We’re baaaaack!
Long. Winding. Road
Stats:
31 days
5 provinces. 1 state
10,000 kilometers
17 campsites
Mosquito bites: Me – 1,964,281 … Mrs Widds – 2
Roadworks – The entire length of Hyw 17 from the BC/Alberta border to the Manitoba/Ontario one. (only a slight exaggeration)
Bridges under construction – Every bridge in Ontario. (no exaggeration)
Another valley, another bridge
Gigantic humongous scary storms – 6
Biggest variation of temperature in a 24 hour period in one place – 37°C to 17°C
Times we forgot to chock the wheels of the RV – 1, setting up our 2nd last campsite, and that was the time it rolled a bit and crunched the leveling jacks. (of course) Nothing our trusty RV fixer-uppers can’t fix, but oh, the embarrassment!
You can’t see it but they bent one of my flippers
Moments of complete awe and wonder – too many to count
Arguments – none
***
The Costco Adventure – Day 1
Because we didn’t get our trailer until two days before we left we had very little time to acquaint ourselves with how everything worked, or to stock up on holiday supplies, so our first plan of action was to trundle our merry way to our Costco and shop.
The trailer brakes didn’t seem to be working properly from the very beginning, (we thought) so by the time we got to Costco (½ an hour from home) we decided to call our RV guys and see if they had any suggestions. The safety chains were a bit tight so Mrs Widds (with a great deal of Mrs Widds patented glaring) got them undone, untwisted and reattached, and we set off …
… and got 10 meters along. A very loud BANGCRUNCH rattled our truck completely freaking us out. The hitch attaching the trailer to our truck completely separated from the truck and our lovely shiny trailer was smack down on her nose in the Costco parking lot.
If you know anything about trailers and hitches, you’ll know this doesn’t happen without deliberate human interference. Someone had removed the cotter pin that locked the hitch in place. From the moment we left home we were a major accident waiting to happen. It was only the tight safety chains, and Costco, that prevented us from being a statistic on your nightly news.
***
By the end of the second day, we were here, so all was … well, neither forgiven nor forgotten, but a whole lot better, and we felt like we were really on holiday.
Mt Robson, the beautiful
***
Next: Winnipeg, oh Winnipeg
What fun – looking forward to hearing about your wonderful trip.
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Oh, and I forgot to say: of COURSE everything is under construction – it’s summer. That’s when they can do road work. It doesn’t hurt that those doing it, who are working and not on vacation, get to ruin the vacations of the summer lucky tourist types.
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Yeah. I can’t imagine what the roads were like before they started, cos the un-worked-on-yet bits we did drive on were pretty bad.
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Thank goodness for Costco. Those stats are impressive. Our family never would have survived. Can’t wait to read more.
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We certainly had some adventures, big and small.
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Oooh, I’m already enjoying your and the Missus’ adventures. When the Husband and I finally go on ours one day, we’re going to go with a self-contained unit. Neither of us would have the patience or energy to deal with pins and chains and such. I’m impressed: No arguments and six scary storms. Those are interesting mountains. They look like they’re getting carved as sphinxes or pyramids.
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Go with an ‘A’ or a ‘C’ class RV, with enough Grrr in the engine to tow a small car, and a rack for Tilda-Hilda, of course.
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Looks perty familier! Including every bridge under construction, lol. Glad you’re all safe.
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Occasionally I wondered if we were traveling in your footsteps. 🙂
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What fun! Looking forward to reading more. 🙂
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Coming right up! 🙂
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What a trip! Can’t wait for more posts about it.
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They’re on their way 🙂
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Sounds marvelous! I do love road trips!
Who removed the cotter pin? That’s awful!
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No idea. We got a lockable hitch pin as soon as we could though! (The lock replaced the cotter pin)
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Glad you didn’t come to any harm with the pin coming away, apart from the gazillion bites you suffered! What a beautiful sight, Mt Robson.
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I love seeing My Baker from our backyard (well, nearby) but I have to say Mt Robson was spectacular!
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I love seeing Mt Baker in the distance almost every day, but Mt Robson, up close and personal, was breathtaking.
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Yes mountains can be so stunning, seen some amazing views whilst skiing, which was most definitely one of the highlights for me as I’m not a very good skier!
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