowed down enough to get all 50’ of us (that length includes our toad) off the road before gently applying the brakes. The noise was terrifying to me but within seconds we were stopped and safe. Our guardian angels were on duty because just when we needed it, a long, wide open shoulder opened up in the midst of miles of jersey barriers positioned right on the fog line. As bumper-to-bumper traffic roared by at top speed, he cautiously crawled underneath to take a look. When he came back out he was green around the gills … he truly believed our beloved home on wheels was irreversibly broken. But, because of incredibly good fortune, I'll tell you now, she wasn’t!

Thank goodness for AAA! To make a long story short, we were immediately in contact with them by cell phone and tow trucks arrived in less than an hour (the first driver determined we couldn’t be towed and we had to be trailered by a second truck). In our Ranger pickup, we followed the truck carrying our rig to McKay Truck and RV Service located about two miles away from where we broke down. According to AAA, they just happened to be one of the best RV repair facilities in the state of Oregon … more good fortune!

To be continued ………

Phil carefully backing the Pace off the tow trailer at McKays Truck and RV Repair.  

Following our home on wheels to the repair facility. 

Our Pace being loaded on to the tow truck.