Back to the Fort

Check out the new wheels!

When we returned from our last trip, I noted that the truck had felt slightly different when driving at lower speeds. My mind always jumps directly to the worst-case scenario; in this case, my scenario was "our transmission was going out."  We made an appointment with our auto repair folks and I explained my feelings when driving. I thought it felt like I was driving a manual transmission, and not giving it enough gas when accelerating. There was definitely something making the vehicle shudder and the most expensive thing I could think of was the transmission.

I delivered the truck to Lake City Auto and they sent their transmission specialist out to give it a test. Within a half hour, I had my answer. The drive lines were out of balance and the U-joints were failing. 16 years of carrying the camper had taken its toll.  We needed it repaired, so I tossed my credit card on the counter and said "Git er done!" I talk like that when I am talking to mechanics. 

To do this I had to remove the camper from the truck and they would have to keep the truck for three days. As unexpected as the repair was, it gave me time to do some much-needed cleaning and caulking on the camper. For two days I worked my butt off waxing, polishing, and renewing the caulk on the big white box.

I picked up the truck and it drove great! No shuttering when accelerating.  I kept the camper off the truck and at our friends the Anderson's farm, while I worked on it. As I drove back and forth to the farm I was on newly paved roads and I noticed a bit of bumping as I drove. Normally I would think it was the old roads of Idaho, but like I said they were fresh surfaces. Bumping along, I figured that the truck tires needed to be balanced so I took the truck to Les Schaub the next day.

At Schaub's, they took the truck into the bay and within 10 minutes the tire tech called me over and showed me one of my tires and wheels on the balancer and it looked awful. The wheel had a very apparent wobble. The tech told me that all the wheels were just like that and they could not get them balanced. Short story, we needed new wheels. Once again I had to remind myself that all the running gear on the truck has been carrying heavy loads for 16 years, and the camper is rarely off. It makes sense, so I once again opened my wallet and tossed the old credit card on the counter.

It always hurts to make repairs to the truck and camper. Linda and I have talked about this many times. We came to the conclusion long ago that we love our house on wheels, we use it more than most people use theirs, therefore we will always make the needed repairs. In fact, we have a savings account set aside for repairs.

Finally, after a week and a half and several dips into the Repair account, we now have a truck and camper that runs like a dream. No bumping or wobbling. We are once again ready to hit the road!

Looking back. It's a long line!

We slid out onto the highway at about 10:45 AM and pointed the nose of the truck west with our sights set on Cle Elum, WA, on our way to Fort Worden to meet up with Don and Caroline Samuelson. We were looking to boondock at one of our favorite spots that we use when we drive to the Seattle area.

All was well and we were cruising along when suddenly the traffic slowed to a snail's crawl. We had just passed the rest area by Sprague Lake when the traffic started backing up.

There was nothing we could do except crawl along at maybe ten miles an hour for twelve miles. At the end of the jam, a lone semi-truck filled with onions sat at the side of the road, totally burned up. We never heard or read anything about what happened.

Forward doesn't look good either. 

We pulled into our boondocking spot in Cle Elum and settled in for the night.  We ate dinner and took a walk. Then it was off to sleep.

Community gardens in Cle Elum.

In the morning we did our thing and got ready quickly and efficiently. Our fuel tank was full because we took time to fill up before we stopped for the overnight stay.  As we drove out of town, we stopped at Safeway for our traditional shared road breakfast, a deli burrito and a donut.

We hit the road for day two of our adventure. We did a quick stop at the North Bend Outlet Mall so Linda could do a bit of looking around before we took I-90 to Hwy 18, 18 to I-5, then on to Hwy 16 (Gig Habor), Hwy 3 (Bremerton), Hwy 104  (Shine), and then on into Ft. Worden State Park.  Did you get all that?

Point Wilson Lighthouse.

I will explain that part of the trip was filled with a large amount of construction, huge amounts of traffic, and speedy rude drivers. We made it to our campsite just a little later than we had planned and were happy to be finished.

Don and Caroline were all set up in their camp spot. we pulled in across the road from them and got set up.

Otters checking out the Coho.

Caroline loaded us into their car and took us down to the lighthouse where she wanted to fish. There were no locals fishing and she didn't catch anything. We did see seals and Linda was approached by a sea otter. The little critter almost walked on Linda's shoes before he scampered off.  As we left the beach a couple local fishermen came down. Caroline chatted and the info they gave pointed to poor fishing.

We spent the evening talking and enjoying being with Don and Caroline.

The next day was a bit of a blur, but the highlight was Caroline catching a Coho from shore. She had been researching fishing in this area and sure enough she hit one! I spent most of the day feeling under the weather. 

One of the bunkers which housed
the coastal artillery.

Finally, it was 6 PM and we turned on the Presidential debate. All of us were nervous and hoped the best for VP Kamala Harris. She didn't let us down. Now we need to get her elected as President!

The next few days were filled with debate talk and fishing. Cohos were starting to run so we fished early afternoons to try and catch one. Of the four days of fishing only one fish was landed by Caroline. Overall, we were early, and only one day displayed fish moving and catchable. We fished hard anyway.

On Friday we quietly got ready and hit the road. We set our sights on Wanapum State Park Campground and exited Ft. Worden early, trying to miss Tacoma traffic. Our route back to the east side turned out to be easier than we anticipated and we pulled into the campground very early. Our site was empty so we settled in and enjoyed the sunshine. 

On Saturday we drove home with no problems. WSU was in the Apple Cup against Washington and we were able to watch the game. Cougs won, which was good. We were happy to be back home and as usual, we started cleaning the camper and getting ready for our next adventure.

Beautiful evening with a view.

A Little Get-Away

Linda's back is feeling much better. She is working hard to get the muscles rehabbed and back to normal. As a result, I had a couple days with nothing planned so I took a little trip down to Pine Bar on the Lower Salmon to fish for steelhead. 

On Sunday I loaded a bunch of food (way too much!) into the camper and drove south. Traffic was normal and the weather was great! 

Linda and I kept in contact most of the time as I traveled. At stops and restroom breaks I would call or text to keep her posted on my progress.

When I reached the river I checked out the spot that I figured would give me a good campsite and allow easy access to the river for fishing. The spot I was thinking about was already taken so I moved on down to the campground at the end of Pine Bar Road.  There I found several rigs camped, so I backtracked a bit and went to a campsite I have used several times before and set up for my getaway.

The site I chose is nice and flat, and is located next to the river, but has one annoying problem. Goat Thistle! This stuff is everywhere and you have to be very careful how you get it off your skin and clothes. If you touch it with your bare hands it will prick you and leave a sliver in your skin that is very annoying. I learned to deal with the Goat Heads by using a stick or the blade of my knife to flick the thistles off onto the ground.  This works fine, but you have to be very aware and not touch the heads.  Once I remembered about those pesky heads, I could deal with them by avoiding the plants by staying in the gravel around the campsite.

As the day, continued I would text Linda my progress and what I was doing, even though I knew that the texts would not go through.  While I was sitting in front of the camper, I heard a familiar little beep and looked at my phone to see that the last two texts had gone through. I had found one strange location at my river campsite where I could send and receive texts back and forth. It was spotty at best, but it worked if you had patience. The location was at the front of the truck on my coffee cup five inches above the ground.  Really, that was the only place I found that the phone would send and receive texts.

The weather was fantastic, blue skies, lower 90s. I fished on Monday morning, and as I did, Mike Wassmuth motored over from his anchor across the river and we talked for a while.  He is such a dedicated steelheader that he can leave his place in Cottonwood, drive to the river and launch his boat, and then be fishing by sun-up. I was just warming my camper up and he was all set up and fishing.

Mike had to leave at about 10 AM and so I fished on until it got too hot to sit in my spot, even with my umbrella.  

I took some time to sit in the shade and used the binoculars to scan the hillsides. When it started to cool I took a walk and filled my water jugs. As I walked by the campground entrance I spotted a rattlesnake as it slithered off into the tall weeds. It was a young critter, about three and a half feet long.  It didn't want anything to do with me and I was OK with that.

I walked quite a bit that evening and enjoyed the solitude. 

The next morning I packed up and returned home.  The weather called for rain and I was lucky to miss most of the showers on the way home.  The rain started at about Tensed and was off and on the rest of the way home. I made it home and parked the camper. I really like my little getaways, but missed Linda a bunch when I was gone. 

Something Fishy

The day after Valentine's day our next guests arrived. Ryan, Holly, Zane, and Anika Edwards were dropped off by taxi from the airport at about 4:30 pm. They are staying for about a week and we have prepared the bedroom and confirmed a cot and blow-up bed that the kids will use up in the palapa. We have been lucky and bugs have not been an issue, so the two teenagers will have a space of their own. 

We basically played each day by ear while they were here. Only one day was scheduled and that was the day of fishing. Each morning we got up and then gathered to formulate the day's activities. Breakfasts were at home, or the group would walk down to one of the little restaurants a few blocks away. Meals cost about two-thirds less down here so the whole family could eat for about $20 a meal. Zane tended to push that cost up a bit. I have never seen anyone be able to eat so much in one sitting. Of course, we are not around a growing teenage boy regularly. It was fun seeing him eat everything in sight!

We usually did some time on the beach and followed that up with afternoon activities around the casa. The swimming pool was the center of the action, but we also played ping pong and cards when not splashing and heaving balls at each other.

Each evening we walked into the town square and chose a place to have dinner. We ate at home twice, but mostly we enjoyed street tacos. Zane could put away a ton of them.

The day we went fishing, we left the casa at 6:30 am and were on the water by 7:15 am. Gerry Kosonoy, our fishing guide, picked us up at the house and drove us to his boat located in Barra. On the water, we watched the sunrise as we drug the lures out past the shipwreck and out onto the ocean south of Melaque Bahia. 

At about 9:00 am, one of the reels started spinning and we had something on. I was in the chair closest and grabbed the rod.  The hook set and I brought in a nice-sized dorado. We would not be skunked. Everyone was excited.  

We pulled the lures for another hour. The next person in the fighting chair was Ani. Suddenly another reel started singing. Gerry grabbed the rod, but nothing was there. A second rod sounded. Gerry took the rod and gave it a considerable pull.  He handed it to Zane and said, "I think we have a big one there."  Zane offered the rod to Ani, but from the strength of the fish pulling the line out, we knew Ani was not strong enough for the fight. Seconds later there was a huge splash and we got our first look at the fish. A blue marlin! The fight was on and Zane was in charge. Gerry talked him through the entire encounter giving Zane encouragement and tips on how to work the fish. He let Zane know that this could be a long battle and that he should take his time, keep the line tight, and settle in for a fun afternoon.

Zane did all the work in landing the fish. Gerry only took the rod for a couple of moments when the fish ran under the boat and jumped on the opposite side. He kept the rod tight and worked the line under the boat engine, and once the line was clear he handed it back to Zane. 

The entire fight from start to finish took just over an hour.  The blue marlin weighed a bit over 200 lbs and was about 6 ft. 6 inches long. It was bigger around than Zane and about a foot taller.

Once the marlin was landed Gerry turned back to Barra. We pulled bait back, but nothing hit. I think everyone was happy with our catch. Back at the dock, Gerry and Zane cleaned the fish. Ryan, Annie, and I sat at a restaurant in the shade and drank water.

Back at home, we told and re-told the story of the big fish.  We kept enough fish for a meal and Ryan made arrangements with Tito's Restaurant on the beach to prepare our next supper. The next night we had a wonderful meal of fish, rice, and salad.  Once again the story was told and Zane ate another amazing amount of food.

On Monday, Ryan had to fly to Texas for work. His taxi was on time and his flights back to the states went smoothly. The rest of us (Beth was working) headed into Barra for a shopping-for-souvenirs trip. We wandered down the streets, poking around in different shops looking for just the right moments. Souvenirs were purchased. We had a delicious lunch at Ramon's and then headed back to Melaque. Back at the Casa, we spent the day cleaning as our guests packed. There were more ping-pong matches and goofing around, but the three travelers were ready to go.

At 7 am the next morning we said our goodbyes and loaded Holly, Ani, and Zane into the taxi. We were sad to see them go.

As a post-script note, their return trip home did not go as well as Ryan's.  They were delayed in Mexico City and missed their flight from LA to Spokane. Delta, their carrier, did nothing to help them so they had to book flights on Alaska which came through with three seats. That was a downer, but they made it home safely and that is really all that matters.

Photos From The Edward's Visit:

Photos From The Fishing Trip: