Please Read the Guestbook

Please Sign the Guestbook

Wagonteamster

March 15, 2015, Blair, Nebraska - In the middle of January, Jacquie and I took off on a one month road trip (in a car) towing our little travel trailer 11,000 miles around America. Shortly after getting back to Oregon, I had to head off to Nebraska for a three month job assignment at a nuclear plant.

Our first stop on the road trip was in Southern California, where we visited some friends and took in the scenery. One of America’s little secrets is the fact that there are State Parks up and down the California and Oregon coast where ocean side RV spots with full hookups are available for $30 to $60 a night. We managed to grab a nice place to park overnight by the sea, just south of Oceanside, CA.

After passing through Arizona and New Mexico, our next stop was Austin, TX where I was able to pay a visit to my brother Jim.  Upon reaching New Orleans, we spent several hours on a pedi-cab tour through the French Quarter as we munched on seafood poor-boys and drank margaritas.

Our rig parked in front of the Battleship Alabama in Mobile bay. The little 13’ Scamp only weighs 1200 pounds empty but is equipped with a toilet, shower, fridge, sink, bed and table.  Not bad for something that can be pulled by a 4 cylinder car.

After visiting the Gulfcoast and Kennedy Space Center, we turned north up the Eastcoast for Washington DC. After finding a great place to camp on the Potomac River (30 minutes from downtown DC) we spent the next couple of days visiting my daughter Lisa and seeing the sights of our nation’s capitol, to include several of the free, national museums.

On our way north to New Hampshire we rolled our way up the coastline before driving across the George Washington Bridge into upper Manhattan and continuing north. Before leaving DC, I was careful to drain the water and waste tanks in the trailer to prevent them from freezing up in the frozen northland.

Having supper with my 5 year old grandson Aiden, my son Daniel and his girlfriend Jamie in Concord, NH.

In New Hampshire we had a great visit with my son and his family.  It was a real joy to see them.  My grandson has become quite the conversationalist and managed to show me most of his coolest toys. During our time in NH, we managed to stop and visit several friends and grab a nice lobster lunch over on the coast.  Unfortunately, we had to head south after a couple of days to avoid getting bowled over by a three day snowstorm.

Heading south, I turned west on Interstate 40 to visit my sister Cathy in Hickory, NC and my friend Bernie Harberts in nearby Lenoir, NC.  This was another great time and I got to see my niece Katie and her two small children.

In this picture you can see my friend Bernie backing his two mules and forecart up to the Scamp. Bernie originally sold me the Biscuit wagon for the price of a biscuit at the local Bojangles restaurant.  After his girl friend Julia gave me a really great skillet biscuit, I guess he thought he was authorized to drive my trailer off into the woods - ha ha. Bernie has another great trip planned, but I’ll let him break the news on his website www.riverearth.com as the details come together.

Another highlight of the trip was stopping over in Nashville, TN.  Nearly all of the bars and eating establishments downtown, on Music Row provide some really great, live, musical entertainers free of charge.  Nashville is well worth the trip.

Standing by the horse statue outside the Wild Horse Saloon in downtown Nashville.

We continued west on I-40 to Little Rock, AR, before heading back south to avoid some colder weather. Upon reaching Demming, NM we stopped to buy some strings of dried chili peppers and lunch on some of the best Mexican food I ever had. Continuing west to Phoenix, we turned north and set our sites on Las Vegas.  For two days we camped on the shore of nearby Lake Mead and enjoyed the sights of Vegas and nearby Boulder, NV.

Three hours northwest of Las Vegas we drove through beautiful Death Valley, before driving through nearby Lone Pine, CA. That day, we went from the lowest point in the US, to the casting our eyes on Mt. Whitney, the highest point in the continental US.  After a stop in Reno, NV, it was a fairly short ride back to Valley Falls, OR, which we last saw 30 days before.

It’s still possible to drive across Hoover Dam, even though the highway no longer travels across the dam.  However. trailers and large vehicles must have a cursory inspection prior to being allowed to drive across the dam.

In our absence, Oregon had unseasonably warm weather.  Not only was the grass no longer dormant, it was actually growing.

I’ve been here in Nebraska for two weeks with a quite a few to go. The job is scheduled to last until the last half of May. Take care, Bob