PNewL PNewS
Volume 25 Issue 2 “All the pnews that phits.” July
2017
Travels with
Roger, the Very Good Dog
I wonder if Roger’s wish to be with me
24/7 wore thin for him over the course of 6,032 miles and 28 days. Despite
being a rabid introvert, I do have my moments of enjoying the company of many
different people (not together!) and it became apparent on the road, pretty
early on, that while he is a good traveler, he is not a good visitor.
Back story: This past winter I bought
Roger an itty bitty RV, well, a van really which henceforth we will call “the
rig.” I also call it the Rogermobile but usually forget to because that’s a
long word. I wanted to be able to take Roger along on some adventures, and I
wanted to visit friends who are far flung and are easier, in my mind, to visit
in a row without puddle-jumping flights. And oh, how I wanted Roger to be along
for the ride. Alas, as I said—better traveler than a visitor and soon I found
it too hard to watch him cower as we arrived at each new destination. And every
day is like Groundhog Day (the movie…and now a Broadway Show!), starting the
getting to know people process anew. Lesson learned. We will figure out how to
live on the road so we are both happy.
Despite his lack of interest in meeting or
re-meeting friends and family, we had a great time and saw some wonderful
country. I billed this as the Friends & Family Tour—when Gene told me that
Crater Lake might have roads closed into late June or July because of snow, I
said, no pretty stuff, we are only seeing people. But the fact is, getting to
the F&F, there is a lot of beautiful country to see and I am grateful to
the folks who thought to preserve it.
We left North Carolina heading west,
staying in State Parks in Kentucky (hilly campground with lake), Missouri
(lovely peaceful off the beaten path), Nebraska (huge reservoir) and Wyoming
(gorgeous rock formations) over the next four nights. I had to make a quick
detour to Paducah, the Quilt Capitol, to shop at Hancocks of Paducah where I
have shopped online since online became a place one could shop. It did not
disappoint. I couldn’t go to the quilting museum because it was too hot to
leave Roger in the rig. Paducah is right on the Ohio River and this was where
my interest in the rivers and how folks are using them began.
I tried to stay on the “red roads” on my
maps—not the interstates. I quickly learned that while these are good roads,
typically lightly travelled, they are not as fast as the interstates and as a
pedal to the metal kinda driver, this was an adjustment. The upside was the
intimate view into Main Street America, which while interesting, was not always
a happy sight. It did, however, make me understand a little bit more about how
we could have differing views of the world based on where we live. My usual
line, when I end up somewhere I don’t like is, If I lived here, I would move.
Now I kept thinking if I lived here maybe I would have voted differently.
Downtown small town America is empty. And Dollar Stores of all varieties are
thriving. (Interestingly, on the red roads there are fewer Walmarts than I
would have expected).
In Laramie, we met up with Tim and Gwen
who are volunteering at the Wyoming Regional Prison State Historic Site (I
think those words are in the right order). They had started working there a
week or so before I arrived so practiced their tour guiding on me. It’s a very
cool facility. Stop in if you are nearby. Big selling point: It’s the only
place Butch Cassidy was incarcerated! Continuing west and north to Jackson WY
where Lisa and Charlie provided a phenomenal location (directly across the road
from the Grand Tetons) and wonderful hospitality. And plenty of wildlife--the
bison were frequent commuters across the prairie around the house. Onward to
Missoula for a nice visit with Martha and her family, a brief visit with Suzy,
Peggy and Betsy who I shared three weeks in China with almost 20 years ago
(seriously???) and a trip to Wild Horse Island.
It was on Wild Horse Island, that I
finally decided the trip as planned was not going to work for Roger. I thought
about turning around from there but really wanted to get to Portland and Peter,
which also included a side trip to Sunriver to see Gene, but I’ll get back to
that in a minute. While Roger was kind of a wreck in people’s homes, he had no
fear when it came to riding in a boat out to the island. And when I set him on
the dock, he trotted off as if he’d been doing it all his life. I had had a lot
of worries about his reaction to both the boat and the island, but thankfully,
he is an island dog.
We had a good ride over to Portland
staying in another State Park along the Columbia River, a lovely stay with my
charming brother, and nice visit with Gene who was a good guide to Central
Oregon, his relatively new home. Upon returning back to Portland to take Peter
home, it seemed the right thing to do to make a relatively slow slog home. We
missed Washington and visits with old friends which I had really looked forward
to along with all of what is my visits to California—lots of people and fun.
Sigh. But it would have been a lot of hopping around and adjusting, and Roger
put his paw down and said no. Okay, he didn’t really but I got the picture.
Back on the road, we spent the night at
the Wallowa Lake State Park (lovely) and then on around the edge of Hells
Canyon (who knew how pretty that could be!?!) into Idaho where I kinda ran out
of State Parks and good campground juju. I know they are out there but not
where we were, and we stayed at a just-off-the-highway place that was mostly
occupied by people who I think lived there on a pretty much permanent basis. It
was not as sad as it sounds (or as sad as we were about to face) but it was
different scenery than we’d been seeing. The light through the cornfields that
surrounded us as well as the wavy weeping willows softened the edges.
Through some more of Idaho into a corner
of Utah (saw the Salt Lake but only for a few moments) and then across into
Colorado where we found Yampa River State Park. The following day we went down
through great mountains on lovely little roads and landed in Kansas. I thought
as I finally pulled into a “campground” that really was a truck stop beside the
highway and trucks full of fly infested cattle, that I would write a country
western song called “I found Hell and it’s in Kansas.” ‘Nuf said.
[Wow—are
you glad I didn’t go to Washington and California? How I do run on!]
We tried the scenic road in Kansas, which
to me didn’t look a whole lot different than the other roads and eventually we
were in Missouri where we found the Laura Ingalls Wilder RV Park directly
across from the home where she wrote the Little House on the Prairie etc.
Exciting! The last night on the road (prior to the scariest drive of the trip
on a wiggly road along a boiling river from TN into NC in a blinding rainstorm)
was at the David Crockett State Park, cram-packed with cars parked everywhere
and every inch occupied. Thankfully everyone was well behaved and I scored
neighbors who were two elderly brothers just starting on a three month road
trip to Alaska who had brought along some watermelons they’d plucked from their
field before leaving home in Alabama. In return, I gave them a month’s supply
of poop bags for their puppy. It was the best I could do on short notice.
I guess I would say it’s good to be home.
I am sorry I missed the parts we skipped, but am glad I honored Roger’s
limitations. On the other hand, we had a blast—the campgrounds were a
fascinating look at an array of lifestyles. I liked seeing all the different
“rigs” and accoutrements. We were usually
the smallest vehicle in the place, but I did enjoy seeing how other people
decked themselves out for “glamping.” It’s a great way to see the country and
the people in it. As I said, Roger is a good traveller so I know we have many
miles ahead.
Things I am Learning
& Miscellaneous Observations
• I
must say I did have some storage envy as I inspected the neighboring campers’
rigs (from the outside) -- my space is very limited and I was overloaded as it
was.
•
There are a lot of rivers in this country that are being used for transporting
goods. In one town in southern Illinois, a long line of trucks waited to unload
onto barges in the Mississippi. Based on my route, I felt like we were very far
from any roads where I would normally see this many semis. Plus, in the middle
of what looks like nowhere to me, there are a lot of huge bridges over those
huge rivers. It made me wonder about when they were all built and if this
infrastructure is being well taken care of.
•
Along with an insight into life on Main Street America, I was kinda horrified
by the state of housing in some of those small towns. “Sub-standard” barely
covers it.
•
Mosquitos seem to be everywhere. I am wondering if they will be around after
the apocalypse…mosquitos and cockroaches…how’s that for a party?
•
You might have gathered I have a little bit of a “thing” for State parks. I
have to say—I am impressed. Nice facilities, well taken care of and well used,
and they seem to be everywhere. (I am sure there are plenty that aren’t all of
the above but so far, they’re good for me.) I got a mailing from the NC State
Park system which is quite handsome. I look forward to investigating the parks
closer to home.
• I
also really enjoyed secondary roads. They offer a view into small towns (where
I had to slow down, stop at stop signs or traffic signals) and they can be
plenty easy to drive but they are slower and a little more tiring. I found I
had to plan accordingly. I often wondered why some towns are prosperous and
others are not—this was not apparent as I trundled on through.
• I
was wowed by the beautiful places I’ve never heard of--Curt Gowdy State Park,
Hell’s Canyon, Land Between the Lakes--to name but a few.
• I
much appreciated the middle-aged park people who put middle-aged camper in
campsites near toilets.
•
Camping does nothing for my hair.
• I
need to remember to give as much thought to the end of the trip as I do to the
beginning. Since this ending came faster than expected I cut myself slack, but
I found I didn’t have as much time to look at the big picture on the road as I
would have expected. Things take longer when camping and travelling with a dog.
•
Billboards in the heartland are different. Saw several for quilt shops and
fertilizer and the benefits of GMOs.
•
There are a lot of trains crisscrossing this country. I like it. Hope they
continue to make them available as transportation.
•
“Odor of America”—I found this in my notes (yes, I make notes for the PNewS). It doesn’t ring any bells other
than the aforementioned “campground” with the cows and flies.
•
Wow—I almost forgot to mention one of the unexpected highlights of the trip:
Spring flowers! Blooms across the Plains and into Wyoming, Montana and beyond
were everywhere and it was unexpected and so beautiful.
•
And, by the way, it can still be quite cold in June in parts of this country.
While I had worried about the heat on the return trip, running into snow in
Wyoming and
Oregon was a bit of a surprise.
• I
will try to remember: take less stuff. I had way too many books and knitting
projects. Too many clothes and dishes. Oddly, not enough silverware.
•
Another note to self which doesn’t conjure up much of a memory but are words to
live by: “No judgment. We all do things differently.”
• I
asked Peter and Gene to come with me to refill my propane tank. That kind of
thing intimidates me and I figured they’d be good folks to have along on this
adventure. After a total of about four weeks in the van, making coffee and
boiling water and maybe a scrambled egg, I paid the nice man about $1 to
“refill” my tank. Good to know.
•
(Not van trip related) It’s always a relief and a bit of buyer's remorse when I
finally make a plane reservation.
• I
have a new dishwasher, which makes me incredibly happy—I can actually run it
when I am in the house. It’s practically silent. I was looking at the
directions and am curious about the rinse aid product that makes dishes dryer.
I don’t get it—isn’t dry dry? I also
am amazed at the diagrams of how to fill the two racks. What if you don’t only
have cups, glasses, plates and bowls for eight?
Test Drives and
other Distractions
The first test drive was solo and
practically local. In early April, I took a metalworking class at the John C
Campbell Folk School, which I should say was a ton of fun. We made rooster lawn
art. Can’t wait to go back. They have a campground on campus and they provide a
variety of meal plan options, which took the pressure off menu planning. I
opted for lunch and dinner, which gave me one quiet time meal and two with
other people. That worked for me
The campground is pretty quiet—some
commuting traffic early but keep in mind this is Brasstown NC so if absolutely
everyone in town drove by, there’d hardly be a line at the stop sign. Anyway,
it was peaceful. I think the only weird part was that locals would pull in to use
the bathrooms and showers. And the too bad part was that it rained and stormed
most of the week. I think I only popped the camper top one out of four days.
But everything went well, I thought.
The second test drive, Roger’s
first, we went to meet up with Gini and Blaze, another very good dog, in
Georgia. We stayed for a few days at the campground on Jekyll Island, which is
very civilized though packed. It was a great view of tons of different kinds of
rigs. But Gini lives at the beach and I used to live at the beach and we ran
out of interest in the beach so we headed inland where it turned out it was
pretty hot and sweaty…in April. We ended up at Little Lake Ocmulgee State Park,
which was not a bad place, just a little odd. The lake was the opposite of
inviting and the people at the Inn on the property where we checked in were
strangely uninformed. It provided a place to land and we explored a little. If
you are ever in the area, check out the Statue of Liberty made from recycled
objects in nearby McRae.
And last but certainly not least
(and not a test drive), I spent my birthday weekend in New York City
celebrating with some friends from high school and college. Fourteen of us from
the class of ’75 gathered for a fun time. I saw shows, and the Chihuly exhibit
at the NY (Bronx) Botanical Gardens, ate, and went to a Gala. It was a perfect
celebration.
I think that’s probably enough
about me.
How’re you?
