To Go or Not to Go?

Just when you thought things were getting better. You were glad to have 2021 behind you and get back to "normal". Almost everything is or will be open, mask mandates are all but gone and you are ready to hit the road and start exploring again! 

Then this happens..... 

I read a blog from a fellow RV'er this week that reported diesel over $7.00/gallon in California. We have several RV friends who are changing or totally canceling their summer travel based on fuel prices. 

I have my own opinions on whether this was avoidable or not and we are more than willing to pay for the most recent increase to help out the citizens of Ukraine, but this post is not about why. It is about how it is going to impact us RV'ers as we plan our summer travels. 

Personally, we have an 8,500-mile route planned over the next 6 months throughout the U.S. and Canada. At an average of 10mpg that would be 850 gallons. Last year that would have cost us about $2,300 at $2.70/gallon. This year, with prices in the $4.50-???? range we are anticipating spending $4,000-$5,000 just in fuel. Is it worth it?  And that is just fuel, everything is going up. Think about how much more truckers and farmers fuel expense, our $5,000 is a drop in the bucket compared to them. Fertilizer is at an all-time high, cooking oil for restaurants is at an all-time high, lots of things are at an all-time high. Farmers like Farmer Bob use upwards 350 tons of urea in the spring. Last year it was somewhere around $335/ton, this year it is about $865/ton. That is an additional expense of over $150,000 on that one item! These and other cost increases are why we are seeing groceries going up as well, as it costs more to produce and transport items to our local grocery stores. I cannot think of one thing that has gone down this year. Oh wait, the balance of our savings, that has gone down this year.... So, a lot of people need to ask themselves; Do we need to change our plans and just lay low this summer? The sad but true reality of life at the moment. So we are in deep contemplation on what is the right thing to do this summer. 

But enough depressing talk, we have managed to make our own fun in our own little slice of heaven. For me personally my outlet this week was hunting. Did you know that the average mountain lion eats 1 deer a week? Did you know there are 600+ mountain lions in the Black Hills at any given time? Did you know a female mountain lion's litters are from 1-6 cubs? That is over 31,000 deer, elk, mountain goats or big horn sheep killed by mountain lions each year. So, the state has asked hunters to help maintain a healthy population here in the hills so they do not start preying on arthritic ridden hikers  whose wives makes them go on death marches where they eventually lag behind and become easy prey for even the slowest lion. And who am I to refuse such an ask? Afterall, I could be saving a friends life!

It is not as easy as driving around, seeing one and shooting it. In fact, in all my years of hunting, hiking and other outdoor activities, I have yet to even glimpse one. Some states allow hunters to use dogs, South Dakota does not. The best method here is to wait until it snows and drive around until you cut a fresh track. Which is exactly what Kevin and I did earlier this week. 

We put on hundreds of miles on back roads and forest service roads, it is so peaceful driving through the forest being the first one on these roads since the last snowfall. We saw elk tracks, deer tracks, coyotes tracks and even mouse tracks. 

Deer and mouse tracks

After several hours of searching, we finally cut a track and we were on the hunt! 

Cat track!

Kevin jumped out and started following the track while I drove several miles ahead and climbed to the highest peak in the area in the hopes of seeing the elusive beast. 

View from the top

I did not see a mountain lion, but I did see some pretty country. That in itself made it all worthwhile. Kevin on the other hand, followed the track for several miles. Up, down and all around. He never spotted the cat but it did lead him to an elk kill that it had been feeding on. Kevin sat a couple hundred yards away, hoping that he would return but he did not.  We are expecting more fresh snow later this week so the hunt will go on....

So, what was Barb doing while Kevin and I were out trying to save the local deer population? She was working on another project of course. She worked on grouting the dog wash:

She also worked on her bench and cubby area putting restored fence boards on the back and shelving for her baskets. Of course, she already does not like the bench and is going to redo it. 

For my part, I set my project up on our granite work bench and started on the remaining four dresser drawers by ironing on the veneer edging to hide the rough edge of the birch plywood. I also drilled in the pocket screw holes. Now, I just need to construct them and fit them in the drawer slides!

                            

We did manage to get over to Dan and Bonnie's one day to help them with their project. Their house is getting there. They still have floors, cabinets and trim to get in. Barb and Bonnie spent the day staining and varnishing trim, Dan was busy sanding, while Kevin installed window jams. I installed a toilet and plumbing for a vanity. I got a couple of before pictures of my work but totally spaced out the after pictures but they now have an operational toilet and vanity!

The days are getting longer and spring then summer are just around the corner, so we have a decision to make; To Go or Not to Go? As of right now, the answer is a definite YES! The extra expense is definitely worth it, we may have to cut back in other areas like ... maybe I cannot buy Barb that new elk rifle that she so desperately wanted, or maybe I will have to buy generic beer for my friend Dino when he comes out for his next death march! I don't know, but we will figure it out one way or another!

Good to be Home

Our journey home from Oregon went just as we wanted it. Uneventful. Driving the new truck made time go faster as we learned the ins and outs of our new ride. At lot has changed since our last new truck in 2013, our first surprise was "Lane Assist" which helps you stay in your lane as you are watching herds of antelope or looking in the field to see a lone coyote crossing the prairie. Barb is used to the sound of rumble strips and has actually given up saying anything as I ride the shoulder gawking at something or another. But this lane assist actually steers your truck for you back to where you should be. Really a weird feeling as you feel a counter force on your steering wheel. 

What we were really curious about was what kind of fuel economy we were going to get. Well, I don't know if "economy" is the right word so we will go with "mileage". We know this is going to change over time, but our mileage varied from 9.5mpg to 12.0mpg depending on our terrain and how you measured it. Keep in mind we were pulling a trailer so that will definitely impact it. The first fill I measured it we had a head wind and were in some mountainous terrain. The MPG on display said we got 10.1mpg but our actual was only 9.5mpg so the display is not quite accurate. I reset the display and measured it again. This time we got an actual of 12.2  while the display read 12.0. Closer but still not accurate. Since we have been back and without the trailer it looks like we are getting anywhere from 15-17mpg. About the same as our old truck. Diesel prices along the way were anywhere from $4.09 - $4.35/gallon. A far cry from the $2.70/gallon at this time last year resulting in us paying $350 more in fuel on this one trip than we would have last year. I do not even want to think how much more we will be paying this summer!

Pulling into our driveway after 3 days of driving we felt a sense of nirvana flow throughout our bodies. It was so good to be home! It's that time of year that Mother Nature seems very, very confused as this week we saw temperatures as high as 62 and as low as the teens. Both the deer and turkeys were happy to have us home! These two pictures were taken a day apart....

 

The only thing amiss when we got home was a splatter mess on the side of the camper. What the heck did Kevin do now?

But upon closer inspection we were able to decipher what exactly happened. This picture tells the rest of the story....

Do you see it? If you live in the north, you know exactly what happened as you take a closer look at the pop cans on the wood pile. 

I would not want to have been standing in front of those when they exploded!

Our plan was to take a few days off and relax after hitting it so hard at Forrest's but we were right at it again the next day when Kevin came over and we went to work on  the dog wash. He had already been over two days while we were gone so he had a good start on it but was waiting until we were home until he finished the last few rows as Barb used Cheryl's diamond wheel to cut a few dog paws into some tiles.

We still have to grout it but love the way it turned out. Dakota and Zoey cannot wait to try it out!

We did take a few days off after that getting together with friends and going out. Thursday was Barb's birthday! I started out the day by making her breakfast. Something I have not done for a while as she has suffered through my breakfasts in the past. She wanted a breakfast sandwich; over-easy egg, sausage patty and cheese on a toasted English muffin." I can do this" I said as I headed to the kitchen.

I heat up the pan, grab the carton of eggs and carefully crack the first egg into the pan....but it did not fall into the pan..what the?!?! Hard boiled egg! So I grab the other carton of eggs and try again. Good thing I was making one for myself as well. Barb had a perfectly over-easy egg on a golden brown English muffin with melted cheese oozing over the sausage. It was beautiful! I had a slightly over-toasted English muffin with a broken egg and burnt sausage. Sadly, that is no lie. Oh, and I had a hard boiled egg too.

She wanted to celebrate by going bowling! I was not a very good picture taker but I can tell you that Dan won the first game and Kevin won the second. Barb, Cheryl, Bonnie and I did not win but we did have fun! At one point Kevin got 4 strikes in a row and I was able to take this one picture him has he did a celebration dance for us all!

One evening we got together with Jim and Carmen, our neighbors to the west, catching up on the latest goings on in the neighborhood. Another night, our old neighbors from the east, Jim and Brenda, arrived to pick the tractor we have been storing for them.

They recently bought a house and property in Kentucky and are ready were ready to reclaim their tractor. It was great seeing them again; we hope to stop by them in Kentucky sometime this year!

Lastly, I would not want to disappoint Dino and Harry by not including a video of Zoey. She has started to become really sassy when Barb ignores her every want and need. This is a short video of Zoey staring at Barb and what she does when Barb does not drop what she is doing to attend to her. Make sure you have the sound up!

Headed Home

You ever been asleep and get the feeling you are being stared at?  The feeling that something is inches away from your face intently staring... Yeah, well I have that feeling almost every morning. As I open my eyes, there she is. As soon as she sees my eyes open, she jumps on me and starts licking my face. Disgusting really...... That is how Barb wakes me up every morning. So annoying, but I would not have it any other way. 

This week our smallest fur baby turned one year old, on valentine's day to be exact. We had a big party with 4 dogs invited. Barb made a birthday cake for Zoey. I saw her put carrots, peanut butter, honey and flour in it. I guess it was edible by humans, but I did not try it, but the dogs really seemed to like it!

                                    

                                               Jack and Zoey                              Jack, Chloe and Zoey

This is the best picture I could get of the cake Barb made, when she put it down there were so many dogs attacking it, I just could not get a good picture!

Although not trilled, even Dakota got in on the action!

Zoey and Chloe have become best buds. They run and play constantly. I took a couple of videos of them for your viewing pleasure.....

When Zoey is not playing with Chloe, she is terrorizing their cat, Charlotte. Zoey gets hyper focused on Charlotte, gets into sneak mode and attacks. Charlotte just basically does a couple of jumps to get away, but one time Zoey did get a mouth full of fur. She found a safe spot however where Zoey cannot get her!

Zoey intently watching on the right side of the picture

And our final Zoey moment this week was her first trip to Walmart! Yes, Barb has become that lady in Walmart.

The rest of the week was work, work, work. I was afraid that we had more work than we had time, so we hit it pretty hard. We were reflooring the entire main floor of the house. This meant removing all the trim and ripping up the existing vinyl planking in the living area and the carpet in the bedroom. We were a little surprised to find linoleum under the planking and thought maybe we had to replace that too, we made a quick call to Kevin who said just put the new flooring over it. 

Before we put the new flooring down, we had to put screws in throughout the entire level. Whoever built this house originally did not glue the subfloor, nor did they use ring shank nails so the floor squeaked like crazy! We ended up putting over 700 down, but we got rid of almost every squeak!

Barb putting screws in the lovely linoleum 

That flooring project took 7 days, I spent so much time on my knees I left like Dino groveling for forgiveness after another all-night bender! One of the hardest things was working around the existing furniture and appliances, always having to move them out of the way. The new flooring made a huge difference, and the place looks great!

We were also working on the stair railings downstairs.   Last time we were here, we replaced the railings on the upper stairs. This trip it was time to tackle the bottom stair rails. The old railings were just constructed out of 2x4 material and Somer wanted them replaced with something a little nicer. 

                              

 

Next step on the stairs is to get the carpet replaced. 

While doing all this Barb and Somer were working on sanding and repainting the cabinets and walls in the kitchen which went from this to this in 10 days or so. 

                                  

Last but not least we installed a barn door on the bathroom door in the master bedroom. 

To say we were exhausted at the end of each day would be an understatement, but we got it all done and are now ready to head back home to South Dakota. We loaded up our trailer taking a couple of Forrest's mounts as they are going to sell their house in a few months. So, if you know someone looking for 11 acres of paradise in Klamath Falls I know just the realtor! 

    

We have said goodbye to Forrest, Somer, Lily, Jack Chloe and Charlotte and sadly, our truck, we are going to miss it. It is going to be the perfect truck for them as they start their own fulltime RV adventure later this year! This just might be the last time we are here but who knows what the future beholds....

 We are now headed east to South Dakota where we have a list of things to do but #1 on that list is to grab a cocktail, get in the hot tub and relax!

Well, This Adventure Just Got Expensive....

This week I celebrated the 36-year anniversary of the day I married my best friend. I spent the day staring at the miracle that is my wife and mother to our children. Barb was so happy she spent the day weeping tears of joy in the fetal position with a bottle of whiskey stuck between her lips like it was a lifeline. Funny how some people just show joy differently, I guess. 

To celebrate, we spent the week working on Forrest's and Somer's house! I know, who could think of a better way to celebrate! We made great progress in the bathroom getting that project finished. It went from this.....

To this.....

The countertop is a large slab of butcherblock that Somer finished by staining and varnishing. I even managed to drill the drain and faucet holes in the correct place the first time. The shelves above the sinks are left over chunks of the butcherblock that Barb finished and mounted. I had never done a floating vanity before so that was interesting and like every plumbing project, I had to make 3 trips to the hardware store to get everything I needed. 

Somer finishing the butcherblock

Other than that, we did not get as much done as we thought we would as we got a little sidetracked by a couple of big, bright, shiny objects and one small and furry one.

Monday, we drove to Beaverton, just outside of Portland. We got an itch to look at new trucks and there was one up there that we were interested in, so we took a day to make the 5-hour (one way) trip up there. 

We learned two things that day.... One, is that we live a very sheltered life in South Dakota (which is why we live in South Dakota). Everything we had seen on the news over the past year we saw in real life. While the rest of the country seems to be weaning themselves off mask wearing, Portland is one of the last strongholds. I think we were the only ones we saw without them. The homeless encampments are a real thing up there, mainly around Salem, but scattered all over in Portland as well. Garbage and junk everywhere. I won't go into any more dialog on it but it was eye opening. 

The second thing we learned, or reaffirmed, is how much we hate looking at new vehicles. We went up to look at one specific truck, a Ford F350 Super Duty Dually listed for $91,000 online. (The reason I mention the price will become important later). It was literally the only 2022 1-ton SD Dually we could find in stock within the 3-state area! Barb had talked to the salesman by phone and text several times on both Saturday and Sunday and got the particulars on the truck. It had an aftermarket "Off Road" package meaning it had a lift kit and oversized tires but thought it would still work with our camper.  So, we packed up the dogs early on Monday morning and started our journey north. 

As soon as we got there and saw the truck, we knew it would not work. The bed was a good 7" higher than our current truck and the bed rails came up to over Barb's head. But we were there, and had never driven one, so we took it for a drive. It was a beautiful truck and loved everything about it other than that off road kit. Once we got back, I explained to the salesman that it was too tall and too wide (the 37" tires extended a good 2" past the fender flares on each side) and that it just would not work. About then the "Sales Manager" walks out and they both start the hard sell on the truck. Telling me it is not too tall; "Think of the places you could camp in that truck". They went on with lines like; "It's Monday, our slowest day, what is it going to take to get you in this truck". Every line in the car salesman book....They do not care if the customer is happy or if it is a good fit, they just want to make a sale. I am too tired and too old to play these games. Then the "Sales Manager" says "What if I take $10,000 off the truck?" Now, that got my attention! For $81,000 I could take it somewhere and get the lift kit and oversized tires removed and sell them turning it back to a stock truck. In his next breath, he says "That will bring it down to $108,000." Are you fricking kidding me? You are going to play that game? I held my composure (proud moment there) and said nope and started walking to our truck where Barb was already inside. As I was walking away he kept shouting numbers "$104!", a few steps later, "$99!". I got in our truck and drove away....God, why do car salesman have to play these games?!?!?

But all was not lost, Barb enjoyed our day together, saw some new country and..... got to stop and see Zoey's people parents, Amy and Eric, on the way home as we passed through Sweet Home, OR. We only spent 20 minutes or so there catching up with them and meeting two of their new dogs while Amy played with Zoey. 

Then there was the day that Forrest came up with a new puppy for Lily! They had been looking for quite a while and Lily had her heart set on a Toy Poodle. When Forrest came home with it, Lily was so happy she cried and cried. 

             

Jack looks like he is thinking life as he knows it is over....

I have never been a huge fan of Toy Poodles, my only exposure to them has involved nipping and yipping, but this one (Chloe) is very cute and so far as not made a peep.

Wednesday night after work Forrest and I headed to town as the Social Club was having a Texas Hold'em tournament. They hold them "Final Table" style where 6-9 players play around the table and the last two players standing win the entry fees. We played 4 sets and guess who ended up winning one of them? Me! It was really a fun evening, and I gave Forrest my winnings since he staked me the other night and that night. 

Thursday morning, we were in the truck before sunrise once again to go look at another truck. Forrest was looking on Facebook Marketplace and had found a "used" 2022 Ram 1-ton with 495 miles on it. We were skeptical; Why would someone sell a new vehicle after only putting a few hundred miles on it? The description said, "It was too big for my driveway, ordered a shortbox to replace it". Well, this one was only two hours away, so we went and looked at it. 

We have always been Ford/GMC owners, but we know plenty of people who own Rams trucks and love them. Plus, like many RV'ers, we keep up to date on the latest truck specs and know Rams are solid trucks. We were beyond skeptical driving there not knowing what we would be driving into but away we went! Two hours later we were trying to squeeze our truck into a beautiful, gated home outside of Talent Oregon. As the owner opened the gates our truck barely made the corner. Okay, question #1 was answered. 

We did not really think we would like it but once we got in it, we absolutely loved it! It has almost every bell and whistle you can think of. Long story short, we are now the proud owners of a 2022 Ram Dually 6.7 HO Turbo Diesel!

Oh, and Forrest and Somer are now the proud owners of a 2013 GMC 1-ton Dually. Yup, they bought our old truck so Barb and I can drive back together, and we do not have to deal with selling it when we get back home!

Whew, what a week!

We did get one other project completed here when Forrest and I installed his Starlink receiver on top of his house. After waiting over 2 years, he finally received his Starlink equipment. They had horrible internet here at ~1mb/second. Now it is over 400 mb/second! But the installation was a little sketchy. When you have an A frame any roof work is sketchy. Forrest and Somer have mountain climbing gear so both he and Somer get into their harnesses and Forrest climbs a ladder secured to the roof while Somer is on the other side holding a rope in her harness in case he falls. I then carried the satellite receiver up the other ladder and handed it to him and he secured it. In this picture we are about 20' up off the deck and over 30' to the ground. As long as I did not look down, I was okay..... But, we got it up and it works wonderfully!

Meanwhile, back in South Dakota..... We got an alert from our security system that someone was prowling outside our house. We quickly looked at our cameras and saw this suspicious character putting a scratch coat on the outside of our house where the stone will eventually go. I sure love our security cameras!

Kevin said it was warm enough this week to do the scratch coat. He did in 6 hours what would have taken me 4 days. Thanks Kevin!

Having l***ost a good 2 days of progress on the house here, next week we will be in full work mode as I fear we have more work to do than time we have!