Closed … til April 2016 / Headed South

Caldwell, Idaho  H 85  L 45

Judy locked the gate at Pelton Park promptly at 1:00 PM Sunday ending the 2015 camping season.  It was another enjoyable season here for us and we most likely will be back next season. Judy and I have made many friends here and like Central Oregon. That is not to say that we weren’t ready to head out. Pelton Park is Portland General Electric’s crown jewel park and is full every weekend from Memorial Day until the weekend after Labor Day, that translates to between 240-300 people in the park every weekend.

      

A few days before we closed the park Jim and Cindy, who operate the marina and café invited us out for a dinner cruise on Lake Simtustus. They have decided that after five years it is time to sell out. We are going to miss them immensely. They have been great friends to us. They are building a home up on the canyon rim about ten miles from the park and I know we will be visiting them when we return.

    Cindy at the helm    

Jim and Cindy’s new home (under construction) 

        

Monday Judy and I pulled out for our 340 mile pull to Caldwell, ID.  We had great driving weather and traffic was non-existent. Our one night stopover at the Ambassador RV Resort may turn into a two night stop if I can get a service appointment at the local Chrysler dealership Tue. I would like to get an oil change and replace the fuel filter for the truck.

Stopped in a const. zone 

Ambassador RV Resort #109

Once we leave here we will be going to Willard’s Bay State park in Utah.

That is all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: in a few days

Only One Week Left

Madras, Oregon    H72  L47

Judy and I only have one more week here at Pelton Park before we hitch-up and head south to Arizona. We have enjoyed our second season working at the park but we are ready to get moving.

Now that Labor Day has past, the number of campers at the park has dropped off sharply. This weekend only 23 sites were occupied and less than five will be in the park each night during the week.

Last week all the Yomes (15) were lowered and taken out of service until the park opens again next April. Don and I had some help doing this. Rick and Gary from the west side came over and Terry came down from Round Butte Overlook to help us. We took all the beds apart and transported them and their mattresses to a large storage container. The canvas sides were removed and stored also. Each yome was then lowered and covered with a large tarp.

    

   

Don and I will continue getting the park ready for next Sunday’s shutdown and Judy and Linda will be doing the same for the office.

That is all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

It’s Official, Summer is Over

Pelton Park - Madras, Oregon   H   L

To borrow a line from a Keith Urban tune, “Summer’s Come and Gone”. This past weekend, was the last hurrah for most campers, the Labor Day Weekend. The park was full as usual.

Even though the park was full it just didn’t seem like this was a major holiday weekend. A couple of factors contributed in making the holiday have a subdued feeling to it. Due to all the wildfires campfires were not permitted. Camping is just not the same without a campfire as the social focal point at night. This coupled with much lower temps (H60 L37) had most campers inside their tents or RVs by 10:00 PM. Sure made the camp host job easy. At least it didn’t rain, although we could sure use a good rain.

Empty Swim Area Labor Day Weekend

  Blake Shelton stopped by! (NOT)

Tue Judy and I took another scenic drive with our friends Terry and Rose. We headed east on HWY 26 and left the main road just east of Prineville to drive on some Forrest Service backroads. It wasn’t long before the blacktop gave way to gravel and remoteness. After we were deep into the NFS land Terry had to come to a stop because sheep were coming out of the forest onto the gravel road. At first there was just a trickle of sheep but soon we were surrounded by hundreds of sheep entering the narrow road. They just kept coming for at least ten minutes. We never saw an individual but finally we saw a lone dog bringing up the rear and keeping the sheep on the move.  That was something we had never seen before.

    

Judy and I are starting to get the RV ready for travel. We will be be getting back on the road on Sept. 29th.

That is all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Net Blog: in a week or so.

Another Fire!

Pelton Park CG, Madras, Oregon  H 74 L 54

Fire season is going strong here in Central Oregon. The “Two Counties Fire” that I mentioned in previous post is still burning two and a half weeks later.  It is now about 70% contained.

Saturday, we received a call letting us know a fire had started and got out of control at the Cove Palisades State Park about three miles away as the crow flies or as the fire burns! Our friend Rose was working down at Pelton rushed back to Round Butt Overlook day use park where her and her husband Terry work and live in their Montana fifth wheel. Terry was getting the 5ver ready for immediate evacuation as Round Butte is only about two miles from “The Cove”.  Rose stopped by and helped Terry get things ready to go and then went to one of the overlooks near The Cove so she could act as a spotter for Terry so she could keep him advised on the movement of the fire.

It has been determined that charcoal was disposed of improperly sparking the fire. The “E Loop” at The Cove is near one of the canyon walls and quickly burned up the wall to the flat rim. The fire was spread by high winds and consumed about 300-400 acres and two homes. Luckily for Rose and Terry the wind shifted and the fire was pushed away from Round Butte.

Once Judy and I got off work we went over to view point three overlooking the state park and watched the mop up operations for a half hour or so.

Below is pics from the view point of the aerial operation

* Click pics to enlarge

The fire area is in the upper left of pic

 

Helo approaching water collection point 

      

Water Collection 

The Water Drop  

    

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: In a week or so

Much of the Same with a Trip Here and There

Unfortunately wildfires are still burning out of control throughout the Northwest.  The fire I wrote about in my last post is still burning and is only 70% contained after two weeks.  Smoke is still a problem here at the campground. We are now under a no camp fire ban. 

      

 The fires have not kept us from taking some time out for a couple fun things.  Judy and I went to Portland to see the national tour of the play “Wicked” with Jason and one of his nurse friends. The play is a prequel to the “Wizard of Oz”.  All of us enjoyed the play.  If it comes to a city near you, I recommend you go see it. 

We also took a day trip to Mount St. Helens National Monument.  It was only a hour and a half ride from Portland.  It has been 35 years since its eruption. Looking at the damage at the summit, you can easily envision the force of the eruption.  We took a walk down one of the nearby trails also.

     

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next blog: In a week or so

Wildfires are burning Nearby

Madras Oregon  H87 L49

Things can be going fine and then all of a sudden things happen. That is what happened Wed. Just when we thought we were going to make it through the season with no wildfires, bam, things change.

A car traveling on HWY 26 near Warm Springs blew a tire on the RV it was towing, not realizing it continued driving. The tire disintegrated  and the metal rim began to leave a trail of sparks which spawned a number of small fires along the highway. It wasn’t long before a major wildfire developed. To date it has grown to over 55,000 acres and is only 25% contained.. For the most part it is burning mostly grasslands and has only threatened a few structures.  Pelton Park is within six miles of the start point of the fire and has been only affected by smoke and ash. Luckily, the fire is spreading away from the campground. This area is very rugged making it hard to contain.

Here are a few pics I snagged off the net.

     

    

    

That is all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Next blog: In a week or so

Travel Itinterary… for now

Madras Oregon  H95  L57

As our time here gets shorter (48 days) I have worked out our travel itinerary framework back to Arizona. I am sure it will change some but at least we have a plan.

Last year we drove down the Oregon and California coast and were tempted to use the same route down to LA.  In the end we decided to head back to AZ via Idaho and Utah. Our travels will include mostly state parks this time. Judy and I usually take a couple of months to reach our winter destination. This year we may stay less days at each stop.

I mentioned in an earlier post that Judy and I are having an investment property constructed in Mesa, AZ and it will be completed in Oct. or Nov. Judy and I want to be in the area as the house is completed. We will be busy furnishing it and getting landscaping in place so we can make it available to seasonal Snowbirds. Below is a pic we received a couple of weeks ago.

Our travel itinerary

 

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: In a week or so.