A new mindset.......

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8:25 am - Thursday - October 12th - 29º F, humidity 78%, wind 11 mph out of the south by southwest......looks, feels, and appears to be CALM right now.  Forecast highs along our travel route will be in the mid to high 40's......

Our view in Dillon Thursday morning

We took our time getting ready to leave Livingston Wednesday.....we only had about 176 miles to drive to Dillon, MT.  It only got down to 40 something Tuesday night, which was part of the two day 'heatwave' in the area.  Before we could merge on to I-90 westbound we had two tasks to accomplish.....first top off our 60 gallon propane tank, and secondly 'pay the rent', or in other words, put 115 gallons of diesel into our 180 gallon tank.  The last time we filled our propane tank was June 14th on our way into Yellowstone, and the last time we 'paid the rent' was June 10th in Dayton, NV.  We took on 35 gallons of propane at $3.25/gallon, and the aforementioned 115 gallons of diesel at $2.83/gallon.....all told we parted with about $440 before we covered one mile of the 176 miles to Dillon.  We shouldn't have to fill the propane tank again until we leave the Grand Canyon.....we may top it off just prior to our arrival there....we'll see.  We will have to fill our diesel tank again somewhere along our route south as it is 1,200+ from Livngston to the Grand Canyon.

We were finally on I-90 traveling westbound by 11:15 am.......the route was mostly flat for long stretches with a few big climbs and the attendant big descents, but generally we just cruised at 60 mph via our cruise control.  My task was to hang on to the steering wheel, and remain focused on the road ahead.  Usually we stop every 60+ miles at a rest stop for a break, but this day we didn't stop for a break until we had covered 135 miles......my friend Tom, would be proud of me!

Since it was going to be down in the 20's Wednesday night we opted to stay at a local RV park (Countryside RV Park) in Dillon where we would have 50 amp service, and be able to run as many heaters we might wish. This park is just off I-90 about .5 miles, and has mostly long pull through sites......perfect for us....easy off, easy on.

It took me about an hour to get into my traveling groove, but once I arrived there my mind began to transition from 'sitting in one place for months' mode, to 'rolling the wheels' mode.  It is a totally different mindset, and thought process.  A good example of where my mind was first thing in the morning:  In preparation for taking on propane I turn off the gas to the coach, which is a safety issue.  The problem was I forgot to turn it back on after the attendant disconnected his propane hose......I cannot remember ever forgetting that.  While we are under way the Dometic refrigerator runs off propane......I didn't realize the gas was still 'OFF' until we parked in Dillon....I went to light the water heather and the pilot light would not light.....DOH!  It was then I finally remembered I had forgotten to turn on the gas.  Amazingly, the Dometic was only a little over 40º F.....no harm, no foul.  Another thing I forgot to do was to turn 'OFF' the leveling system enabling the coach to return to 'RIDE HEIGHT'......I didn't realize this mistake until we rolled over some railroad tracks and I heard this loud thump meaning the suspension had bottomed out......double 'DOH!'.

Once we were on the Interstate, and the cruise control was set I began to focus on the various gauges on my dash......the temperature of the coolant is very important....it settled quickly at 182º F.....just where it should be.  In fact, all of the Newell systems worked as they should......good air pressure, good oil pressure, good running temperatures on the coolant, oil and tranny, cruise control keeping us at a steady 60 mph......can't ask for much more.....well, I guess I could ask for more, but that would just be bad form, no?

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Light the fires!

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7:55 am - Wednesday - October 11th - 42º F, humidity 41%, wind 13 mph out of the southwest......partly cloudy.....forecast high for today in Livingston, MT is 65º F........I have no idea where we will be later today, but wherever that may be it will be a nice day, except for the wind.

When we last left off we had gone to bed Tuesday morning around 2:15 am.  It seemed like just a few minutes later the sun was casting unwanted light inside the Newell.  I made a valiant effort to keep sleeping, but by 8:30 am I surrendered and got up (TLE had no such struggle.....she continued sleeping for another hour).  So, just 6 hours of sleep, which only served to reconfirm our decision to add a day to our stay in Livingston, and take the entire day Tuesday to leisurely straighten up the trailer interior in preparation for VW insertion, as well as indulge in a couple of well deserved naps.

The weather forecast indicated winds in the 20+ mph range out of the southwest, and that is what we got all day long (still blowing as I write).  While I toiled in the trailer TLE went to the local Town & Country Market to restock our increasingly bare cupboards.  By the time she returned I was well on my way to finishing my work in the trailer.  Even though I have done this more times than I care to count I always wonder if I will be able to get the VW inside once again.  I think it is time to begin to thin out what we carry with us.

Eventually, around 4:30 pm, I opened up the rear door of the trailer so TLE could drive the VW Beetle inside.....it was a tight fit, which only reconfirms my feeling that it is time to go through everything we carry and start making those difficult decisions.  So, the car is in the trailer, it is time to disconnect our umbilical cords........we are ready to light the fires, and roll our wheels 1,200 miles southward to the Grand Canyon!

As I sit here writing I feel a little anxious about moving day after day once again after being mostly stationary for almost 6 months.  With the lone exception of moving from SLT up to YNP over a 5 day period we have been stationary 99% of the time.  Our plan is to take a little over 3 weeks to reach the east end of the Grand Canyon.....the adventurous side of me is looking forward to that drive and that time spent moving slowly southward, but there is this other side of me that enjoys the continuity which comes from being stationary.  Ironically, whenever we have been changing our view on a regular basis the exact opposite feelings come to the surface......I resist staying in any place longer than a week, or two, and  I am always thinking about the next adventure.

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Which route do we take?

We've been planning one of our "long" trips for the better part of a year ever since we found out my sister and her family were moving to Spokane, WA. She invited all of the family to meet at their new home in Spokane for Thanksgiving 2009. We jumped at the opportunity to take a long trip in the Newell, and to do a couple of weeks of exploring after Thanksgiving of some areas we have not yet seen, including the Olympic Penninsula. As the time for departure has come into view it has occurred to me, and Elaine that the weather may have an impact on our trip plans. After all, this is the Pacific Northwest, which is known for a lot of rain and snow in late November, early December. Our route to Spokane was originally to hop on Interstate 15 (less than a mile from our home) and head north through Las Vegas to Salt Lake City, continuing north through a corner of Idaho, into Montana where we would pick up Interstate 90 near Butte, MT and head west to Spokane. Well......it has been snowing/raining on and off for the past 10 days from Butte to Missoula, with low's into the 20's some nights, and highs in the high 30's to 40's during the day. While I do not "fear" the cold, I'm not going to deliberately head into freezing temperatures, and snow, so now we are contemplating taking Interstate 84 northeast out of Salt Lake City thru Boise, Idaho through southeast Washington to Spokane where the temperature and weather forecasts are much more moderate with lows in the mid to high 30's and daily temps in the high 50's....still cold, but more pleasant to contemplate.

One of the complicating factors is that there is a Newell owner (Jennifer Stackpole) living in Missoula, MT, along our original route, and we would like to stop and visit with her and see her Newell Classic...I think it's a 1988. It appears that Missoula is at a lower elevation (some where in the 3,000' range) and should have a little more moderate weather than say Butte, or other towns east of Missoula on Interstate 90. So, what route we ultimately follow will be determined closer to our departure date depending on current and projected weather conditions.

The route home will have to be made up as we go depending on current weather, and forecasts. I hope we can follow Highway 1 down through the Olympic Peninsula into Astoria, OR, but we will not know how that will work until it's time to leave Spokane.