'All systems are go, and confidence is high....'

 7:45 am - Real Saturday - March 6th - Santa Barbara, CA - 58° F, 60% humidity, wind 3 mph out of the south by southwest.....clear, blue skies today with a forecast high of 67° F.  On this date in 2012 we were in just our 5th week of full time travel, and had, at last, arrived at the Gulf Coast on South Padre Island, TX......↴

Our oldest daughter, Meredith, treated us to coffee and pastries Friday morning before our scheduled departure from Rancho Jurupa.  We sat in the coach talking, and talking as we always do, but eventually we had to begin to get ready to haul anchor and continue our trek northward back to Seal Rock, OR so we said our 'until next times', and hugged two or three times.  Fortunately, we will see her again on Memorial Day weekend when we attend the wedding of my sister Hilary's daughter Caroline to Jake in Spokane, WA.  Several of my kids, and their families will also be in attendance.

We were rolling our six 22.5" wheels by 10 am on the dot, and within minutes were merging onto SR-60 westbound, experiencing the infamous SoCal traffic.  By 1 pm we had escaped the SoCal traffic vortex as we came in view of the Pacific Ocean while merging onto SR-101 just south of Ventura.......

.....our modest destination this day was the Elks Lodge in Santa Barbara.  We have never stayed there before, and wanted to check it out for a few days before continuing north.  We haven't seen the ocean since we left Seal Rock on February 10th, which now seems like a long time ago.  

We reached the Santa Barbara Elks Lodge (Lodge #613) around 1:30 pm, and were quickly ensconced in site #14 within minutes.......

....there are 16 sites in all here, and if it was completely full would be a little tight, but at present the park is at 50% occupancy.  We don't have anyone on our passenger side, so it is quite comfortable.  Each site offers water and electricity (30 & 50 amp), and there is an onsite dump station.  The lodge is located in an upscale neighborhood in a suburb on the north side of Santa Barbara called Goleta.  We are just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean, so I think we'll get out the eBikes and take a ride Saturday for sure.  There is also a Trader Joe's just a block away, so how much better does it get, right?

The Newell just floated down the highway without issue, and I just hung onto the steering wheel for the ride.  As I always tell TLE when it is running this smoothly....'All systems are go, and confidence is high'....lol....a little NASA reference for those who might remember hearing those words often during each successive space mission back in the 60's.

After 4 days of interaction with our kids and their kids it is decompression time, and 3 days here in Santa Barbara should do the trick nicely.  

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

More family time......

 7:01 am - Friday - March 5th - Riverside, CA - 44° F, 82% humidity, wind 3 mph out of the east....clear, blue skies today with a forecast high of 79° F.  On this date in 2012 we were having lunch at a restaurant on the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX......↴

Thursday was our full last day here in Riverside, CA.  I still woke up too early, and was typing my latest blog post before 7 am.  The temp was up from Wednesday to the high 60's, but it was still chilly outside early morning, and by late afternoon it had dipped back into the 50's again.  I was feeling a little punk from the effects of 3 days of exposure to whatever is in the air that is making me sneeze a lot, and blow my nose A LOT.  Post nasal drip was taking its toll on my throat, and I had a headache from all of that (I feel much better this morning).  

I only had two small projects which needed my attention before we depart Riverside on Friday.....number 1 was to remove the chrome receiver hitch blanks from the two outside receivers at the back of the coach as they had totally rusted out, and looked terrible....yup, another casualty of Coastal Oregon.  They've been in there for 12 years, and they were rusted in place.  It took a little persuasion with a hand sledge to get them to budge, but budge they did.  I replaced them with rubber blanks, which I should have done a long time ago.  Number 2 was to clean my solar panels so they will be more effective if we choose to dry camp in a Walmart on the way home.  Once those two tasks were complete I collapsed into my recliner to take a nap.....allergies really knock me out!

What the receiver blanks look like....I threw away the 

old ones before I took a picture

The new rubber blanks

My brother Philip and his wife Jeannie were scheduled to come out to see us before we leave, so we made arrangements with them to come about 5 pm to join my daughter Sharon, her husband Rod, and son Brayden for Mexican takeout from Tio's Tacos in Riverside.  We were going to go out, but the place where we wanted to go does not take reservations, and with a large group (7) we might have to wait a long time for a table, so we decided to eat in.  Rob and Sharon brought two bundles of wood for a fire to keep us warm while we ate....

.....after dinner we roasted marshmallows over the fire.  We talked and laughed for 3 hours, before we said 'our until next times' around 8 pm.  

Our stay here in Riverside has been filled with a lot of family time, and for that we are eternally grateful.....time to head back to Coastal Oregon.......thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

One on one.......

 6:51 am - Thursday - March 4th - Riverside, CA - 42° F, 92% humidity, wind - zero mph out of the north.....clear, blue skies today with a forecast high of 67° F.  On this date in 2013 TLE and I were treated to a sunset flight by our friend Elliott Walsh near Townsend, GA....you can see our Newell near the hangar.....↴

....we met Elliott and his wife, Ann, at Cedar Key, FL a few weeks before, and they offered us courtesy parking near their home, which is located in one of those 'fly in' housing developments.  Everyone who lives there has an airplane.  We parked next to, and plugged into the hangar of one of their neighbors while we were there.

I'm still getting used to being back in the Pacific Time Zone.....the sun comes up earlier, and I have been waking up way too early.  We will barely get back to Seal Rock, OR when we are treated to another round of Daylight Savings Time, and I will have to readjust all over again.  A cold front blew through SoCal Tuesday night, and all day Wednesday.  

The temps didn't get out of the 50's Wednesday, and we had a couple of hours of rain to boot.  We haven't experienced rain for over three weeks now, and our first exposure after all that time happens in SoCal....go figure.

Before the rain came I managed to clean off the back of the Newell from the roofline down to the bumper.  When we left Tom and Darlene's home to drive that 1 mile of dirt road back to pavement the back of the Newell got covered with dust.  At least when the rain came it was clean.

My son Chris, and his wife Rochelle arrived around 11:30 am to pick us up for lunch.  Chris and Rochelle are a lot like us in that they prefer one on one time with us, and when we see them it is usually like that.  There is only one local restaurant we could find offering 'dine in' service, and the was El Torrito over at the Riverside Plaza.  Pretty much every other restaurant in town offers only takeout and outdoor dining.....not a good plan for a rainy afternoon.  Just as we arrived at El Torrito the skies really opened up.....

....we were seated within 10 minutes, and the conversation flowed steadily.  While we ate, the rain coninued.  The food was great, but the company was spectacular.  We have felt like Rochelle is one of our kids for years, and that she happens to be married to our oldest son is a bonus.  Together they remind me of TLE and I when we were young.  Their two kids are grown, and now they are enjoying their time together, just as TLE and I have been for the last 17 years.  It makes us happy to see them so happy together.  By the time we exited the restaurant a little before 2 pm the rain had ceased.  They had us back home by 2 pm where Rochelle took another 'usie'......

.....after we bid our adieus I settled into my recliner and took a deliciously long nap while TLE read. Life is good....thank you Chris and Rochelle for a wonderful afternoon!

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

On this date......

 7:23 am - Wednesday - March 3rd - Riverside, CA - 42° F, 49% humidity, wind 5 mph out of the northeast....partly cloudy today, with a chance of rain later this morning, and a forecast high of 59° F.  

For my friend Tom....today's blog post is for you....enjoy!

On this date in 2011 we were living, and working as camp hosts at Rancho Jurupa Regional Park in Riverside, CA.......↴

......on this date in 2012 we were having lunch in Austin, TX with my sister and brother-in-law (Glenn and Laureen)........↴

....on this date in 2013 we were at Monk's Vineyard in St. Augustine tasting wine...↴

.....on this date in 2014 we were near Blythe, CA at Mayflower County Park on the Colorado River.....↴

.....on this date in 2015 we were in Pasadena, CA attending a college reunion...↴

....on this date in 2016 we were hiking Mt. Rubidoux in Riverside, CA....↴

....on this date in 2017 we were taking a tandem ride on our Cannondale viewing the numerous steel sculptures around Borrego Springs, CA........↴

....on this date in 2018 we were having dinner with Roscoe and Geni at a restaurant at the Grand Canyon, AZ.......↴

.....on this date in 2019 we were attending a fund raiser at the home of Tom and Darlene in Wittmann, AZ.......↴

.....on this date in 2020 we were at the Quechan Casino near Yuma, AZ for dental appointments the next day in Los Algodones......↴

....and, finally, on this date in 2021 we are in Riverside, CA at Rancho Jurupa Regional Park, where it all began.....↴

Tuesday greeted us with temps in the low 30's in Indio, CA.  By 9 am we were rolling our wheels a few blocks over to the local Walmart to do a little shopping before logging the final 79 miles to Rancho Jurupa Regional Park where we will spend three days visiting with our kids, and their kids.  

Our daughter-in-law, Laila (Tim's wife) picked us up around 3:30 pm to take us to their home in Ontario for dinner.  My daughter, Sharon, her husband, Rod, and son, Brayden, joined us there for dinner, along with my oldest daughter, Meredith.  We had a typical Hockwald time......three, or four conversations in progress at the same time.....lots of laughter, and hugs thrown in for good measure.....

....it has been over a year since we were able to hug and kiss our kids, and grand kids, and there will be much more of that over the next few days!

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

Mr. Jello had other ideas......

6:24 am - Tuesday - February 4th - Riverside, CA - 44° F, 16% humidity, wind 11 mph out of the north by northeast......clear, cool today with a forecast high of 56° F.

Our intent was to roll our wheels Monday morning and head for Borrego Springs, as I have mentioned a few times before.  I was awakened around 4:30 am Monday morning to the sound of wind buffeting the Newell, and whistling through the window awnings.  We traditionally avoid driving when there is a crosswind, or when it is raining, so I hoped the wind I heard was just temporary, not a day, or two wind event, and went back to sleep.

I got up sometime after 7 am and retrieved my phone to check the local weather and saw that the current wind speed was 23-25 mph directly out of the north, and was forecast to increase into the 30's later in the morning, topping out at 35 mph around 3 pm.  A wind out of the north means a crosswind if you are traveling east, or west......Borrego Springs is directly to the east of us.  When I saw the forecast it was easy to let Mr. Jello take the lead, and we decided to stay put for Monday, and try to haul anchor Tuesday morning.

This change in plans had some benefits for me.  First I was planning on organizing the trailer first thing Monday morning before inserting the car.  It takes about an hour to do so as long as we have not deployed to much of our 'stuff', which we had not, nevertheless, I was not looking forward to doing it in the morning.  Secondly, we still had TLE's Cannondale F600 bicycle, which I had planned to just take with us, but that meant I would have to find space to stow TLE's new eBike, which in turn meant I would probably have to move the firewood into the back of the Beetle......again, not looking forward to that.  Since we had one more day in town we decided to take TLE's Cannondale to my son's office warehouse, along with a few other things I had identified as not being needed when we begin our trip to Alaska in mid April.  Finally, we wanted to fill the rest of our purified water containers for our planned month long boondocking foray in the desert.

A little explanation on the water containers.  As you know, we have a 160 gallon fresh water tank which we utilize when we are boondocking, or dry camping as we have been the past 10 days.  When we boondock, or dry camp we do not use our R/O (Revers Osmosis) water purification system as it generates a lot of waster which fills our gray tank, and depletes our fresh water supply more quickly than we like.  We have three 5 gallon water containers, plus five 1 gallon water bottles.  When filled that gives us 20 gallons of drinking water for making coffee, drinking, cooking, etc.  The water in the fresh water tank is strictly used to flush the toilet, take showers, and wash dishes.  This lasts us about 10-14 days...sometimes longer.  We fill the water containers utilizing these purified water dispensing stations located in front of most supermarkets (which I believe have the brand name 'Glacier Water' on them) and/or liquor stores in California.  Locally there are two of these stations two blocks from where we are staying.  Five gallons costs $1.75.

Around 11:30 we drove into Rancho Cucamonga to drop off the additional stuff I mentioned above at my son's office warehouse, then headed home where we picked up the rest of our water containers and then were off to the Ralph's Supermarket two blocks away to get the water, and a few final items from the store for our pantry.  From there we headed directly across the street to the local Goodwill to see if they had anything interesting without which we could not live. This is one of our favorite Goodwill stores, and we find something almost every time we visit.  I recently recycled a bunch of t-shirts, so I need to resupply, and was lucky to find 3 interesting t-shirts to buy.  

We arrived back at the Newell around 2:30 pm at which time I began to organize the trailer for our departure Tuesday morning.  By 4:30 pm I had everything stowed away, and I was done for the day.  Once that firewood is removed from the trailer at our campsite Tuesday we will have more room in the trailer than we have had in a very long time.  The wind was still howling when I closed the door behind me, which only served to validate our decision to stay in Riverside another day.

We watched a few more  episodes of 'Outlander' (I think we're on episode 13 of season 2 right now)......this series becomes more intriguing the deeper we get into it.

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

Super Bowl Sunday.....

7:47 am - Monday - February 3rd - Riverside, CA - 50° F, 21% humidity, wind 23 mph out of the north by northwest....clear, very windy today with a forecast high of 57° F.  Woke up to Santa Ana winds this morning around 23 mph out of the north, which are projected to top out at 35 mph.....we will not be rolling our wheels today.....hello Mr. Jello!

I began Sunday replacing the small 19" flat screen TV with the former 32" flat screen which used to be our 'outdoor TV'........

 The 32" TV installed

The now removed 19" TV

.....on Saturday we purchased a new TV mount for the 32" TV as the one I used for the 19" was not big enough for the bigger TV.  It is a swing arm wall mount so now I can turn the TV so I can see it when I'm working on a bike in the rear of the trailer.  As I wandered back and forth from the coach to the trailer it was nice to see the Super Bowl on a big TV just like the one in the salon.

Other than getting a haircut, and doing some shopping with TLE that was the sum total of my Sunday.  Everything I did revolved around Super Bowl LIV (54) beginning at 3:30 pm.

The Super Bowl itself was just what I ordered up.....a competitive game until 3 minutes to go in the game.  K.C. was up 24-20, and San Francisco just had to drive down the field and score a touchdown to win, but they failed to convert on 4th down and turned the ball over to K.C.  On the second play from scrimmage K.C. ran the ball, and the runner scored an unexpected touchdown to put K.C. up 11 points with just 2 minutes to play.....they were just trying to run out the clock.  I'm happy K.C. won as their last Super Bowl appearance and victory was 1969......50 years ago.  Of course, I always feel badly for the losing team, especially in a hard fought, close game where either team could have won.....K.C. just executed better when the chips were down.

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

9 years in.....

7:32 am - Super Bowl Sunday - February 2nd, Riverside, CA - 50° F, 48% humidity, wind 7 mph out of the north by northeast......clear, cool with a forecast high today of 74° F.

On February 1st we celebrated our 9 year anniversary of living full time in our 1982 Newell Classic Motorcoach, and 8 years of traveling hither and yon.  As we begin the 10th year of full time RV living we still cannot imagine living in a sticks and bricks home any time soon.  We love our home on wheels!

I began Saturday working TLE's new eBike....the bike is made in China, and distributed through 5 warehouses in the USA.  The bike name is YIIYYAA....I have no idea how to pronounce it, but TLE loves it.  It comes with a 500 watt electric motor, and a 36 volt lithium 10 ah battery.  Its range in full electric mode (no pedal assist) is about 17 miles, and using electric assist up to 37 miles.  The normal brake setup on any bike is the right brake lever controls the rear brake, and the left brake lever the front, but whoever assembled this bike had them reversed, so I had to spend some time moving said levers to their proper positions.......

 The fully assembled YIIYYAA

 The 500 watt motor mounted in the rear hub

 36 volt lithium 10 ah battery pack

 TLE's Selle Anatomica seat transferred from the Cannondale

 7 speed rear cassette (Shimano)...21 speeds in all

 3 chain rings in front

 Shimano mechanical disc brakes

Some Rock Bros. platform pedals

.....once I had the bike adjusted I raised the seat and took it for a test spin to figure out how the controls worked.....it was actually quite intuitive.  As I have reported, it has 5 electric assist modes while you are pedaling, a full electric mode which you control with a thumb activated  throttle button.  It also has, and I did not know this when I bought it, CRUISE CONTROL!  Once I was satisfied I understood its operation, I lowered the seat and turned it over to TLE.  She rode around the parking lot several times, and I heard her "oooohing and ahhhhing" as she rode circles around me.  Of course, the great thing is if the battery should go dead while on a long ride she can always utilize the 21 speeds she has available to return to home base.  For $700 and change I think we got a good deal, and I did purchase the three year warranty available for $39.  Right now the wheels are affixed to the bike via nuts, but over the next month I will convert them to quick release axles, which will eliminate the need for a wrench to remove the wheels.....must more convenient when repairing a flat tire on the road.  We'll add a bike rack, with a trunk bag, and the ability to add panniers (saddle bags) so we can carry groceries home from the store, if need be.

At 2 pm we were off in the VW to Brayden James' birthday party being held at Chuck E. Cheese in Rancho Cucamonga.  We arrived a little after 3 pm to find the party in full swing.....

 Little Crosby, who was the birthday boy last Saturday

 Three of my girls

 Brayden James, the birthday boy this Saturday.....4 years old!

 Crosby and Jamison

 Brayden James with Mom....getting ready to blow out the candles

Chuck E. Cheese doing his thang......

......there was pizza, chicken, bread sticks, punch (beer for those of age), and entertainment by Chuck E. Cheese himself.  By 5 pm the party was winding down quickly, so we said our 'until next times' and headed for the barn.

We've thoroughly enjoyed our time in Riverside, and visiting with our kids, and their offspring, but we are ready for some down time in the desert.....here we come Borrego Springs!

Thanks for stopping by!

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!

Another ride, another project......

7:10 am - Real Saturday - February 1st - Riverside, CA - 43° F, 62% humidity, wind - CALM.....clear, blue skies this morning with a forecast high today of 80° F.

I love living in Riverside, if even only for a week and a half.  The opportunities for exercise are abundant.  Here at the Elks Lodge I am just a mile from the SART*, and about the same for the Mt. Rubidoux trailhead.  Since we arrived in Riverside I have already taken my first 20 mile bike ride in over a year, and Friday I set out to do another long ride.  I once again headed west on Jurupa (pronounced Harupa) to Palm, and then north to the SART.  Within minutes I was cruising northward toward San Bernardino.  I had already pre-determined I was not going to ride 20 miles again, but set a modest goal of 10 miles round trip.  About 5 miles into my journey, the turn around point if I was to do just 10 miles, I decided to go another 2.5 before turning to get in at least 15.  Just about that time I glanced to my right into a yard by which I have been riding for years where vintage motorhomes are stored, and what do I see.......

.....an early 80's Newell Classic, probably circa '83, or '84 sitting next to a Blue Bird Wanderlodge, also probably early 80's......what are the odds?  Pretty low since Newell only turns out around 25-30 units a year.  Very unexpected, and very cool.

I ended up doing just over 17 miles in total.....just about right......

 Still smiling after 17.2 miles

......in my first ride on Monday I averaged 11.9 miles per hour, but on Friday I hit an average of 13.6 mph for the 17.2 miles I covered, and incinerated some 1,023 caloric units in just one hour and 15 minutes of riding.....

.....last Sunday I ordered a 500 watt E-bike for TLE off eBay.  It has both pedal assist, as well as full on electric power with no pedaling.  It will come in very handy this summer in Alaska for short commutes into local towns, sightseeing jaunts, etc.....

.....originally the seller promised delivery by Monday, February 3rd, however, UPS got it to Rancho Cucamonga Friday afternoon.  We headed into my son's office around 1 pm to be there when it arrived, so I could unpack and assemble it before taking it home.  It arrived just after 3:30 pm, and I had it together in about 30 minutes.  It's a good looking entry level, full suspension, FOLDING E-bike with mechanical disc brakes. I'll spend a good part of Real Saturday tuning it up, and transferring some components from TLE's Cannondale F-600 (saddle, hydraulic brakes, etc.).

Another project I have been meaning to take care of while we are here in Riverside was to freshen up the black paint on our American Trailer tongue.  I spent some time applying masking tape to things I did not want paint to cover, and then sprayed on the new layer of Rustoleum gloss black......

......I let the paint dry while we were at my son's office, and removed the masking tape on our return.....it turned out pretty well......looks like somebody cares, right?

We have another grand child birthday Saturday afternoon for Brayden James (Sharon's son) who has just turned 4 years of age.  He is such an amazing little guy.  We have Superbowl 51 Sunday, and then Monday we head out of town to Borrego Springs for a month!

Thanks for stopping by!

*SART = Santa Ana River Trail

When you shop Amazon, please use our link (below) to access their website.......we will appreciate every purchase you make using our Amazon Affiliate link, and  remember, using our link will not add one penny to your purchase, plus we will receive a small commission which over the course of a year adds up to enough to by a tank of diesel for which we thank you very much!