The Happy Reunion!

Oakley finally found safe and sleepy under the dinette seat in her home Airstream while 20+ friends and co-travelers search for 90 minutes the campground, adjoining woods and rustic village! Happy parents!!

Kiskatinaw Bridge - BC Canada

The last surviving timber bridge over the Kiskatinaw River on the way up the Alaskan Highway - about mile 16 - Margaret drives the truck and Airstream as I take photos...

Fields of Gold

I thought it was flax but it turns out to be Canola Oil fields... beautiful bright yellow fields of gold as far as the eye can see! This Day 1 at Dawson Creek in the north of British Columbia. Contrast this with black gold oil fields just across the province border in Alberta!

Mile ZERO on the Alaska Highway

We have smiles on our faces but it's only Day 1 at Mile Zero of the 5,000 mile trek! Let's check back in a month or two!

Northern Expedition cruise

Sunrise to sunset, we enjoyed the cruise that took us through a portion of the inside passage to Alaska. Dinner was a sumptuous buffet served in a white tablecloth dining room at the bow accompanied by views along the narrow Grenville Channel. We disembarked around midnight and were settled into our Prince Rupert campsite before 1 am. Thank goodness for all those naps!

Cruising the Alaska marine highway

Most of the land on the west coast of Canada is inaccessible by road or rail. Seaplanes and ships are the only way! The mountainous road from Vancouver Island to Prince Rupert is over 2,000 km so taking the Northern Expedition BC ferry was a nice way to view the splendor of this remote coastline and the stunning narrow passages between islands. All the connecting narrow passages make up a safe and protected marine highway that avoids the Pacific Ocean....

Waiting to board Northern Expedition

Ready at 5:30 am for loading for the 17 hour cruise to Prince Rupert. The RoRo stops in Bella-Bella half way so loading is split by destination. Propane is obligatory switched off and freezer contents transferred to the Arctic cooler and hope for best- otherwise lots of shrimp and bison to eat tomorrow! We have a cabin on board so showers and some catch-up sleep deferred till later.....

Catching up with friends

Robin and Marsha (and Cokie) drove up to Brown's Bay to join us for dinner and overnight in their super efficient VW Rialto camper.... last time we met up was at their (newly built by Robin) home on Lummi Island for the beautiful wedding of their daughter Cariad (SMS '04) to Chris last September. Many memories of St Barth's and Vieques together over the last 25 years!

MarineTraffic App

A great app to view and identify all the ships passing through the neighborhood! One click on the symbol reveals name, country, tonnage, from and to ports, and a myriad of other info! We monitor the Seymour Narrows so that we know when to start looking for the majestic ships as they come around the bend. Incidentally the passage was very dangerous due to high 14 knot currents and two large and treacherous underwater rocks partially blocking the waterway until the 1950's when the Canadian government tunneled under the rocks and set off the world's largest ever non-nuclear explosion to clear the passage for shipping.... https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ripple_Rock

Sky on fire!

Sunset at Brown's Bay on the Discovery Passage that links Vancouver to the Alaskan seaway.... large cruise ships with fancy names like Celebrity, Carnival, Princess - a totally different and removed floating world - pass by from time to time!

Bald headed eagles

Feeding time on the beach at Comox with Amy's father throwing salmon heads in the air which initially attracted a lot of seagulls - they were so noisy that it attracted the bald headed eagles from afar who came to check out the frenzy and soon took over the scene. They swooped in and picked up salmon with such delightful skill and style, they were amazing to watch as this predator in his full hunt and attack mode had total mastery of his environment....

Fab Four do Canada Day!

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Available until Aug 1, 2018

Chris, Amy & Archer!

Extreme neighborly meet up with our friends from Tappahannock some 3,000 miles from home! Amy's parents live near Nanaimo on Vancouver Island so we crossed paths when they took baby Archer back home to see their folks! Slow stroll down the beach boardwalk meeting every pet that came along!

Canada Day!

Parksville, BC. Somehow we ended up parked right in the middle of what are considered to be one of the best Canada Day celebrations on Vancouver Island. Parade this morning, fair in the park next door this afternoon, and fireworks over the water tonight. Low tide at mid-day takes the tide out half a mile - plenty of room for families, kids, kites, dogs, even swimming! And there's a boardwalk along the shore with a labyrinth at one end for walking.

Dungeness Crab

Chesapeake blue crabs requires at least four per person for a satisfying dinner, often five or six if one has an appetite! Pacific Dungeness crab can be 2 to 3 lbs each and we shared one happily for dinner! Much the same body construction and picking technique but with lots more meat in the claws and legs! Quite a treat!

British Columbia steak experience!

Local restaurant in Parksville offers local Angus beef, grass fed and grain finished, prepped in 1,000 degree F Montague steak broiler.... Tomahawk steak is one kilo or 2.2 lbs for Can$146 / US$110! Did not succumb!

Salt Creek Park - Washington

We camped overlooking the Juan de Fuca straits which separate the Olympic peninsula from Vancouver Island. Very cold waters but kids were swimming in it anyway! Remember chartering a TSDY from Vancouver a few years back and chasing Orca whales for a day - I think we caught up with sea lions and dolphins! Salt Creek Park is a redeveloped old WW2 military camp and observation outpost with bunkers built with the Japanese threat in mind.

IJ gets hitched!

Our dearest friends beautiful daughter Isabelle Jane gets married today in the Temple at Salt Lake City, Utah to Jared.... we would have dearly loved to be there... we wish you our very best for a wonderful life together!

Caravan Club Reunion

We are part of a Wally Byam (designer and founder of the Airstream) Caravan Club International regional unit of which there are four such units in Virginia. Our unit #109 contingent of six travelers met for a regional lunch at Salem as part of the south east Region 3. From left our unit president Randy Rinehart from Charlottesville VA, Junior Patton who ran the famous Galax Virginia Fiddlers Convention, Xan Rinehart, Betty Patton, yours truly and Margaret. One of my tasks is to write an Airstream article every two months for the unit 109 newsletter.

Around the World Caravan

Wally Byam led a caravan on an around the world trip in the 50's that started in Japan, China, Malaysia, India, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Turkey, Russia, and Europe- about 45 Airstreams started and some 34 completed the trip! Several of these very old Airstreams were on show at Salem rally and we talked to Christine Charles who was on the caravan with her parents as a teenager! What an adventure unfortunately no longer possible these days!

Drones 101 Seminar

Early morning gathering of Airstream drone enthusiasts in a field adjacent to the expo center where we found five drones being demonstrated including DJI Phantom 3 and Phantom 4, Mavic 4 and a GoPro Karma. Amazing leaps in technology in just over a few years including collision avoidance, auto return, gyro stabilization for photo and video, 4K HD video and out of sight video control. Interesting this year FCC require Ham Operator Licensing for out of sight drone operation - just got that certification in May! Downside is that drone ops are forbidden in National and State Parks...

Checking out the Vintage Airstreams

With over 750 Airstreams at the International Rally in Salem Oregon there is a large contingent of Vintage Airstreams dating back to 1930's, 49's and 50's! The design changed significantly as the Wally Bryan inspired campers evolved.

International Rally Salem

Over 750 Airstreams at the Airstream rally in Salem Oregon...

https://www.facebook.com/groups/WBCCI/permalink/10155274726402504/

Salem International Rally

Aerial view of the 700 plus Airstreams gathered st the State Fairground in Salem Oregon for their annual international rally.... can you see us bottom left near the amphitheater!!!

Logs on the beach

Much of the Oregon coastline is littered with logs that have been washed ashore from logging operations in Canada and from storms along the Alaskan and Russian coastlines. The logs are highly dangerous since in the water they are barely floating and almost invisible and can crush a swimmer in the surf. Anyway the water is Arctic and very cold you would not want to dip your toe in it!

Rogue River Jet Boat

Intrepid Jet boat driver takes us up the Rogue River and slides past rocks just a few inches away. Round trip of 104 miles over 8 hours starts at the Pacific Ocean in cold foggy weather which an hour upriver turns into bright sunshine. The return trip returns into fog and the accelerated speed of a down stream 30 mph boat plus swift river speed and an onshore wind made for a chilly afternoon return!

Redwood survivor!

What a redwood tree..... height 286 ft, diameter 24 ft, circumference 74 ft, age 1,500 years! On our way north near Eureka California in Humbolt County we diverted off Route 101 on to the monumental Avenue of the Giants! An amazing scenic drive through a redwood forest of the world's tallest trees for over 30 miles!

Mendocino Masonic Hall

The mysterious statue on the top of the old Masonic Hall in Mendocino - a quaint coastal town has something to do with the dawning of a new year. The large statue carved out of a solid block of redwood shows what appears to be a bearded Father Time with wings and a sickle, standing at the back of a maiden patiently braiding her hair. Standing behind a book open on a pedestal, the maiden holds an acacia branch in her right hand, an urn in her left hand. By her side is an hourglass and in front of her is a broken column.

The tableau, it seems, the figures are engaged in rituals known only to Masons. In the photo we have an additional feature... a pigeon sits on the maiden's head!

Pacific coastline

This is the most beautiful and stunning coastline largely due to the rockiness and prevailing swell and waves. From a sailor's point of view it is the most unforgiving and inhospitable coast with very few harbors and treacherous access to safe havens! The worst weather is the most impressive! This is a calm day!

Airstream upgrade!

During our month of May in wet and humid Virginia I took full workshop opportunity to build some Airstream enhancements.... this is a drop flap table made from a mix of maple🍁, ebony, ipe, black walnut and cherry🍒. Much more attractive than the green Formica!

Treats to the Rescue!

Will helped get our RAM truck bumper installed and welded steel mesh to the frame to protect the oil cooler from flying rocks on the Alaskan Highway! With almost impossible to reach bolt locations, Will made a custom 135 degree socket wrench to make this job so much easier! Thank you Will O'Treats!!

Tennis Channel travels with us!

Finally figured out our TV system after our DirecTV account was closed after we sold the condo. Tennis Channel in HD became available on DishTV in April so we installed base system at home and also bought a RV mobile Wally receiver and a Vanguard X2 dish for use on the road. After hours of frustration manually aligning elevation, tilt and azimuth on my DirecTV antenna and listening and tuning for the peak signal tone, the X2 aligns itself automatically in a few minutes! Night and day!!!

ALASKA 2018 Caravan

This is the itinerary starting July 12 in Dawson Creek along with 30+ other Airstreams! Return to Prince George on September 12. I'm certainly apprehensive to some of the conditions we will face during this slog through Canada and Alaska!

End of 2018 Tour part one....

After 8,000 miles and 14 weeks cross country journey via SC, FL, LA, NM, AZ we arrived at our mid point rest and recovery base at Bay Area Airstream in Fairfield CA for a few minor fixes and some enhancements before International Rally in Salem and joining our summer caravan to Alaska... the Airstream in front of us arrived with an 81 item punch list! Ouch! So happy we have a very dirty but sturdy Flying Cloud 25! Ready for our annual wash and wax!

Last dessert!

Very unusual for me to order dessert but it could not resist the Nutella Gelato covered in frozen chocolate tonight - our last dinner on the road after 8,000 miles since leaving Virginia - at Don Giovanni's Bistro in Napa! Shared this photo with Emerson who always shares his chocolate dessert with me whenever we dine together!!

Scallops

Gently roll the scallop on a plate of lightly dusted ground pepper and sea salt, prepare a slice of prosciutto cut in half lengthwise and wrap the scallop and skewer with a bamboo stick, transfer to hot griddle plate with a dash of melted butter and turn after two minutes. Finish off by removing skewer and move scallop to grill to sear any undercooked side before serving, Fun with our Weber Q-1200 grill and griddle!

Coastline hikes

We waited a couple of days for the wind to drop before taking on our coastal headland walk just south of Morro Bay in the Montana de Oro area. There is no gold here, just hills covered in yellow flowers that the Spanish explorers referred to in naming this area. The trails follow the rocky peninsula and you could walk 20 miles but we settled for 5 miles along this stunning coast.