Finally!

 We left Amarillo under sunny skies and sloppy roads.   Our Jeep is unrecognizable under it's covering of road grime and cinder scum.      We made one overnight stop in Albuquerque (with a propane fill) and then one in Holbrook, AZ.  

near Gallup, NM

spooky Halloween moon in Holbrook

This morning we left Holbrook and took a different route to our final destination of Usery Mountain Regional Park outside Phoenix.     Instead of using interstates, as we usually do, we decided to drive diagonally south on smaller roads (77 to 377 to 277 to 260 to 87 to Bush Highway) to cut off quite a few miles.    We'd never taken this route before and were unsure of what we'd encounter.

Most of the way was on two lane roads through Arizona's high desert.   Not much shoulder but quite a few pull-outs along the way.    Once through the town of Heber we began to encounter pine forests and hilly terrain.

Driving through the mountains south of Payson was hard.   Route 87 is a fine road, four lane mostly, but it was slogging up long grades, then down long grades, etc. etc. for the entire drive.     We passed through miles of recent burn damage along the way.

We felt like we were home as we turned onto the Bush Highway and headed toward Mesa.  This is a road we've driven many times and it's scenery never disappoints (although today we didn't see any of the wild horses that roam the area).

heading down to the Salt River

Once through the entry gates, we quickly settled into our site and went outside to enjoy a nice warm happy hour.   Dave was grinning from ear to ear.    He was finally thawed out!

 

our happy hour view

Dave's bare feet make a perfect headrest

Finally the storm passed

It was a doozy! Sunday night through Thursday morning it raged and stormed. Ice, thunder, freezing temperatures, high winds, tree branches falling around us, frozen water pipes. Add to that 6+ inches of heavy wet snow.    

walking in a winter wonderland

Last night the snow started.    We ordered another dinner from the Big Texan and just as we finished the last bite, our power went out.

he finally looked up!

no power

We're parked next to a lovely tree but between the ice already covering it and the addition of heavy wet snow and strong winds, it began to drop it's branches - quite energetically.     Dave went out into the storm and up on the roof to try and mitigate the damage.    I was a wreck, worrying about him slipping and flying past my window!    He was fine and when he came back in and thawed out we turned on the trusty generator to keep the compartment heaters working.   Propane kept our inside furnace running and the power came back on around 10 p.m.

This morning we woke to sunny skies and the sound of melting snow.    There was a pile of branches next to Beluga but no damage to our roof.      Dave lent our ladder to neighbors who were trying to break up inches of ice from their slide toppers using a stool and walking stick.  

Lewis expresses his opinion of this weather

We decided to stay here one more day to let things dry out and the roads clear before we continue our western journey.     It's been quite an experience.

Stalled in Texas, waiting......

 

Our stay in Mustang (Oklahoma City) was uneventful.   The drive from there to Amarillo was in the fog.    Not much to see along the way except fields of cotton and sorghum punctuated by wind turbines looming up from out of the fog like huge ghosts.

We planned to arrive at the Big Texan RV Ranch a day early (Sunday) to avoid a nasty winter storm that was predicted for Monday.   It turned out to be a good thing for us as we were awakened in the middle of the night by booming thunder and sleet/ice pelting Beluga's roof.      We've extended our stay through Wednesday and will reevaluate our departure date then.

bedroom window view

We are sitting here with our big slide pulled in, water hose disconnected, thermal shields tucked into some windows and the small space heater on high.    We are encased in ice.    Dave puts a small throw rug on the stairs before Lewis goes out to "get busy" so he doesn't slip on the ice.   He is a real trooper and waits patiently til Dave positions the rug and holds it down with his foot (did I mention the strong wind?) before he disembarks.    Before we thought of using the rug, poor Lew slid down the stairs and landed in the snow on his side.    He's got it down now and is very careful.      Once out, however, he scoots around like a puppy.   It seems he loves this weather! 

Dave has had to make a Walmart run to get a couple small space heaters for the basement compartments.     They are heated by the furnace but it doesn't seem to be enough warmth to keep something down their from freezing and stopping the flow of water to our sinks and toilet.   Sheesh.

Please keep your finger's crossed that we have enough propane on board to fuel our furnace until this storm passes and the temperature begins to rise.

One bright spot in our otherwise unpleasant stay here in Amarillo was last night's delicious take-out steak dinner from the famous Big Texan Ranch Steak House next door!    We always eat there when we're in this area and it was just as good eaten in Beluga.   Mmmmmm

I lifted the shade and snapped this picture of our frozen neighbor...
it's too d amn cold to go outside and photograph Beluga!    

Moving along

 

We crossed the misty Mississippi River in St. Louis on our way to Wednesday's stop in Danville, Missouri.   When we pulled into the Lazy Day Campground  we were wet and chilly but  looking forward to the next day's rest at this pleasant rural campground.   It's a spot we find ourselves returning to as we move across the country in the spring and then again in the fall.   The sites are large enough, the whole place is neat as a pin, the owner is very friendly and helpful and there is a nice nature trail around the wooded pond areas.   Lots of space to socially distance and exercise Lewis.    I checked in by phone and the owner sent me a photo of my credit card slip along with her cheerful wishes for a good stay.

We got a sound night's sleep and woke to brilliant blue skies and a forecast of 80 degree temperatures!

We spent the day relaxing and were even able to have Happy Hour outside in the warm sunshine.   A treat we didn't expect to have for at least another week or so!     Lewis loved rolling in the nice green grass at our site but unfortunately acquired a nasty tick while we were enjoying our G&T's.   I didn't find it until the next day.....

I took the opportunity to make a favorite dessert - pumpkin eggnog pie in a pecan crust - while we were there.  It will be something to look forward to at the end of each day's drive!

 Today, Friday, we drove 340 miles to our next overnight in Salina, Kansas.    We don't usually drive that many miles in one day but that's the way the mileage worked out and it was only rainy part of the time.     Windy though, very windy all day and Dave did a yeoman's job keeping Beluga between the lines.      Tonight will be very cold, dropping down to the 20's so we brought in the little mums I've been carrying along and disconnected our water lines so they don't freeze.      It's good to be in and settled, tomorrow we move to Mustang, Oklahoma! 

Catch up

 Last week was a busy one.    Dave finished up the lower level build-out of one bedroom/closet, one bathroom, hallway with linen closet and a small alcove for reading or puzzling, etc., with another deep closet under the stairway.    I'll show you a few pictures in another post.

We had the docks taken in, stored all the outdoor furniture and crocks in the rest of the lower level/basement area.    Dave had a few things he wanted to do in Beluga so they were taken care of that last week also....phew!    He installed a new water pump, fabricated and welded an aluminum box to line a small compartment that was showing rust inside (the only one that isn't rotationally molded plastic), replaced 0 rings in the hydraulic leveling jack pump, reprogrammed the jack pad control module, and then gave her a quick bath.     We began to have a problem with our friends, the stink bugs, looking for a place to tuck in for the winter.    Dave tried a few methods to remove them permanently, one made me laugh!    

He'd run them down to the dock and place them in the lake (if he tossed them, they'd just fly off) - bass food he said - but that became tiresome so he gave up!

 

rusty compartment

 

aluminum box installed

During some of these jobs, our in-house supervisor took his job a little too seriously and caused some minor delays.    He was very sorry about that, he wished he didn't do it, but he still had to stay outside until he dried.    He doesn't like to be outside without us.

supervisor walked under the painting operation
and got the curls painted "linen" white

no...you have to stay out there til you dry

Dave and Lewis continued their evening fishing appointment with differing levels of success.

this bass spit out feathers when Dave removed the hook!

OUCH!  Urgent Care here we come!

We went out for a first/last visit to the Charcoal Corral on nearby Silver Lake.    We took our hot dogs and drove to a spot with a view of the lake.    It was too cold for post hot dog ice creams.

Mmmm foot long hot dog!
(John, avert your eyes)

We enjoyed the last few second cup/happy hour entertainments from our chairs on the dock.

uh oh, another duplicate - sorry

Lewis was busy also.    He took last swims and rounded up his most favorite toys to make sure they were all in one place and ready to load in Beluga.

he always waits for approval before he jumps off the breakwall into the lake

We stayed in Beluga our last night at the lake.   The morning we left (Saturday) was beautiful and sunny.     We enjoyed our last second cup with a fabulous Cronut provided by Tom and Robin for just that occasion.   

Our first night's stop was in McKean, Ohio.   The next night in Ohio brought us heavy rain that continued all day yesterday and last evening here in Casey, Illinois.    

We'll stay here today and relax before moving on in the morning.    It's so good to be back in Beluga and on the road.   It will be nice when we can turn the furnace off and put away the raincoats though....

Hmmm.   I had a couple pictures that I wanted to show you and I forgot to put them in the body of this post.     I have a little trouble with this new Blogger format so, if you don't mind, I'll just stick them right here.     The last one, of Lew with the paint stripe, is a duplicate and I can't for the life of me figure out how to remove it.    If anyone has this knowledge, I'd appreciate it!

Dave and Sue!

Off we go!

pulling out of the driveway - on our way!

 We're off and happily on the road.   Last night in Pennsylvania, tonight in Ohio, etc. etc. until we get to some warmer weather!     Proper post coming soon.