Tag: Bigfoot RV

The RV Laundry Experiment

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money.

Laundry is a difficult task when you live in an RV. Some of the large RVs have a washer and dryer on board, but when you want to stay small and manageable as possible, you don’t get that option. So, laundromats are the de facto option. Sigh… This prompted the RV laundry experiment.

Laundrymats

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money. The equipment does a poor job, it’s often dirty, and can cost $20.00 and up just to do a few loads. At hundreds of dollars annually, this is an expense the budget conscious can avoid.

Last year, we were learning the ins and outs of this RV lifestyle. This year, with a little experience under our belt, we are learning how to economize.

Portable washing machines
Washer used in the RV laundry experiment

Ken and I did a little research and for about one hundred twenty dollars, found a small washing machine. Made from plastic and light weight, it agitates in one compartment and then you transfer to a spinner compartment. It’s a lot like doing wash in an old time wringer machine. (Which I have had the great fortune of doing when I was newly liberated from my parents home. Thank you, Grandma.). The process isn’t hard. You fill the tub. Agitate the desired amount. Transfer to the spinner. Then repeat for the rinse.

It Works!

I am overjoyed with the results. The portable washer is able to do about one-third to one-half of a regular size load, and takes about half an hour to complete all the steps. The agitator is strong enough to get my clothes completely clean, and I even have the choice of normal or gentle agitation. Currently using it outdoors, but if necessary, the washer can be placed in the bathtub and used inside.

Clothesline
Portable clothes rack mounted on RV ladder

We added a portable collapsible clothes hanger for about eighty dollars. It will hold two loads of laundry for drying.

So, it looks like the RV laundry experiment is a success. The portable washer has been used for three weeks now. The water and electric are provided by the RV park for the wash, and we use solar power for the dry. After about a ten week payoff for our initial investment, our laundry will be free.

What a sweet word that is.

Always grateful. 👫

Laissez les bons temps rouler!….Let the good times roll!

Does New Orleans live up to all the hoopla?

Ken and I have started out the new year on the road with our first stop in 👑New Orleans. Probably not the best choice when you have vowed to do better on your budget and your diet🎺🎶🍽 but it was in our path, so who could resist?

Does New Orleans live up to all the hoopla? We only stayed for three days but I’m all in. New Orleans is older than our country, filled with restaurants that have created (and continue to create) iconic foods such as Oysters Rockefeller, Bananas Foster, Po’Boys and Gumbo and overflowing with fantastic old buildings. If you are a foodie or history buff then NOLA is a must.

From NOLA, we continued west. There was a frightening experience in Vidor, Texas where we tried to overnight at a Walmart. We still aren’t sure what the motive was but we were harassed and followed out of town at 1:00 am. FYI: The police are little help until an actual crime has been committed. We didn’t feel like waiting around for that to happen. So, we followed our instincts and left. Thank goodness The Burrow was refueled before our stop and we were able to get far, far away from Vidor, Texas.

Our next stop was with long time friends and family in Austin. We love Austin and even though it was a quick visit, it was like old times with friends Tim & Kaye who were generous enough to let us driveway surf.

Other than a cold front that forced us to spend a couple of days in Van Horn, Texas and another stop to visit family in Scottsdale, we made an uneventful trip back in to Las Vegas (our West coast base).

So, here we go again. New adventures are calling. A little more RV savvy, a little less stressed and a lot more certain that this is where we want to be.

This year we intend to focus on economizing our travels. So stay tuned. We’ll be writing about some of the measures we are taking (including more boondocking 😬) and how effective they are. And, of course, we will be sharing photos of our stops and flops.

Always grateful. 👫

Are we done with RV Life?

Arrrrrgh! I have a first grandbaby to get to.

Is the traveling over for us?

Many emotions ran through our minds as we headed east and south to an annual family get together in Cedar Key, Florida. It’s the same feeling you get when your vacation has come to an end and it’s time to pack your gear and go. It’s sad. You want to stay and play but at the same time you miss the familiar and are excited to be back home.

It’s those familiar surroundings that are so enticing. Roads that you know every curve, every dip, and every stopping place. Restaurants where the food is always good. The ease of grocery shopping. And, getting all your favorite old products. Just knowing. The knowing, the familiar, wraps you like a warm blanket and a comfortable pair of old slippers. Home.

Ken and Janet at a tiki bar in Cedar Key, Florida.
Low Key Hideaway, Cedar Key, FL

We spent two weeks visiting with family in Cedar Key, a tiny little island on the Florida Gulf Coast. The chance to do a little fishing, enjoy some food favorites, like stone crab and smoked mullet, were welcome entertainment. It was a great visit but was soon time to move further south to Ft. Lauderdale, where our first grandbaby was expected to arrive within the next couple of weeks.

The Burrow rolled down the Florida Turnpike and other feelings and remembrances started crowding our minds as the pace got more frenetic and shoved out the pleasant warm fuzzy emotions that we had harbored since the Florida/Alabama line. The traffic, the rudeness, the heat, the population, the acres of concrete. These are but a few of the reasons we wanted to leave in the first place.

Arrrrrgh! I have a first grandbaby to get to.

We are currently parked in South Florida. The weather is perfect. My new granddaughter is perfect. Visiting with my children, family and friends is perfect. It will be hard to go. But we will. We have been bitten by the travel bug.

Ken and I make plans for the kids to bring the new baby to us, maybe Oregon or Yosemite, someplace grand and inspiring that we would love for them to experience while sharing in our granddaughter’s growth. We make adjustments and changes. We figure it out.

Our time in South Florida is packed with RV modifications and upgrades, doctor appointments, figuring out our travel plans for 2019. And baby time. Lots of baby time because it will have to last for a while.

It’s time. It’s time for our kids to adjust to their new family life and time for Grandmama and Grandpa to go and dance under the harvest moon. Even though change is inevitable it doesn’t mean it’s easy but we will try to meet the changes with anticipation.

Cedar Key, Florida

Thank you everyone who has made our last year such a memorable one. We sincerely hope 2019 will be as much fun. Looking forward to show you where we are headed.

Always grateful.👫

We Have Squirrels!

I know that your first thought is literally we have squirrels in The Burrow but that is not the problem. I mean squirrels, as in, distractions.

We need to do laundry (because we are COMPLETELY out of clothes). But we will just wear dirty ones. We can’t miss those Roosevelt Elk.

Sea Lion Caves, Oregon

Need to go pick up groceries? – Dinner is now boiled carrots, a can of tuna and ice cream. The sea otters, or sea lions (we aren’t sure which), will be playing in the lagoon at 7:00 PM. And we certainly cannot miss that.

Organize our departure route through possibly treacherous mountain passes? Are you kidding? We might miss the Sea Lion Caves.

And to top it all off – it does not get dark here until near nine o’clock at night. Arrrghhh!

This has become a particular problem in Oregon because, as we are finding out, they have been hiding their glorious state. There are countless outdoor adventures, huge variety in delicious foods, and stunning scenery — but unlike our beautiful Florida and recently visited California — it is not overrun with tourists. Plus, you are not even allowed to pump your own gas here; that is the gas attendant’s job. Who cannot get on board with that?

Scenic highway 101, Oregon

Squirrels are rampant here in Oregon. We both agree it is one of our favorite states to date and can’t wait to show you as we explore more of this delightful surprise.

Private beach picnic

For now though, it’s off to have a private picnic on a secluded beach. We have squirrels. And it’s a blast.

Always grateful. 👫

Say “Thanks” to a Farmer.

The Pacific Northwest has been all we expected and more. Forty miles of towering redwoods give way to massive four-story high dunes in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area

A little glimpse and I almost forget that we aren’t home.

The Pacific Northwest has been all we expected and more. Forty miles of towering redwoods give way to massive four-story high dunes in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. A stroll along the docks in coastal towns like Florence, Oregon, where you can snag fresh tuna, salmon and Dungeness crab from the fishing boats. Meadows abound with majestic Roosevelt Elk. A giant cave filled with sea lions and pristine, secluded beaches, all made it hard to leave for new play places.

Oregon Coastal Sunset
Scenic Columbia River Gorge, Oregon

Through the magnificent Columbia River Gorge we traveled to eastern Washington/Idaho where the views were vast rolling hills of wheat as far as you can see. It was harvest time, the end of summer and we watched as the farmers worked until evening’s last light to get the wheat harvested. The setting was so peaceful, we kept saying “let’s stay just one more day”.

Wheat Fields, Colfax, Washington

We did finally move on to experience the “weirdness” of Portland. Downtown is overflowing with historic buildings, restaurants and breweries all waiting to be tasted or explored. From the largest bookstore in the country to those Voodoo doughnuts, Portland did not disappoint.

Long Beach, Washington

Ken and I are having the time of our lives out here traveling. It is exciting to see new things and to explore areas of the country that are so different from Florida. But while exploring the differences, there are moments; a shaded trail; a glimpse of a palm tree out a restaurant window; a farmhouse, when I forget that we are thousands of miles from our home state. There is a little “oh!” moment, a jolt of homesickness when the realization hits that it’s not home we are seeing.

These are small moments of sadness scattered throughout the joys we experience daily. But the small moments are overshadowed too by our commonalities. We travel the backroads and see differences but many more likenesses. From the fishermen and farmers, the RVers and campers, and the moms and dads, whom we all share the goals of love and happiness, health and safety, and it is a comforting realization.

Say “thanks” to a farmer today.

Click here for our latest video of Oregon:
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Always grateful. 👫
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RV Repair Failure

Pull off the road NOW! The tire is about to go.”

This is not what you want to be screaming into a radio as you start the last leg of your itinerary. And this wasn’t simply a flat tire. No, nothing as simple as that. We had the flat tire the day before. This was much worse. This was a serious RV repair failure that left us shaking in our boots.

One of the problems with RV travel is finding reputable companies when you need work done on your home. This incident was a hard lesson. We are safe. Thank goodness. But we will never let anyone touch the wheels of The Burrow again without checking their work before we pull out. This RV repair failure nearly cost us our home, our pets and our lives.

A rear tire sheared off the lug bolts of the Bigfoot as we were traveling down a busy Interstate 15 between Barstow, California and Las Vegas. We think but cannot prove it happened because of loose lug nuts. We had just had a tire replaced and pulled out of the shop. Had only traveled about 15 miles down the road.

Our Lucky Day

Had just a couple of things been different, we might have had a different outcome. We were not towing Armadillo, which was fortunate. And, we were using two-way radios that allowed rapid communication. Ken was able to move off the road as the first wheel came off — that went flying into the desert — and stopped just before the second one could come off the axle. The tow truck driver suggested, since we had been so lucky that day, that we run out and buy lotto tickets.

We will learn from this very frightening experience and I hope that by sharing, you will too. Check the torque on the lug nuts. Check tire pressures. We are considering installing cameras inside and out for when we must leave our home in someone else’s care. We have to live always on guard. Or, as in this case, guard against putting our lives in danger from malfeasance. Unfortunately, that reality continues even with our new RV lifestyle.

Be aware

This blog post is not meant to frighten you but to make you aware and help you to avoid a serious roadside emergency.

Bitsy and Butter were incredibly frightened but settled down after we moved into a hotel. And, after I quit shaking like a leaf, it was nice to be pampered for a few days with unlimited hot water, breakfast every morning and someone else to clean the room.

We found a couple of quirky little things to do in Barstow while we waited for parts from Los Angeles. Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch on Route 66 was pretty neat and Calico Ghost Town was well, eerie.

We are especially today….Always grateful. 👫

Rusted Jeep surrounded by bottle trees