Going to The Sun

Yes there are vehicle size restrictions on the Going to the Sun Road.  Vehicles longer than 21 feet are restricted from the road.  That warning seemed sufficient to prevent me from considering taking our 36 foot rig.  However, the Going to the Sun Road is arguably one of the highlights of Glacier National Park and it would be crazy to avoid it if you are in the area.

The Red Bus Jammer tours are a more traditional way to view Logan's Pass.  The Jammers are named for the sound the original drivers needed to make as the jammed the gears along the winding roads of the National Parks.  The buses were originally manufactured in the late 1930s and were restored in the early 200s by Ford Motor Company.  The distinctive buses include a roll back convertible top that allows you an incredible view of the Going to the Sun Road.

Our driver Matt was a true mountain man.  He lived in the sticks of Montana and used the summers to store up money to fund his needs throughout the rest of the year.  He was an interesting fellow who seemed to enjoy his role.

The bus included blankets so as you ascend to the the nearly 3,600 feet from the Glacier National Park west entrance area to Logan's Pass the convertible can remain open.

The snow was at least 20 feet deep at Logan's Pass in late June when we arrived and Caleb used all of his energy to slip slide away.  It was while we were enjoying the summer time snow that Connie inquired about Glaciers and where they were located relative to where we were.  A helpful, assertive teenager offered that "you are standing on one" in a condescending manner.

We all remained silent to prevent from making a scene.  Because we were clearly standing on snow and no glacier.  It allowed us a good laugh later that evening!

NASCAR has nothing on Her!

Somewhere between Butte and Missoula she took over the wheel.  Who knew that the little temptation along the Enchanted Highway in North Dakota as a 15 year old would tempt/motivate this young lady?

Have you ever sat in the passenger seat as your 15 year old learned to drive a car during driver's education? There is an uncontrollable urge to dive to the middle of the car when the mailboxes seem to be flying at your face and to shove your foot through the floorboard when the approaching cars seem to close for comfort.

If you can recall or imagine that sensation, consider it on steroids with your teenage daughter behind the wheel of a 36 foot RV.  In order to take the co-pilot seat in the RV all one has to do is breath deeply and repeat "serenity now, serenity now...."

Amazingly, Caitlin gave me nearly 2 hours of rest as she cruised that space of Montana.  She was remarkable and all of my doubts were unfounded.  But between you and me, riding co-pilot with your teenager in an RV could be a top 10 adventure/adrenaline rush of my entire life!

Passion or Crazy?

Andy had a mountain bike and bike trailer that carried all of his possessions from Canada to Mexico.  A casual observer might think he was crazy, but another might say he had passion.

The total weight of his gear was 110 pounds.  That weight would wear on him for nearly 2,500 miles along the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route.  He seemed excited about his adventure, but while in Butte, he was literally at the tip of the ice berg.  When we crossed paths with Andy, there were forest fires raging south of us and Wyoming was a blurring state, who knew what Colorado had to offer.

Andy found himself in a common dilemma, comparing himself to others.  He confided that others on the trail had a total weight of just 65 pounds, but he had no idea what he could dispose of that wasn't essential at this point.

Andy said he wasn't sure about the pure motive of this adventure, but clearly sitting behind a desk 8 hours a day was not his definition of fulfillment.  His less that content view of his job led him to the freedom to pursue this opportunity.  He had no clear plan what would happen when he returned to San Antonio, but seemed to trust he would find work.

This particular adventure seemed a bit tame compared to his last major one.  A few years earlier, he rode a motorcycle from Texas to Argentina!

Iowa Baby!

Intense driving would be the best description of our first day on the road.  We cut through Lebanon on our way to Crawfordsville where we grabbed some diesel and only one short term destination remained in our cross-hairs.  The Machine Shed in the Davenport, Iowa area.  John was the man.  He loves driving the RV and he gave me plenty of time to rest up and prepare for the days ahead.



We left it as a secret until it was apparent we would arrive during normal business hours allowing Caitlin the opportunity to start the journey with a massive sugar buzz.  If you have never tried one of their cinnamon rolls, she swears you will have a new religion.  Not only did we arrive in time to stock pile some rolls, but we got there late enough that they were on clearance sale to make room for tomorrow's crop.

From the picture, it is difficult to tell whether Caitlin or Caleb was most excited about the unexpected treat at the Machine Shed.  Clearly, Caleb loves corn, not figuratively, but actually.

The joy was apparent on Caitlin's face.

Next stop was the I-80 Truck Stop, the world's largest truck stop.  The place is huge!!

After that, it was the cold, long, hard road ahead.  We put the pedal to the metal and plowed our way towards Billings!

Jasper to Clearwater

As we departed Lake Louise, I stopped by and told my friend Winston “goodbye”.  The levelers were a bit obstinate again, but they went up and we went on our way.

Caitlin aids Kristen.

Kacie braved the weather at Bridal Veil falls.

If you could pick the very perfect day to drive the Icefield Highway, it would be the exact opposite of the day we were on it!  It was cloudy with low clouds and rain most of the way to the Icefields.  But there were sounds of laughter and fun all the way as we journeyed through the mountains.  We saw a bear, mountain goats and a huge elk along the way.

The monster machine we rode up the glacier was amazing.  But the glacier itself was more incredible.  At the pinnacle of our ride up the glacier, the ice was 1000 feet deep.  Our driver, Bruce, hooked us up with several bottles of pure glacier water. 

Boarding the monster!

Once we returned to the RV the levelers were barking at us again and although the alarm said they were down, a visual check said they were up.  (I had visions of a trip home from NY where the leveler alarm barked all the way from Erie, NY to Fishers, IN.)

Oh well, onward towards Jasper.  We were hoping to see a moose along the way, but Kelly concluded they don’t exist.  She asked if anyone had ever seen one in the wild or in a zoo.  We all had to give it to her.  There have never been any moose sightings by Tyners.

Patiently waiting for the glacier tour.

The ride of the day!

1000 feet of ice below them!

Jasper was a quaint tourist town with a beautiful view of the mountains.  I believe it is much nicer of a place to visit than Banff, it was not nearly as congested and much easier to get a RV around.  The restaurant was ok and overpriced by US standards.    (When I went to buy a cup of coffee, they were going to exchange my US dollar for $.86 Canadian when the actual rate is $1 US = $1.02 Canadian.)

The drive west out of Jasper was beautiful and allowed us a fun afternoon on our way to Clearwater BC.  We passed Moose Lake where Kristen and I swear we saw a moose swimming in the lake.  (Sorry Kelly, but we saw a moose!)  The drive was incredible and not too challenging for a mountain road.  The rivers were flowing fast everywhere we drove.

Once we were at the Clearwater campsite, Connie and I started laundry and relaxed for the evening as the kids watched UP.  The KOA worker was the son of the owners and I asked him for a running trail and whether it was safe to run around town.  He said “bears don’t come in town” and I would be ok. 

As I took the trail he mentioned, I got to a place that seemed a little risky to me, so I turned and went back more towards civilization.  Then into a neighborhood not too far from the campsite which had a trail that led back towards the RV.  After about 3 steps into the woods, I saw a footprint that looked fresh and not familiar to me, but comparatively large like my own.  Needless to say, I turned and went back through civilization.

Now that's a monster truck!

Anyone seen Caleb?

Back at the camp store the young man asked me about my run and I told him about my concern about the bears and how it adjusted my path.  His parents started laughing and said, “I would be too.  Bears are all around here!”  Holy cow….

I met a couple at the campsite adjacent to us who were from Kamloops who gave advice about the area.  Cory and Stacy were helpful and shared their Bud Light with Lime with me.  They had 2 boys and a 10 year old daughter.  They own a convenient store after having owned a chain of Quiznos.

Eureka....The Loneliest Road in America

Call it a bribe or a jump start, but the fact of the matter is the critters got up before 9am!  We scheduled a para-sail date with the Zephyr Cove Marina for the girls and they were up and ready to roll by 10am.  It could be a Vacation 2012 record.

Anticipation of a good time.

On Board!

Way up in the air!

In the Air.

The girls were all several hundred feet above Lake Tahoe before 11am.  They not only enjoyed the flight, but the view; both on the boat and in the air.

After a right hand turn onto highway 50 out of Zephyr Cove RV Resort, we spent most of the day on the old Pony Express trail.  A stop at WalMart and a couple gas stations, but the rest was on highway 50.  The trail was a bit windy from the RV park to Carson City, but it straightened out dramatically at that point. 

After several hours behind the wheel, I offered Caitlin an opportunity to captain the ship for a while.  The road was as straight as an arrow and there was little or no traffic.  It is no exaggeration to say that within 5 miles, the road became as straight as a coiled snake and involved at least a 2000 foot incline.  She handled the pressure like a professional and knocked out 70 miles behind the wheel.  She turned the wheel back over to me in “the friendliest town on the loneliest road in America”; Eureka!

Map of Caitlin's portion of Hwy 50!

Our destination on this fine day was Great Basin National Park.  It is known as one of the darkest places in the United States and there was no moon in the sky.  We were in position for a great evening of star gazing, except for the minor detail that as soon as we left Carson City, we chased a storm that stretched all the way to the Great Basin and the sky was filled with clouds.  There were small specs of blue sky, but there was no hope of seeing the Milky Way.

Cloudy skies at 6.24pm.

One prayer was said for a clear sky and the assumption the rest of the way was we would have stars (wink, wink). 

We couldn’t believe how dark it got as we approached our final destination.  Not only was the area desolate and dark, but we had this unspoken concept in the back of our minds that the entire drive was an act of futility.  There would be no star gazing.

Cloudy skies at 7.18pm.

Very cloudy skies at 8.46pm.

The first turn out for the park didn’t include a sign for camping, so I kept moving straight ahead.  Before long, I left Nevada and found myself in Utah.  We had to journey a couple extra miles simply trying to find a safe place to turn the RV around.

Once we returned to Baker, NV, we found a campsite in town and called it a day.  It was a dark night!!  That was until we had dinner. 

As I was hooking up the RV to the electricity, I looked up and to my astonishment; the sky was full of stars.   After a late night taco dinner, we all took a short hike to gaze at the stars.  Well, most of us did.  There were some strange sounds in the Baker evening and Caleb opted to avoid being coyote bait.  As we all left him home alone, the coyotes were howling with such volume most of us were tempted to join Caleb in the RV.  But we persisted and enjoyed the night lights.

Never Finished

The man of the rolling house went feminine on us today.  Before the other ladies of the campground were able to get to the laundry room, they had to do their hair; I was able to land three washers and dryers to empty the famous laundry bag.  In no time I had the laundry area buzzing with excitement, if that’s what you want to call it.

I had time to walk for a cup of Starbucks once the laundry started and returned in time to move it to the dryers.

Caitlin helped finish the job by folding and identifying the proper owner of the fresh smelling clothes.  Once back to the RV, Connie pointed out we already had another load ready to be washed.

But isn’t that life?  Think about it.  Once I fill the gas tank in the RV, it is preparing to be empty again.  Once I stuff a burger in my pie hole, it won’t long before I am famished again.  Once you mow your lawn, it isn’t many days, unless you are in Indiana now, before it needs more attention.  Most things in life operate on a cycle that sounds like the rhythm of an annoying drum beat. 

But a trick to life is to understand the rhythm exists, but is not life itself.  It is quite OK to ignore the rhythm for a season.  It may be counter to your personality, but the rhythm will continue long past your days and to allow it to control you may cause you to miss life itself.

So what if you happen to miss a meal, avoid some laundry a day or two or even run out of gas?  Are you going to remember the rhythm or the events that caused you to step outside the rhythm and create your own tune!