Day 22- Ventura, CA

Bet you didn't expect that for our location, did you?  Well, neither did we.  Our schedule didn't call for us to return home for several more days, but life is full of little surprises.  Our surprise came last night when it became apparent that the coach's electrical system was getting starved for power.  Don checked on some of the major components of the system, and found them all working properly.  He suspected that the power stand that we were plugged into had developed a problem, and that it couldn't be easily solved.  So, it was lights out all around, no TV, no lights, no nothing.  We all went to bed, hoping that we could find a way to work out the difficulty in the morning.  Don was up before five in the morning, reading the rig's manuals to see if he could find a clue to the problem.  As dawn approached, he decided to fire up the generator to see if it would take the load; normally, we wouldn't do that for fear of disturbing neighboring RVers, but our site was far enough away from others that we would not create a major sound problem.

The generator took off immediately, and powered up the rig with no problem.  This provided some clues to the failure of the site's power stand to keep us fed properly, not to mention giving us light and heat.  To make what could be a very long story short, a call to our friend Buddy Waller in Alabama, who is an Electrical Engineer and also a RVer, helped us pinpoint the problem, which was a device called a transfer switch, whose job is to determine whether the generator or the site power is selected to power the rig.  It appears that the switch viewed the generator power much more favorably that it did the site power, and acted accordingly.

Geri and Don decided that they didn't want to put up with this kind of nonsense for two or three more days, and opted to pull up stakes and head for home, where the transfer switch could be properly punished or replaced.  So, in the early afternoon, the coach was lurching up our driveway, and the unloading started.  I'm always happy to come home, but I'm also happy to be travelling; I'm just a happy guy!

This was a fun little trip, much shorter than most of our voyages, but we tended to stay longer in the places we visited than we normally do.  It was fun to get better acquainted with many of the places that we have breezed through in the past, all of them unique and interesting.  We met some very nice dogs and people, Geri and Don had their entertainment needs fulfilled, and we returned home safely.  What more can you ask for?  We've got a much longer voyage coming up in late June or early July; I'll let you know when we get underway.  In the meantime, stay well and treat your animals with kindness!  Bye-Bye!

Day 21- Pomona, CA

Some of you may be wondering what happened to yesterday's blog posting; so am I! So is Don! The fact is that we had almost finished our inputs to it when it mysteriously disappeared from the screen! I watched as Don went through every trick he could think of to get it back, but it was absolutely gone! He was using some words which he would never allow me to use in the blog. When he finally gave up, he told me that he was not about to start all over again, and I would just have to wait until tomorrow to post an abbreviated version of my observations. Can't argue with the Data Entry Clerk. Without him, I have no voice! So, I'll try to give you an overview of yesterday's activities, plus an account of today's.

Yesterday was kind of messy. It started out just fine, with Don up early, fixing my breakfast at a reasonable time, and joining me for a good walk at the park. When we got back to the rig, Geri was doing laundry, which meant we were on our own to amuse ourselves. I took a nap, Don browsed the internet. After lunch, we all took off in the truck to accomplish one of Don's Must Do Items on his list; see the new Hoover Dam Bypass Bridge! So, we trundled south to Boulder City and the Dam, not a short ride. As we approached the bridge, Don was looking for a parking area for a Vista Point, which he was sure they would have provided. Not so! We crossed the bridge, which is fitted with high walls on each side, allowing you to see nothing of the scenery. So, we doubled back, seeking the road down to the Dam, so we could view the bridge from there. Nothing. It appears that you can't access the Dam from the Arizona side. So, back across the bridge, where we were able to see that there is a pedestrian walkway on the Dam side of the bridge, accessible from a parking lot way down below the bridge via a very steep ramp/stairway. So much for that. Back to Vegas.

We next investigated a Dog Park not too far from the Resort that a neighbor (the one with the boisterous Golden Boys) had told us about. When we finally found the place, we had to run a gauntlet next to the small dog portion of the park, which contained about a half dozen Beagles, Terriers, and assorted other blood-thirsty mini-canines, all of them loudly proclaiming their desire to rip the flesh from my bones. Fortunately, a strong wire fence protected me from the damages they desired to inflict. When we got to the large dog section, I found it to be of poor quality. The grass, such as it was, grew very sparsely, more dirt than grass. The shrubs and trees were of poor quality, and some were close to death. I made it very clear that this was not to my liking, so we braved the corridor of yappers again and got in the truck to return home.

I was ready to call the day a complete bust, with no redeeming value other than my dinner, which Geri was happy to feed me. They decided to find solace in their dinner, which they went over to the Silverton to have. They came back a few hours later, raving about the prime rib they had consumed. Notably, the containers of remnants that they carried with them were not intended for sharing. Geri was particularly pleased, having had a remunerative experience with the money machines. Don, less so. And when Blogspot ate our posting, his evening turned into a total black hole. He and I both went to bed shortly after that.

Today, Saturday, was a travel day. We left our beloved Vegas home around eleven, after a final good walk at the park, though we didn't meet any of our friends. After a successful fueling stop in Primm, we charged down Highway 15, then down the 10 to Pomona, where we made it to the Eastshore RV Park, a place we have stayed several times before. We like it a lot here, 'cause it's very grassy, is beautifully located on a hilly site overlooking a lake, with big mountains in the background. I don't know how long we'll be here, but I think I'll enjoy it! Oh, by the way, Don got back to cooking dinner tonight; salmon with some tortellini and green beans. I got some good plates, finally! Bonjour, tristesse!

Evening Hunt, Puddingstone Lake

High Rent District, Across the Lake

Another part of the Lake

Ano

This photo added due to request from a devoted follower

Famous Clown Motel,  Tonopah, NV

Day 19- Las Vegas

There's something about this town that shifts my guys into low gear as far as getting up in the morning; it even carries over to me!  I was sleeping in the living room this morning, and I heard Don start moving around about seven or so.  He got his OJ, started the coffee, cranked up the computer, and started his morning review of the news.  I didn't move a muscle.  Maybe forty-five minutes later, Geri arose, got her coffee, and sat on the couch.  I heard some comments about me, including some conversation about the possible need for summoning the doggie coroner.  Don finally decided to test my grasp on life by throwing the phony paper out the door, to see if I'd fetch it.  Well, that worked pretty well.  I was on my feet and down the stairs, though a bit slowly, still half asleep.  Geri graciously received the paper, Don gave me my payday treat, and I felt like I was coming back to life.  Breakfast did the trick, and I was ready to live again.

Don got dressed and put me in the truck for our ride down to the park and a very pleasant walk, including a meeting with the lovely lady Bassett we met yesterday and her charming human, who lavished lots of praise on me.  Don forgot to take a picture of them, but he swears he will do it tomorrow if we meet them.  When we got back to the rig, it was almost lunch time, so Don fed me my lunch meat and carrots, making me a very happy camper.  After they had their lunch, there was an extended quiet time; I snoozed, Geri snoozed, and Don browsed the computer.

Around mid-afternoon, they abruptly headed for the truck and left, with hardly a goodbye.  They were gone until my dinner time, when they showed up and promptly took care of my needs.  Geri took me out to do my treat ball, and, while I was busy working on it, the two Goldie Boys from the ForeTravel across the way came bounding out.  Their Mom was in full control of them, though, and told them "No Barking!", and they must have known she meant it. While I was working on the ball, Geri told me that they had met Genevieve at The Cosmopolitan Hotel, where she works, and she gave them a tour of the hotel and the public areas.  She said that it was very spectacular, and that they had a very pleasant dinner in one of the restaurants.  Don even found the time to drop a few bucks into one of their machines.

After our walk, a quiet evening of TV, blogging, and napping, it was beddy-bye time, fairly early.  Maybe we'll be rising at a decent hour tomorrow.  Hope you had a good day!

Restaurant Structure (?) at Cosmopolitan

View down the Strip

Around the pool

One of the Cosmopolitan bars

Day 18- Las Vegas

I have to say that the day started out OK, with Don up early and tending to my needs.  It continued very nicely, with a ride to our park in the relative cool of the morning, and a very pleasant walk.  Our walk was highlighted by an encounter with a very nice young lady who arrived while we were engaged with a young Basset lady and her owner.  "I know that dog!" she exclaimed, and asked Don for my name, which he gave her.  "DeeBee, I haven't seen you for a year or so!" she said.  This was true, we first met her last year when we were on our way to the East Coast.  She didn't have a dog then, but she now has a very smart and well behaved little brown  dog who operates very nicely off-leash.  It was fun to see her again, and we walked with her and her dog  part way around the park.  Maybe we'll see her again before we leave!

Shortly after we got back to the coach, I was informed that we would be leaving soon for the local Petco, where I would be receiving a bath and grooming.  I had mixed emotions about this; for the past year or more, I've been groomed by Paula and Veronica at Bark Avenue, who are very loving and very free with their treats.  I had my doubts that the Petco people could measure up to their standards.  So, I was less than enthusiastic about this deal.  Sure enough, after Geri delivered me into their hands, I was dumped into a cage without even a hint of a treat, and stayed there until my number came up for bathing.  I must say that they were very thorough and capable in their bathing procedures and in trimming my paws.  But they have a store full of treats, and can't part with a single one of them.  I think it's shameful!  To cap it off, Geri and Don didn't show up to retrieve me until almost an hour after my treatment was completed.  They had some lame excuse about being all the way across town when Petco called them, but I suspect they might have been eating something they didn't want me to know about.  Don tried to pacify me by taking me on a tour of the store, but the place was absolutely pristine, with no spilled food on the floor for me to clean up.  What a drag!  We did buy a bag of my food, though, and I did get a couple of cookies when we checked out.  Helped a little, but not much.  

When we got back to the rig, I assumed that we would assume our normal routine of cooking dinner, watching TV, working on the blog, and having a regular evening at home.  Wrong!  It didn't take long for me to realize that they had something cooked up for tonight, as they were putting on their good clothes and  making ready to take off.  I did get my dinner early, and a few treats to mollify me, but I was still feeling a little let down.  I did need the opportunity to snooze, though, as the atmosphere at Petco had not been conducive to napping.  So, I took the opportunity to catch up with my sleep until they returned.  When they finally did show up, well after nine o'clock, they were happy to see that I was happy to see them, which my wagging tail gave away.  Geri told me that they had been to a musical show called "Jersey Boys", about a singing group from an ancient period long before I was even born.  They've been around a lot longer than I have, though, and have a better knowledge of ancient music.  They obviously enjoyed the performance greatly, so I guess I have to allow them some latitude to go to some places where where there is a perverse negative attitude concerning canines.  

So, Don and I crafted our blog entry, though he said it was a little painful for him to hear my complaints.  I got a few more treats, and we all turned in for the night.  Hope tomorrow is more to my liking.  May you all have a restful night!

A nice friend I met last year

Here's some pics from the get together the other night!  Don says it took awhile to get them developed.

Matt's ready for dinner!

Kiera's got a thing for GGMa Geri

The gang hanging out at the rig

Day 17- Las Vegas

I tend to have mixed feelings about visiting here; I do love the Resort, the nice people, the beautiful grass, the park we go to in the morning, and the chance to visit with the grandkids.  On the other hand, this place has so many attractions for Geri and Don that I can't be a part of, it results in their being separated from me frequently.    It's not that I can't exist without them, it's just that I enjoy their company so much that I love being with them.  But I do get a lot of sleep, which I need in this warm weather.  Oh, well, so much for that.

Don and I had another very pleasant walk around the park this morning; hardly anyone else was there, except for a lady yellow lab who looked interested in meeting me, but was discouraged by her human.  But I got to do a lot of rolling and sniffing, moving at my own pace.  Don never tries to hurry me along, 'cause he says it's my walk, not his.  When we got back to the coach, we all had a quiet time with a little reading, TV and napping.  It wasn't until the mid-afternoon that they arrived at a plan of action for the rest of the day.  They finally got their act together and took off in the truck, and didn't return until about 6 o'clock, past my dinner time!  Geri told me that they had set up an appointment for me tomorrow to get a bath and grooming at Petco, and had met with a vendor for some T-shirts that a friend of ours wants to buy.  The also had to pay a visit to a money machine place, where, Geri said, Don had hit a very nice jackpot for an amount that would keep me in treats for quite a while.  I guess that's why he was in such a good mood.

After I had dinner and a walk through the Resort with Geri, they left again to have their dinner.  When they returned, Geri told me they had gone to the Bootlegger, one of their favorite Italian restaurants here.  She even had some containers that they had used for their leftover food for me to clean up.  It really was good!  Don and I quickly put the blog together, and we all made an early night of it.  Hope you're having as good a time as we are!  Buona Notte!

Here's some photos from Tonopah and Goldfield that we hadn't been able to post before.

Tonopah Mining Museum - Close for the duration

Tonopah Residential Area

Tonopah Downtown

Tonopah Restoration in progress

Goldfield - Packard RV

Goldfield - once a great hotel

Day 16- Las Vegas, NV

 I have to admit that I was a bit lacking in energy this morning as a result of all the excitement yesterday. Don took me in the truck over to the park that we usually go to when we're here, and I managed to make the entire circuit, but not with a lot of enthusiasm. I did get some good rolls in, though. We had lunch shortly after we returned, and I crashed for a good snooze.

 My fellow travelers decided that today was a good day to get some of their necessary errands accomplished, so they took off for a good part of the afternoon. When they returned, I learned that they had been to see the people at Verizon about Don's computer modem, where they were told that the dumb thing had never been activated by Verizon when Geri had requested it. Her guess is that they activated the old modem, the one the new one replaced. So, now Don is wallowing in internet access, with a new computer to boot!

Don took the opportunity to continue his search for new windshield wiper blades for the coach, making phone calls to every RV parts store in Vegas.  He finally struck pay dirt at Camping World, where Geri had told him he should call first.  He galloped off in the truck, returning proudly with a new set of wiper blades, plus a clean truck, fresh out of the car wash.  He happily went to work installing the new blades; I think it makes him feel good to be doing something positive for the rig.

When it came time for dinner, the leftovers came trotting out of the refrigerator for Geri to warm up, creating very little for me in the way of plates.  Some days are better, some worse.  After dinner, Geri took me out for a walk around the Resort, which was quite pleasant.  As we returned to the coach, we saw that the newly arrived ForeTravel across the street carried a cargo of two very handsome young Goldies, who the lady of the coach was attempting to take for a walk.  But once they laid eyes on me, there was nothing she could do to prevent them from meeting and greeting me, towing her behind them!  They were very friendly young fellows, four years old, big, strong boys.  We happily exchanged identity information, with a great deal of tail wagging.  Geri and the lady talked for awhile, and the boys and I admired each others canine perfection.  They left to continue their walk, and I was given my treat ball to work on in the grass across from our site.  Don joined us as a gentleman in a golf cart with a white canine fur ball riding with him rolled up and engaged them in conversation.  I recognized him as a guy we had met last year when we were here, when we were out in the doggy area in front, fighting off the Mad Mocker.  He's one of the original site owners here, and very active in the management of the Resort, now that the site owners own the place.  They enjoyed their conversation with him, and were interested to learn that he evacuates the place during the summer months, escaping to places like Wyoming, Montana, Washington, and even Ventura!

Though they were originally thinking of doing another money machine tour tonight, Geri and Don opted for a quiet evening at home, and I'm glad they did.  I kinda miss them when they're out and around, particularly when I'm having trouble sleeping.  Which I'm really not tonight.  Snoooze...  G'nite, all!

Day 15- Las Vegas, NV Oh, what a lazy morning! We all got up a little late, sat/laid around watching TV and browsing the internet, until almost ten o'clock! Don took me for a short walk out through the gate to the big, grassy doggy area, where I got to do some rolling. We noticed that the big bush where the mad mocker lived last year had been severely cut back, making it unsuitable as a mocker residence. That's OK with us. When we got back to the coach, Don started rigging out the awnings so that we'd have a shady area on the side. He got out some chairs and rearranged the furniture that was on the pad. It was looking pretty nice for them, but it sure wasn't growing any grass for me. Don started working on cleaning up the front of the rig, which had gotten pretty buggy, while Geri went shopping for some stuff. After lunch, Geri went to get her paws worked on, and Don went back to getting the new computer set up the way he wanted. What a fascinating day! Did someone say that this is the entertainment capitol of the world? In the late afternoon, things started to change for the better. Granddaughter Genevieve showed up, who I was very pleased to see, 'cause she is always really nice to me. A little later, Grandson Matthew and Brittany, with kids Matt and Kiera, arrived to visit, and the fun was really on! The little kids were really happy to see me again, and they were a lot of fun to play with. After awhile, they all went out to have dinner someplace, and I had a chance to nap and regain a little strength. When they returned, the fun began again, with a lot of people, including Matthew, stealing my treat ball and throwing it to make me chase it and return it, then wresting it from me again to make me do another run. Never have I worked so hard for a treat. But it was great fun, and even little Kiera took part in it, though she didn't throw it really far. So it turned out to be a really fun day, with lots of nice people and kids to play with; my kind of day! Hope yours was as good! Sleep well!

Day 14- Las Vegas, NV

Just a short post tonight, Don's spending a lot of time bringing the new computer up to speed, and he's cutting my input a little short.  We had an uneventful morning, but with a nice walk around the lake, got the rig ready to go, and headed south toward Vegas.  It only took us about an hour, and there we were at our Vegas home, which is now called LVM Resort.  Now, this is an RV Park that can properly call itself a resort!  It's got everything a resort needs, pools, spas, tennis courts, exercise facilities, a big clubhouse, and beautifully manicured grounds, with lots of grass.  Except for the site that Geri chose for use, which has no grass at all!  But there's lots of grass just across the street, easily accessible to me.

After we got the rig set up, Geri made an failed attempt at getting a haircut at a local solon, it was all booked up.  A later attempt was successful, for which we are all thankful.  Don spent the afternoon working with the computer, until Geri announced that she was hungry, which was his signal to fix something for dinner.  He quickly whipped up a pasta dish that kept everyone happy, including me.  Of course, they had to visit the local money machines, but came back fairly quickly, and with no smiles.

Now Don wants to get back to taming the new laptop, so I'll have to sign off.  I'll have a report for you tomorrow!

Day 13- Pahrump, NV

Whoopee! We're back on line with the blog again! It required nearly an all day effort and the purchase of a new laptop computer, but here we are! Let me tell you how the day went. We all slept a little late, I didn't get up until Geri did; don't know why, just felt like sleeping. Don took me for a nice walk around the lake, including some duck encounters that went OK. They boarded the truck then, and Geri tells me that they went to the Verizon store in Pahrump to find out why our computer couldn't get on the internet with the Verizon modem. The guy there told them there was a problem with the modem, and they should get the customer service people to get them a new one. He also told them about a computer store in Pahrump that sold refurbished computers very cheaply, which intrigued Don, 'cause the old Toshiba has been around for five or six years. So, they visited the place and Don found a Dell that he liked, so they went home with it.

Once they got back to the rig, they spent half the afternoon on the phone with Verizon people, talking about their problems with the modem, but not getting very far. They finally wound up linking the new laptop with Geri's iPhone, and getting back online that way. Boy, am I glad my paws are too big for the computer keys; I don't think I could put up with the complications involved in getting my observations published. Anyway, so far Don has gotten the text of the blog transferred from the old laptop and published on the blog. Photos yet to come.

After dinner, which was all warmups from the fridge, they had to return to the money machines to see if they could do better than they did last night. They came back pretty early, and again Don seemed pretty pleased, Geri less so. Travel day tomorrow, down to our old home in Vegas! See ya then!

Day 12- Pahrump, NV

What a pain this is. Still not able to get access to the blog page, can’t upload anything. I can only hope that Don gets to the bottom of this problem soon. In the meantime, the blog must go on.

Travel day today. For our morning walk, Don took me in the truck up the road to a cluster of old buildings that Don says is an Air Force training facility left over from WWII. The County has taken it over for use as warehouses, and one building looks like it’s being used for offices. The weather was cold and windy, and the buildings provided some shelter from the wind for our walk, which was good. Don and I both like exploring places like this; I’m looking for new smells, and he’s looking at signs and other indications of what the buildings were originally used for. We did a complete circuit through the buildings, and just as we were heading for the truck, I investigated the space underneath a stairway; I was startled as a large, furry animal spurted out of the space, running like the wind. I was ready to give chase to it, but looked at Don first to get his approval. “Deeb, it’s a kitty!”, he said, “Don’t chase it!” I watched it disappear into the weeds next to the building, and realized that he was absolutely right; it was a large cat, and I am not one to terrorize cats in any way. Hey, I’ve got one of my own!

We got hooked up and underway a little before eleven, and headed down Highway 95. A half hour later we were rolling through Goldfield, which didn’t look any more prosperous today than it did yesterday. Geri gave me my lunch while we were rolling, and I went down for nap time. When I finally roused myself, we were rolling into our chosen RV Park in Pahrump, Terrible’s. We’ve been here before, and think it’s one of the nicest places we’ve ever stayed. It’s all grassy, and laid out surrounding a lake with fountains in it, populated by lots of very nice ducks. There’s lots of other dogs, and we met several during our evening walk. One was a Goldie, by name of Athena, who was a Mom Dog to a whole bunch of pups before her current human got her. She was very pretty, though she must have outweighed me by at least 30 pounds. We met another man who told us about his Goldie, named Maggie. He’s going to bring her by to meet me tomorrow!

Don cooked up some chicken saltimbocca for dinner, with some curried rice and veggies, which we all thought was excellent. My plates were delicious! They headed out for the local money machine place after dinner, and I was happy to take a post-prandial nap during their absence. When they returned, I noted that Don was again particularly jubilant, while Geri was a bit subdued. I can only attribute their attitudes to their experiences with the money machines. I think I’m pretty astute about these things. The rest of the evening was spent vainly trying to get internet access through all of the wonderful options available to us, all of them useless. Don is tearing his hair out, which was a limited commodity at best.

Hoping to make contact with you in the near future, I am your faithful BlogDog, DeeBee.  

Day 11- Tonopah, NV

We’re still here, and we’re still locked out of our blog. We can read it, just can’t write in it. Wish I could tell you to wait for this situation to get corrected, but I can’t tell you poo-poo!

But let’s pretend that my bark can be heard across the internet, and tell you how my day went. Sometimes Don has to get a little bit inventive when we’re in a strange place and it’s time for our morning walk. This was one of those days; there are no parks in this town, hardly anyone even has a lawn. Don remembered the one public grassy spot during our cruising yesterday, a very small area surrounding a memorial gazebo near the intersections of Highways 95 and 6, but when we got there, the sprinklers were going. No deal. So, giving up on grass, he took me up to the old County Courthouse, which sits on a hill overlooking the town. It turned out to be a great place to explore, with all kinds of strange smells. We wandered around the parking lot and grounds, which were devoid of people, and we got in a little downhill/uphill walking, too. Turned out fine.

When we got back to the coach, Geri was ready to go touring with us, and we set off to cruise Tonopah. The place is really, what you might call, colorful. As you may know, Tonopah is a Silver Rush town, created by a guy who picked up a rock to throw at his deviant mule, felt it weighed more than it should, and found out it was nearly half silver. It wasn’t long before hundreds of mining claims covered the area, and a town was born, which grew to a population of many thousands. What’s left now are people who love the place’s colorful past, and hope to build a future on it. One thing I’ll say for them, they never throw anything away! The town is loaded with piles of abandoned autos, air conditioners, house siding, and anything else that doesn’t have any further use. Old mining shacks have disintegrated and the remains left to decorate the landscape. Mobile homes have decayed to the point of collapse. Major buildings on the highway through town have become shells, with no apparent future planned for them. But there are a few remnants of the town’s greatness, like the Hotel Mizpah, which has been renovated and reopened lately. The owners obviously have great hopes for it, and we wish them well. I didn’t get to go in, of course, but Geri and Don both said that it was very nicely done in the interior.

After a lunch stop back at the rig, we headed south on 95 down to the town of Goldfield, which has a similar history to Tonopah’s, except a few years later. And the precious metal involved was gold, not silver. But it was a strike of such major proportions that by the early 1900’s, Goldfield was the largest community in Nevada! We stopped at the office of the Yucca Mountain Oversight Administration, where a very nice lady gave us some literature on Goldfield’s history, and pointed out the collapsing brick house next door that was built by the man who went on to build New York’s Madison Square Garden, whatever that is. Our tour of Goldfield indicated that, comparatively, Tonopah was thriving. The decaying buildings were more magnificent than Tonopah’s, and there were many more of them, but the sense of abandonment was everywhere. Don noted that their economy was nonexistent, with nothing to promote a tourist base, which is all that they could possibly lay claim to. We all thought it was beautifully sad.

Back in Tonopah, I got my dinner and they took off to have theirs at the Mizpah. They returned with good reviews of the food, but a little critical of the service. Don took me out for a short walk up the road in back of the RV “Park”, where we found some old foundations of mining machinery. This place must be loaded with stuff like that. We watched American Idol, which is starting to get Don agitated, mostly about the girl that’s trying to imitate Janis Joplin (who he had met and liked many years ago). I don’t have a dog in this fight.

We’re on the road tomorrow, heading for Pahrump where I recall that the grass is great!

Hope that we can post from there! Sayonara!  

Day 10- Tonopah, NV

I hope no one thinks that we went off the road into a big lake or something just because we haven’t been able to post for a couple of days. The problem has been that there is very bad internet service in places where people don’t live, like where we are now. It makes the computer say stupid things, like that my blog doesn’t exist, while it’s showing it to me. Oh, well, we’ll bring you up to date.

We knew that Tuesday would be a travel day, but we didn’t know that it was going to wind up here. I think that these people like to make plans just to have the pleasure of changing them. Their information was that the weather in the area north of us, around Mono Lake, was going to get bad, so a spirited discussion ensued. The final result was the elimination of Mono and Hawthorne, Nevada, from the itinerary, and the addition of destinations to be named later. I suspect that Don may be harboring thoughts of visiting Rachel, Nevada, to investigate UFO activity along the Extraterrestrial Highway.

The good news was that I got another great romp in the Bishop City Park, which I thoroughly enjoyed, before we left. I’ll remember Bishop very fondly. Anytime they want to come back here, I’ll be aboard. So, we got underway around noon and headed east on Highway 6. There’s a sign at the start of the highway that tickled us, and I think that Don will post a photo of it. Don says the rest of the trip was pretty boring; I don’t know, I napped through it. When we arrived in Tonopah, they scurried off to go to a museum that’s right next door to what passes for an RV Park in this town, a parking lot with utilities. I can’t see that there are going to be any great attractions for me in this place, but we’re only going to be here for a couple of nights, so no big deal. Leftovers for dinner, but a few good plates out of it. They spent some time at the nearby Hotel Casino, and at least Don came back smiling.

I think I’ve given you the impression that I don’t have a lot of hope for things of interest for me in this locale. Grassy parks don’t seem to be a big item here. That’s OK, my day will come, I’m sure. So, toodle-oo for tonight!

Day 9- Bishop, CA

As reported yesterday, today was set aside for cleaning and rig maintenance functions, so we had no excursions, no adventures, no real excitement.  Except for my morning walk!  Don took me back to the Bishop City Park, and just turned me loose to literally follow my nose, and I certainly did that.  We wandered all over the park, which is really big and full of nice features, not to mention ducks and gulls.  At one point, I made like a sheepdog and herded a whole flock of ducks into the pond, while they quacked at me with annoyance.  I found several good places for rolling, and was energized to run like the wind (well, maybe like a breeze) on several occasions.  It really is a lovely place, and I'd like to take it home with me, but Don says it won't fit on the coach.

Back at the rig, Geri was working on vacuuming the carpet and the furniture, while Don started cleaning the bug collection off the front of the coach.  While he was working, he was visited by the owner of the coach down a few sites from us, a new Winnebago Journey, very pretty.  Don told me that they talked about fuel mileage (a dismal subject), maintenance problems, and a bunch of other stuff.  When Don told him about our daily record of happenings on our trips by means of an on-line blog prepared by the resident Dog, the guy seemed inclined to break off the conversation and wander back to his rig.  That's OK, he should read it and become a believer.

In the afternoon, Geri and Don went out shopping again, and came home with a new vacuum cleaner and a bag from a meat market downtown that smelled really good.  It turned out to be some ham steaks, one of which was cooked up for dinner along with some yams.  I love it when they have yams, 'cause I get some of the skins off them, in addition to some ham.  Good plates!

No pics today, cleaning the rig isn't really very photogenic.  Tomorrow we hike up the road a few miles to Mono Lake, a whole different environment.  I'm sure we're going to have some adventures there that will be worthy of a full report, with photos!  See ya then!

Day 8- Bishop, CA

After a high excitement day like yesterday, a relatively calm day was welcome.  We did attempt one excursion in the morning that didn't pan out exactly like Don wanted, up to the hills above Bishop to see the Owens River Gorge, but that didn't last real long.  It seems that all the roads down into the gorge were closed by authority of the City of Los Angeles Water and Power Department, leaving one little spot where you could actually look down into the gorge and see the river.  It was at this location that I decided that I was tired of sitting in back of the seats; I wanted a seat of my own.  Unfortunately, the seat I wanted was Don's, and I really don't drive so well.  So, I was forced to return to my inferior position in the rear of the seats.  

Returning to the coach, I received my lunch, and they went out for theirs.  Geri gave me a full report on the dietary felony that Don committed at Jack's Restaurant and Bakery when they returned; he had ordered, and mostly consumed, a gigantic chicken-fried steak, two eggs, hash browns, and a biscuit with gravy.  His defense was that he was allowed a breakfast like this every two years, and he was way overdue.  Anyway, the late breakfast brought on a period of relaxation in the afternoon, Geri and I napping and Don noodling with the computer.  OK for a Sunday afternoon.

Later in the PM, Don proposed that they do a little shopping at some of the specialty food stores in Bishop, to which Geri agreed.  They weren't gone too long, and when they did come back, the only purchase they had made was a very small loaf of sourdough bread from Eric Schatt's Bakkery.  They had tried to score some smoked ham steaks from the Mahogany Smoked Meats outlet, but they were out of them, and nothing else seemed appealing.  I've heard someone say that you should never go grocery shopping when you're hungry; it looks like if you try it when you're stuffed, you don't wind up with much.

Needless to say, dinner was a no-show, except for my regular meal.  They're saying that tomorrow is rig cleaning day, so maybe we'll get back to normal, food-wise.  One can only hope.  See ya manyana!

Our Dog Walk Area

There's a river down there, somewhere

Oops!  Wrong seat!

Day 7- Bishop, CA

It's a good thing that we didn't have anything really nailed down for this morning, 'cause we would have had to abandon it!  For our morning walk, Don took me to the Bishop City Park, which is really big and nicely done.  We went to the back side of the park, and Don turned me loose to run and roll in the beautiful grass, and to meet many of the people who were also enjoying the surroundings.  There's a big pond, populated by some attractive ducks and a few seagulls (in the Owens Valley?)  I did a lot of exploration, met quite a few very friendly people, and enjoyed myself thoroughly.  As we were preparing to leave, there were a couple of ladies near the parking lot that wanted to meet me.  One of them said (I'm not kidding) "A dog that beautiful has to be in our parade this morning!"  Imagine, she was talking about me!  I gave Don my pleading look, and he immediately agreed to sign me up for the Dog Parade, which was being held to support the construction of a Dog Park for the local canines. He had to enter me in a category for judging, and the selection was kind of limited.  He couldn't really enter me in the Creative Costume group, 'cause my only costume accessory was my scarf, which isn't all that creative.  Another category was "Most Supportive of Earth Day", a subject he knows I have no interest in.  He finally put me in the "Funniest" category, 'cause I occasionally do some funny things.  

Having completed the entry, we sailed back to the rig to pick up Geri, who was thrilled to hear about my being chosen for inclusion in this select group of canines.  We arrived back at the park just before the parade started, and joined the happy group, which included a Basset, a Scotty, a five month old Great Dane that I had to look up to, and several dogs whose ancestry wasn't apparent to me.  We paraded through the park, with people taking photos of us and yelling appreciative comments, until we reached the conclusion of the march, where the judging was taking place.  After a long period of consideration, the Judges bestowed the award for "Funniest Dog" on yours truly!  My prize was a lovely tote bag full of goodies, including an insulated water bottle, a very fancy leash, a new scarf, a display frame for a photo of me, and a few other goodies.  Quite a haul!  This might be the high point of the trip for me.  The fact that I was the only dog entered in the "Funniest" category, as Don told me later, does nothing to diminish my triumph.  

After returning to the coach for lunch, my Humans departed for some sightseeing, leaving me to enjoy a well-earned nap.  When they returned a few hours later, they told me about a Museum they had visited, unusual in that it was about the size of a small village, centered on a railway station.  The village was called Laws, and it apparently contained the last vestiges of a railway that once served the Owens Valley from the Virginia City area of Nevada.  They said that there were homes, stores, schools, medical offices, and many other buildings, all with displays that illustrated living conditions in the Valley during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  There was a lot of rail equipment, which Don ate up on, and typical homes of the period, which Geri enjoyed.  They sounded like they had an interesting afternoon.  Good on them.

Don grilled a steak, with some potatos, brussel sprouts and mushrooms for dinner, and I enjoyed some splendid plates.  A little TV, putting the blog together, and so to bed.  Nighty night, all!

The gathering of the Parade Hounds

Me and my Parade Partner

Gathering for the local TV coverage

A great carriage for a final ride

One of my Readers will recognize this

It's not really a junkyard!

Day 6- Bishop, CA

Not a lot to report today, as most of the morning was taken up by getting the rig ready to hit the road, and most of the afternoon went to planning what we're going to do here in Bishop.  We were on the road only about an hour before we pulled into the Highlands RV Park, where we stopped last year on our way back from the East Coast.  One thing we noticed immediately here was the absence of the sound of the jets from China Lake roaring overhead; we kind of enjoyed hearing it, but I guess they'd run out of fuel if they flew all the way to Bishop.

One thing I like about this place is the Dog Walk; it's not very large, but it's all really nice grass, and there's a little creek running through it, and a pond!  Don took me over there after we arrived, and he said he saw a fish swimming down the creek!  I did a few rolls in the grass, and enjoyed it greatly.  I guess that was my excitement for the day!  Geri made dinner for me and took me for another walk; there aren't a lot of rigs here, so there aren't many people to meet, which is disappointing to me.  We're in a site right next to Don's dreamboat motorhome, a Beaver Patriot Thunder.  I know that I drool a little over some food, but I can't see myself drooling over a motorcoach, like he does.

They left to go to dinner, and I felt a little sad to see them go.  It might have been 'cause I knew that they wouldn't be back to give me my nightly allotment of Yummy Chummies at the usual time.  And it's true, they wandered off to the local Indian Casino after they had some BBQ at a place named Holy Smoke.  But, of course, that means no plates or pots for me.Well, tomorrow's another day; let's hope it's a bit more exciting than today was!  Bye for now!

Day 5- Lone Pine, CA

Before I give you a report on our day, I must first disavow any responsibility for the selection of photos that accompany this posting.  Don felt it was absolutely essential to share the beauty of his entree from last night with our readers, he was so emotionally involved with it.  I suggested that he include a pic of my serving of Nutro Ultra Senior formula along with it for comparison, but he apparently couldn't follow my reasoning.  Anyway, there it is.

We had a pretty low-key morning, a result, I believe, of over-indulgement last night.  Don finally tore himself away from the computer, where he was bringing himself up to date on the comics pages, long enough to take me for a pleasant walk through the huge doggy area of the RV Park and back through the camping area, where I got to meet a few people.  It wasn't until after noon that my two humans got their acts together and set out for an excursion.  I finagled my way into the truck's cab again by pretending that the ramp was too steep for me today to get into the truck bed.  Our first target was a rock that Geri had found through her iPhone research, supposedly located on Whitney Portal Road just a ways out of Lone Pine.  We drove over half way to Whitney Portal without finding it, and finally turned around before embarking on the monstrous switchbacks that Don says lead to the road's end.  But, on our return route, there it was!  A huge boulder, embellished with paint to a monstrous visage.  Don says he'll post a pic of it.

We headed north then toward the town of Independence, stopping for a visit to Manazanar, which was a place where they kept a lot of Japanese people during the last big war.  Geri and Don both expressed some bad feelings about this place; Don was talking about how German and Italian soldiers who were prisoners of war were treated better in this country than were American citizens who were of Japanese ancestry.  Made me glad that nobody has ever questioned my pedigree.  

After a brief stop in Independence to get directions, we drove a bit further north to the road that took us to the Mount Whitney Fish Hatchery.  We've been to several of these, and I even got to tour one in Idaho a few years ago.  And, fortunately, I was allowed to go along on the tour of this one!  This hatchery is not in anything close to full scale operation these days, as it is run by some local volunteer people, who took it over when the State of California decided it didn't meet it's current regulations for hatcheries.  It's a really lovely place, with a very attractive building constructed of native materials (mostly stone) back in the early 1900's.  We toured the exhibits in the building, including the small-scale hatchery operation that the Volunteers are doing, and met a Jack Russell Terrier puppy (10 months old) who was doing the same.  We all agreed that he was the calmest, most civil Jack Russell we had ever met.  Very nice young fellow.  

On our way out, the hostess at the front desk gave us a package of fish food to feed to the trout in the pond in front of the hatchery.  When we got down to the pond, Don took a handful of the food and threw it into the water where a bunch of fish were gathered.  They went into a feeding frenzy like I had never seen before!  They were, like, coming out of the water to grab the food!  I must admit, I freaked out.  Had to back away from this.  I thought they'd be coming after me next!  And these were really big trout!  I think Don wanted to take a couple of them home with him.  When the fish food ran out, we adjourned to a nice picnic area, where I was able to do some very manly rolling in some first-rate grass.  

Returning to Independence, Don insisted on paying a visit to one of his favorite small museums, the Eastern California Museum.  He was pleased to see that they had added some square footage to the building, with a very nice addition structure.  I had to wait for them in the picnic area next to the building, but I didn't mind; it was grassy and shaded, so I was very comfortable.  Don particularly likes the exhibits they have that show how the Japanese-Americans made the best of their confinement at Manzanar, and how well they depict the early history of the Owens Valley.  Geri appreciates the museum too, but says it's really too much information. 

After the museum, we headed back to Boulder Creek and the rig.  Shortly after we were back aboard the coach, Geri and I went for a stroll through the Park, and returned to find our neighbors breaking camp to relocate to another site.  They were experiencing high voltages on their power, enough to fry their electronic equipment.  Don checked our voltage, and found it to be normal, but there were others who were evacuating other sites nearby.  Sometimes we get lucky.  

Dinner was a mishmash of leftovers for them, my splendid Nutro Ultra Senior for me.  But I did get some nice leftover dishes.  No complaints.  See ya manyana!

Don's Trout at Seasons

Whitney - as close as we'll ever get

Local art - it rocks!

Manzanar Memorial

Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery

Geri feeding the trout

Day 4- Lone Pine, CA

Today was their day, with very little attention to my wants and needs.  Yeah, sure, I got my regular morning treats and food, Don took me for a rather interesting walk through the RV Park's maintenance area, and I got my usual massages and petting.  But they eventually boarded the truck without me and ran off to the local Movie Museum.  It seems that back in the early part of the last century (way before I was born) the people in Hollywood spent a lot of time here making movies, mostly shoot-em-up cowboy flicks where the hero gets to kiss his horse at the end (no, not the horse's end).  So, of course, they had to build a museum to handle all the artifacts of that age, and Geri and Don had to go see it.  They reported that they found it entertaining and fun, though they couldn't really remember ever having seen most of the films that were featured in the museum.  

After lunch, they had scheduled a tour of the Alabama Hills, where most of the movie filming took place.  They invited me to join them, but I was a bit hesitant due to the warmth of the day; understand, at my age, my comfort is of some importance to me.  But I accompanied them out the the truck, and when they set up the ramp for me to enter my private accommodations, I politely demurred.  Instead, I went to the side door of the truck's cab, indicating that unless I go in the air-conditioned interior, I ain't riding.  These guys are easy touches; I got my wish immediately, and off we went.  

The ride through the hills was scenic but bumpy, and I didn't get to see a lot from my location behind the seats in the cab.  But they were doing a lot of oohing and aawing over the spectacular piles of rocks that we were moving through, and sounded as though they were really enjoying it.  When we finally got free of the rock piles and back to civilization in Lone Pine, they found a park for me to trot around in and do a little rolling, for which I was thankful.  Don had to stop and spend a few minutes at the grave of the victims of the 1872 earthquake, which he says was the most powerful in California's recorded history; glad we weren't here for that.  

Back at the rig, I got my dinner and post-dinner treats; then they took off for a feast at a local restaurant that has a reputation for being the finest in the Owens Valley.  They returned a couple of hours later, groaning in pleasure from the results of their dinner.  Geri had ordered the grilled salmon salad, which turned out to be more salmon than salad, perfectly prepared, moist and meaty.  Don had a house salad with a Roquefort cheese dressing for a starter, and he had to ask the waitress what cheese was used, it was so good.  She knew it to be Maytag cheese, the company that had purchased the recipe for blue cheese from the Langlois Blue Cheese Company in Langlois, Oregon, where Don had spent many childhood summers, and had hated the taste of their product.  Does that indicate that he's matured a little?  Who knows.  His entree was Golden Trout, sauteed in butter, a treat that he never gets at home.  His trout had seen many summers, and was of a very appreciable size, but tender and delicious.  They both had some leavings boxed to return to the rig.  So, here I am, reporting on the delicacies that my human compatriots shovel into their maws, while I am asked to be satisfied with the same old stuff on a daily basis; I could complain, but it's really not worth it.  I like what they feed me, it's obviously good for me, and I get a lot of treats to go with it.    Hardly worth complaining about.  

So, they're full and tired, and so am I.  Think we'll sign off now.  Hope you've had a good evening!  Sayonara!

Geri's shopping for a new car

Sierra Mountains, Alabama Hills

Another Hysterical Marker

View from our RV Park

Whitney; ain't going up there

Day 3- Lone Pine, CA

We all got a good, early start this morning, recognizing the fact that on travel days we have to meet the requirement to vacate our space before a set time, in this case, Noon.  Plus, we had one small excursion that they needed to take before leaving.  Over the years that they have bombed back and forth on Highway 14, they have always noticed a facility located on a hill above the highway that appeared to be loaded with ancient memorabilia, like old wagons, farm equipment, advertising icons, stuff even older than they are.  So, they had to seek it out and pay a visit before leaving today.  We loaded into the truck and headed up the road for a couple of miles, and there it was.  Unfortunately, it was closed; even worse, it was up for sale!  Geri and I could see the lust in Don's eyes as he surveyed the vast piles of ancient equipment, so we let him take a few pictures through the fence and then hustled him back to the truck.  

Back at the rig, we went through our pre-departure drill and hit the road north on Highway 14 at the stroke of noon.  I must admit that I napped most of the way, but I kept an ear open for Don's comments on the areas we were passing through.  Like, he still is optimistic about the possibility of getting to tour Edmonds Air Force Base, but we'd better do it before our Congressman retires, 'cause we'll probably have to get him to set it up for us.  And he believes that the sleepy little town of Mojave will be the replacement for the Kennedy Space Center someday.  He noted our passage through Red Rock Canyon State Park, commenting on the beauty of the rock formations there, but decrying the lack of decent RV accomodations.   He made some observations regarding the Los Angeles Aqueduct, but I don't remember them.

In the mid-afternoon, we arrived at our destination, the Boulder Creek RV Resort just south of Lone Pine.  Both Geri and Don remembered that the last time they stayed here, it wasn't a Resort, just and RV Park.  They intend to determine what has changed to make it into a Resort.  My evaluation is that it's a nice enough place, just terribly short on grass; like, none!  But they're usually pretty good about finding nearby spots to take me for some rolling in decent grass.  They took off for the nearby Visitor Center, to get some up-to-date info on local sightseeing, and came back shortly after doing a pass through downtown Lone Pine, which I recall as being about four blocks long.  But I can say that the scenery here is spectacular, with the tall, snowy Sierra Nevada mountains right next to us, including Mount Whitney, which they say is the highest   mountain in the country, outside of Alaska.  I'm pleased to be told that we won't be climbing it.  

Don cooked up some Chicken Paprikesh, one of our favorites, and my plates were awesome.  A little TV, some work on the blog, a big fight between Don and his new camera, which finally gave up some pics, and then off to bed.  Toodle 'oo, see you tomorrow

Dying for a walk!

What does that say?

Our home in Acton

San Gabriel Mountains

Day 2- Acton, CA


Some of us are falling into the road trip routine very easily; Dog knows, we've done it enough times.  Don hit the deck just awhile after six, and I was just minutes behind him.  I let him know that I was ready for work, and he had the phony newspaper ready for me.  Carefully hiding the paper from my sight (yeah, sure), he went to the coach door and tossed the paper on the grass, then beckoned me to do my "retriever" thing.  I bounded down the steps, gently took the paper in my powerful jaws, and ran back into the coach.  As he almost always does, he gave me great words of praise, then rewarded me with one of my favorite cookies.  When we're at home, and the newspaper is real, I can see a purpose in this routine; I guess he just wants me to keep in practice when we're on the road. 

So, I got my breakfast, we had our morning meeting, where we talk about what we'll be doing today and I get a back rub, and I laid down for my post meal nap.  Geri made her appearance about an hour later, and I was happy to see her.  Don was immersed in gaining some information from the computer, and was ignoring me, so her attentions were quite welcome.  We spent most of the morning rearranging supplies and getting some of the radio gear working right.  Don took me for a walk around the RV park, and I had to agree with him that the view of the San Gabriel Mountains from our location was very spectacular. 

After lunch, we all piled into the truck for an outing.  I'm now agreeable to the use of the folding ramp that Geri got for me last year, though I still want to exhibit my athleticism by jumping into the truck every now and then.  Since our address at the RV Park was in Acton, we went in search of downtown, to see where the Acton Action really was.  We rolled past many ranches, but couldn't identify a town anywhere.  We saw a couple of RV parks, but they didn't look as nice as ours.  Don took a detour from the main road up a route that he said would reveal the source of the Santa Clara River, something he's been obsessing about for years.  Geri has pointed out that the Santa Clara is hardly the Nile (whatever that is), and his fixation on this is a form of sickness.  As we headed up the hill alongside the puny little creek, Geri noted that there was no longer any water in it.  She reasoned that the lack of water would mean that we had gone past the source of the river, and that the quest was finished.  Don had to grudgingly agree, and turned the truck back down the hill. 

We got back to Soledad Canyon Road, and followed it through areas that looked pretty wild, with some abandoned mines and houses, a few trailer parks that looked pretty rough, and a few roads that led further up into the San Gabriels.  Geri didn't encourage Don to try them.  We finally stopped at a place called Lang, where Don had to photograph a historical marker that celebrated the Golden Spike ceremony that joined the railroads of Northern and Southern California, back in the 1880's.  I don't think a lot of people are aware of this event.  I'm not surprised that Don is.

We cruised up Highway 14 to Agua Dulce, where we turned off to visit a County Park called Vasquez Rocks.  The attraction here is a rock formation that we have all noticed while driving up 14, an unusual bunch of slanted layers of rock that are totally out of synch with the rest of the hills around them.  We parked near the entrance to a Geology Walk, and Don and I set out to learn the geology of the place.  We didn't learn much; I learned that it had turned very warm, and I was strongly drawn to shady areas.  Don had learned from his internet searches that the formation was the result of an unusually strong earthquake about 25 million years ago, though it's recent history centered around its use as a locale for movies and TV shows.  Driving further into the Park, we saw that a film crew was engaged in doing some production.  We parked in time to see a man carrying another person up the side of one of the rock formations, tossing the body to the ground, then throwing it over the edge to certain massive harm.  Fortunately, it turned out to be a dummy.  Don declined Geri's invitation to climb up one of the pinnacles so she could photograph him, so we left the Park. 

We made one last try at finding Acton, and were successful, with Garmy's help.  She guided us to the Acton Store, which we had not recognized during our first pass through as the the center of Acton.  They stopped and bought a few things.  Then back to the Californian RV Resort for dinner, which consisted of leftover Southwestern Chicken, one of our favorites.  Good plates (bowls, really)! 

Don is having difficulty getting photos from the new camera transferred to the laptop for inclusion in the Blog, so we might be short on pics tonight.  He promises to get the problem licked somehow, 'cause he knows how much our readers enjoy the photos.  So, I'll sign off and let him get to work on his difficulties.  So long for now!