Back at Blanton Creek

Judy and I rolled into Blanton Creek Park at 4:15PM.  The park has been closed since Labor Day.  The large gate was locked shut, luckily I had my keys!  It was a little strange. The park was so quiet.  Once in we headed to our fifth wheel.  Judy opened the door and we went in. It had been about 30 days since we locked it up and left the park.  It was nice and cool inside.  It felt like we were back home.

I helped Judy bring our clothes and other items we wanted to have with us for our four month trip. Judy put the clothes away and I stayed out of the way.  I helped her put clean sheets on the bed.  We settled down and watched the Braves for the rest of the evening.

Today we continued making preps for pulling chocks and heading south.  I took everything out of the basement and put it back in with decidedly more organization.  I also check all the tire pressures on the truck and fiver.  Judy  double checked the storage of all food stuffs and items inside the trailer.  We made the decision to leave for Manatee Springs tomorrow AM instead of waiting until Sunday to leave.  That will give us a little extra time in case we have any difficulty on the road. 

Judy worked on the inside (she was taking a break)

I did the outside

That’s all for now, thanks for stopping by.

Getting Ready to Get Back on the Road

We will be getting back on the road tomorrow and Judy and I are ready to get underway.  I think Judy is over her bout with Vertigo. She has  had a bad time with it this time.  On top of her bad luck she also lost a tooth filling that we hope to get repaired in the morning before we pull out.  She lost it early in the week but the Vertigo kept her from going to the dentist. She was worried about the dizziness she was suffering with.

We spent most of the day getting things ready to leave. Judy worked in the house and I worked in the yard and got the boathouse furniture put away. We loaded the truck and the CRV with things we will need for the four months we will be in FL. Once we get back to Blanton Creek Park tomorrow we will put much of the things on the fifth wheel.  I plan to wash the RV and take care of a couple of more minor maintenance items also. I haven’t decided if we will head down to Manatee State Park on Sunday or Monday. It will be about a 300 mile drive.

We have done all we can to get ready to leave so we are watching the Atlanta Braves. They are playing very well now. I hope they go all the way.  It would be a wonderful way for Chipper to end his career.

 

Dusk from Boathouse

 

 Dusk from Boathouse (Sepia)

That’s all for now, thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Sat.

Back at Home Base

We arrived back in Ga.( Atlanta Int. Airport) Thursday around 3:15PM.  By the time we got our baggage and got on the shuttle it was 4:15PM. The shuttle ride to Macon took another one and one half hours. Still not home, we had another hour ride to Lake Sinclair. All in all it took about 12 hours from the time we got to the airport in Portland until we got home. It was awesome seeing Jason but we were glad to be back home.

Judy had a few things planned for Friday to prepare for our interim trip back to Blanton Creek on this coming Monday. The main thing she had planned was a trip to the salon to get a "cut and color and pick up our mail and cancel our US PO Box. Our plans were quickly out the window. Judy had been having a little lower back pains and she had had a dizzy spell the last night in Portland.  She called her MD to see if they could work her in Friday. They could but it was at the same time as her salon appt. Using her better judgement she opted for the DR. appointment.

The Dr confirmed Judy was suffering a case of vertigo. He gave her a couple of prescriptions. Once back in the car she got liquidity sick if you know what I mean. Once home she took the meds and slept for most of the day. After about a four hour nap she woke feeling a little better. We joined Billy and Faye (my sister) at Applebees latter in the evening.

Judy rescheduled her salon visit for Tue AM. Now it looks like we will leave Tue. morning to go back to the Cardinal at Blanton Creek.

That's all for now, thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: After we return to our fiver at Blanton Creek Park - maybe Tues. evening.

Last Day in Portland

Our visit with Jason is almost at an end.  Judy and I have had a great time here in Portland.  Jason made sure we saw the city from top to bottom. Judy and I will be flying out Thur. morning at 6:15 AM. Judy has already gone to bed and has the alarm set for 3:00 AM.

I received two calls today with offers of workamping positions.  I informed them that we already have commitments. One offer was a volunteer position at  a Fl State Park located at Key Largo for Oct - Nov. We will be at Manatee Spring during that time fram.

The other call was for a park in the RGV of TX. It was a nonpaying position. The name of the park is " The Fountain at Penitas".  If you are in that area give them a call. I told the owner I would mention it in my blog.  You can get the contact info by googleing it or contact me.

That is it for now, thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: Friday

Visit to Mt. Hood

Saturday we headed to Mount Hood. The drive was shorter than our drive out to the coast.  Jason had planned a visit up to the "Timberline Lodge" near the summit of Mt. Hood. The lodge was built in 1937. Once there we joined a guided tour of the lodge, the gentleman giving the tour pointed out many amazing facts.  You may recognize it as the lodge/hotel featured in "The Shinning". 

Summit of Mt. Hood (11,250ft) near Timberline Lodge

 

Tour of Timberline Lodge

After leaving the lodge, we had a picnic at a lake located at the base of the mountain.

Thats all for today.  Thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: Thursday

Oregon Days Two and Three

Judy and I are having a great time visiting our son in Portland.  He has been keeping us on the go.  On Friday we went to the coast and visited Cannon Beach and Astoria. The dive out to the coast from Portland was very scenic.

Here are some pics from Friday:

 Cannon Beach

Jail in Opening Scene of Goonies

Inside Jail

 

 

 House in Goonies

After a busy day os sightseeing we went to the "Black Cat" Tavern to have a couple of beers and play some table suffleboard. Jason lives in the Selwood area of Portland. There are  many restaurants, bars, coffee shoppes, and specialty stores. All withing walking distance.

 

"Losers Bracket"

 



 

Saturday (Day 03)

We headed to Portland's city center early.  The Saturday market was in full swing when we got there.  Judy bought some ear rings because she forgot to put hers on that morning.  Mostly we just walk through the market and looked at the various items for sell.  Once we left the market we took the MAX (Portland's Mass transit) and  Jason took us to "Kenny and Zukes" for and excellent brunch.  Once through with brunch we re-boarded the MAX for Jeld-Wen Field station. After getting off I noticed rummaging in his back pack. He pulled out three Portland Timbers jerseys and told Judy and I to put one on. He had tickets for the Timbers (Portland) and Sounders (Seattle) game. It was our first professional soccer game. As it turned out Judy and I enjoyed it. Jason is a great host.

 

Here are some Saturday pic:

 

Judy at the Portland Market



 

 

The Sounders' opening play

 

 

 

Enjoying the Game

 



 

That's all for today. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Monday

Portland Day 1

Judy and I arrived in Portland Wed. at 10:00 AM PST.  Boy, were we tired.  We got up at 12:30 AM to drive to Macon to catch the Shuttle to Atlanta airport. The flight check-in went from smooth to bumpy when we got to the security screening station about 5:00 AM. After waiting in line for over a half hour we got to the first screening station and were asked for our boarding pass.  The attendant didn't give us one. All we had was our e-ticket. So back to the counter we went. Judy did not take it as calmly as I did. The problem was resolved in about five min. Then it was back to the security screening. It went smoothly and we boarded the plane at 5:50 and were in the air by 6:15.

Portland Airport terminal

We had an hour layover in Denver and arrived on time in Portland on time. Jason was there to meet us. Judy and I were tired. Jason had taken that into his itinerary for us and did not plan much. He gave us a short downtown driving tour and took us to a nice sidewalk cafe for breakfast. Judy and I took us a long nap once we got to his apartment. The only other plan was to go out to dinner. After an excellent meal we went back to his apartment for the evening. Judy and I went to bed early and he went out with one of his friends.

Thurs.
Jason had us on the road by 10:00 AM. We continued driving around and taking in the sights.  We went to Tabor Mountain. It was more like a hill.  I was surprised  to find out it is an extinct volcano. After that we went to Portland's Rose Garden. It was extremely beautiful.  After a quick lunch we found ourselves at the Portland Fall RV Show. We went in a lot of really nice RVs.

Portland Street Art

 

Portland RV Show

For our evening/night entertainment Jason took us to  movie at a retro movie theatre. Tonight's feature was " Midnight Kingdom". We all enjoyed it.  We called it a night after the movie.  Jason is going to take us to the coast tomorrow. I am going to try to get some pictures.

That is all for now.
Next Blog: Sat.

Probably the Last Lake Day of the Season

This morning Judy and I ran a ton of errands preparing for our upcoming extended travel to Florida.  We had to get copies of my DD214 to document my naval service out of our safe deposit box. We will be attaching the documentation to an application for burial at Ga. Veterans Memorial Cemetery. I am hoping it will be a long time before we get there!  Judy also stopped by the mall to get some things for our trip to Oregon.

After getting back home Judy continued calling various doctors, banks, and other businesses to change our address to our mail forwarding service and I cut the grass and getting the boathouse and dock area cleared up for the off season. It wasn’t before I decided it was too nice a day to work. I called Judy on the walkie talkie and ask her if she wanted to go out on the lake. She told me she would be ready to go in five minutes. By the time I lowered the bass boat into the water, Judy was ready to go. We are really liking our retired status.

 

Judy takes fishing seriously!

 

 

Judy took a lure to the chin!  

 

 

I have been called "The Bass Stalker"

 

Bass breaking the surface (Judy took the pic)

 

Bass Boated (Judy took the pic, can you tell?)

 

 

 

Thats all for now.  Thanks for stopping by

Next Blog: Not Sure

Summer Heat is Gone

The heat of the summer may be broken.  The temps have moderated to the mid 80’s and the days so much more enjoyable.  Judy and I have been working hard to get ready for our trip to Oregon.

Saturday we drove to Macon to pick up a few items to have when we go to Florida at the end of the month. My sister Faye and my brother in law Bill rode in with us. We visited the Pig and Fin and had a great dinner meal. It had been many years since Faye and Bill had eaten there. Both seemed to enjoy their meal.

Bill, Faye,and Judy



That is about it for now. I probably will not get another blog entry until after we get to Portland on Wed.

Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Thurs

Winter Location

Judy and I continue to make plans for our upcoming trip to Portland, Oregon to visit our son, Jason, next week.  He moved out to Oregon after he graduated from GA. College & State University in 09 with a BSN degree.  He currently works at a major hospital as an ICU RN.  We checked with a local shuttle service that takes travelers to Atlanta’s airport. I think it will be easier on us than driving and leaving our car in long term parking. We can leave our car at the shuttle service for free.

RN Jason

We have decided that we are going to spend Dec. and Jan. at Adelaide Shores RV Resort.  I didn’t plan to make a firm commitment for a couple of weeks. I contacted the writer of one of the blogs ( TumbleWeed) I read for  some advice. She indicated that if we planned to stay at Adelaide Shores we should go ahead and make reservations because it is a very popular park.  Judy called today and the park rep informed her that the park only had four sites left.  Judy asked if any sites between 1-10 were available. She was told site # 1 was available – it came open yesterday when a reservation was canceled.  As it turns out, it is very close to Tumble Weed. We look forward to meeting Dee and Jim.

Thanks for stopping by.

Next blog: Monday

Planning!

Judy and I are enjoying the Labor Day weekend at home.  The weather is going to be hot and humid with a chance of thunder storms each evening throughout the holiday.  That is the typical weather forecast for this time of year.  We are thinking about where we want to spend Dec. through Feb. We will be back at Blanton Creek the last week of Feb.

We will finish up our next workamper (volunteer) position at the end of Nov.  Judy wants to stay at a traditional “snowbird” rv park in Florida December and Jan. I don’t really care one way or another. She likes the social and activities aspect of such parks.

We have been looking at a few online. Adelaide Shores RV ParkAdelaide Shores RV park caught her eye.  It is located about a hour south of Tampa I think. If you have other recommendations, please share them with us. A personal recommendation is more valuable than viewing a web site.

 Yesterday I made a target stand to use when I go to the shooting range. I used some scrap ¾ inch PVC that I had left over from other projects. I took it over to the shooting range and it was ok.  The range attendant suggested that I increase the height from five feet to six feet.  I have already made the modification.  I will put a picture in the blog in a couple of hours.  As I write this it is still dark outside (6:05 AM).

Target Stand

 



Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Wed evening