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The trip so far


Guest imported_Thriller

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Guest imported_Thriller

OK, so I'm something like 13 hours of driving from home. I've got a few photos...if nobody wants to see / hear any more, say so and I'll stop posting...otherwise, I may have one or two other replies to add to this.

We got away from the house yesterday somewhere about the stroke of 10:00 a.m...I used to be a country boy that got up with the sun, but I've been in the city too long. I meant to take a photo of the rig in front of the house, but forgot in the mayhem. So, I did the next best thing - took a photo near Portage la Prairie, the first potty break forced upon me by someone in the back seat.

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Other than running behind where I'd hoped, there were no real problems. For those who may never have seen the prairies, between Regina and Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan is some of the flattest terrain you will ever see.

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The Boss also took a shot of the back seat...they appear happier in the photo than they acted....

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After having trouble sleeping, we got a much earlier start this morning and made decent time. This is always an amazing sight to me near Chaplin, SK - someone pass the salt please.

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Moving along, the terrain gets a bit more rolling around Swift Current country.

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To make Dave happy ;), we also took a shot of a wind farm...if I remember correctly, that is near Taber, Alberta.

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Since we got an earlier start, we made a stop at the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre.

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For all my American friends, a bird named Lincoln...

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Suzanne and the kids took turns holding a Great Horned Owl.

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That was near our destination for the night, so that's it for today. Tomorrow we'll be going through the Crowsnest Pass (where the Frank Slide occurred in 1903), crossing the continental divide, and getting to our friends' place in Cranbrook, British Columbia.

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Derek,

I for one would like to see more of your road trip. It reminds me of the trip we made in 2004 from Melbourne to the Australian Nationals in Perth, West Australia, a distance of over 2,000 miles in a 66 Wildcat convertible.

How far will you have to travel?

Keep the photos coming and have a great trip smile.gif

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Keep em coming! Great photos.

Be careful if you come across any road construction or gravel roads. You might want to get some mud flaps for the back or your truck to help stop stone chips on your Buick.

When I trailered home from Rochester, I picked up some chips in my trailered Buick. I still haven't bought the flaps.....; but I only think of it when I see a nice car on an open trailer.

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Derek,

Great photos of your family headin' out west. Keep up the running story, there are many of us that will not be there so this will kind of put us in the "shotgun seat".

Be safe, have a good time and keep em coming.

Stevo

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Guest imported_Thriller

Mark - too late.

Cut_n_chop - why is someone from Alberta displaying the Saskatchewan Militia as their avatar? wink.gif

OK, so Friday was supposed to be a short day, but we did so much touristy stuff, we spent a pretty full day on the road. About 9:30, we got to Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump and did the tour thing...spent way more time there than originally intended.

Here's the jump:

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It used to be considerably more of a drop, but has filled in at the base with 6000 years worth of bison bones and sedimentation.

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From there we took what my navigator thought would be a shorter route back to the highway...after a few miles it turned into gravel...met a number of vehicles on that road...good thing I have spare headlights with me...so long as they haven't vibrated too much. Right along this road though, we did get up close and personal with a wind farm...you really have to get close to appreciate the size of these things.

A while later, we went to the site of the Frank slide. In late April 1903, 90 million tonnes of Turtle Mountain slid down in 90 seconds. I'd been through the area before, but in the dark in winter (snow covered), so didn't really appreciate it. They had to rebuild the railroad as it got covered up.

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We didn't go into the interpretive centre - you can see it on the right side of the first slide photo. On the way in, we encountered some folks from a Dodge Brothers meet that was occurring in Lethbridge - talked to a couple from Ohio.

Then we continued on to Cranbrook...today we ventured up to a mining claim of the friend we are staying with on Mount Cranbrook.

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On the way down, we saw these ladies...Joseph spotted them.

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So, that brings you up to date. We hope to see Fort Steele tomorrow, then Monday head down to Coeur D'Alene. One of these days I might run the rig through a truck wash though.

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Guest imported_Thriller

Today, after Mass, we went to Fort Steele. It is a re-creation of a gold mining boom town and North West Mounted Police fort from the turn of the century. The kids really enjoyed it. My father would have loved the Clydesdales...among other things, we took in the live theatre and a short trip on a steam-powered train.

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This building is the main entrance / gift shop / ice cream corner. It is a re-creation of the brewery building that was originally there...apparently it was good beer...one of the founders was involved in what eventually became Rainier....

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The train ride took us a short way up along the Kootenay River...I could live in this part of the world.

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The locomotive is a 262 (2 small wheels, then 6 large wheels, and 2 small wheels again in the back). It was built by the company that eventually became Bombardier (SkiDoo, Challenger jets, rail equipment, etc.). It originally ran on logs, but was converted to oil after it started too many fires along the tracks. Currently it runs on a mix of bunker oil and used motor oil.

Well, that's it for here...tomorrow sees us head across the border to Coeur D'Alene...the trailer is hitched back up to Max, and other than being dirty, everything is ready to go again.

Brian - I'd forgotten to answer you...this route is the shortest and is just under 1400 miles one way (that doesn't count the extra we are tacking on after to visit family in Oregon). All told, we will definitely be over 3000 miles round trip.

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Derek,

Looks like you and the kids are having a great adventure.

This is something like we plan to do next year when we fly into LA and make our way to Flint and back. Only we won't be towing a Buick (or will we wink.gif )

Keep the photos coming and hope all goes well for the rest of the trip there and back.

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Guest imported_Thriller

Bill - I'm too old for it too. All told, we will be driving it in 5 days, which means just under 300 miles per day as an average. Of course, that takes more time.

I'm about to pack up the laptop...nobody else is up yet - I just need to find Tad's number so we can connect once we get to Coeur D'Alene...we may get to tour the lake with him, but I've got to be able to find him.

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Guest COMPACTBC

Hi Derek: Just logged in to your trip site, great pictures, take your time and enjoy the adventure, it will be something you and your family will always remember. If on the way back you happen to go thru Wyoming and the Grand Teton area there is a "wide spot in the road" called "Moose". Be sure to stop and ENJOY their "chuck wagon dinner" that is served in a giant teepe. You and your kids will really enjoy this.

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Guest imported_Thriller

Thanks Bruce. As we aren't that far south in Oregon, we'll likely be heading back NE to get to the Spokane area and head down I-90 to Fargo and north to get home...we did that route from here 3 years ago, stopping at the Bonneville dam on the Columbia, as well as Roosevelt National Park.

So, I have the laptop up and have Internet access again. Yes, we were let into the U.S. Yes, the adventure continued.... Monday was a short day from Cranbrook to Coeur D'Alene...the kids spent some time in the pool. We got water leaking into the hotel bathroom from the room above, so got moved...I didn't log back into the Internet after that.

On Tuesday morning, we met up with Tad and his crew as well as Ron with his '56 Century. At Ritzville, we met up with Mike with a '59 convertible and another fellow with a '65 Wildcat if memory serves.

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A while later, we got our first glimpse of Mount Rainier.

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The Columbia River crossing...that was some grade....

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A photo going through the Cascades.

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We got ourselves checked in and the fun began.

Many, many thanks to Eric Bernard. I had put the tie down straps in a bad place on the car - as the car bounced and I checked that the straps were tight at most stops, the straps got wedged in, so he helped me out a lot...without the assistance, I may have given up on getting the car off the trailer.

This is what it looked like Wednesday morning. I was chastised by 42crazy for allowing the car to get dirty like this.

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We were the first to use the car wash...we created a bit of a kerfuffle by starting with the Avis wash spot...Suzanne couldn't move the car and I was off parking the trailer. Eventually, that got squared away and this is what it looked like after getting through the safety inspection.

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Actually, before getting it off the trailer, I'd replaced the headlight with one of the spares...that one blew when I went to put the car through tech. inspection, so the second spare is now on the car.

I have other show photos, but will catch up with what has been posted and possibly post in the appropriate threads.

For those who may not know, Suzanne spent a great deal of time cleaning and detailing the car this past week...at least partly due to that, this car did earn a bronze award at the meet. This was our first time getting a car judged.

We are now safely in Oregon...it was cloudy today, so we didn't have any opportunity to see Mt. St. Helen's...perhaps we'll be back in that part of the world again someday.

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Guest imported_Thriller

There are no photos to show, but yesterday, we went on a whale-watching boat out of Depoe Bay, OR. We did manage to see a few blows and got up close and personal with a gray whale - probably within 20 yards off the starboard bow. The skipper announced that is about the closest they ever get to any.

While waiting for the boat, we did get to see some harbor seals - I haven't downloaded the photos the wife took, so I don't know for sure whether or not they turned out.

Today the plan is to go to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport and we'll be leaving shortly. We were there 3 years ago and it was well worth it.

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Guest imported_MrEarl

Come on Thriller, i need a "On the Buick Highway" fix. more pictures please!!!

BTW it was great meeting you and yours at the meet. This is some of the highest quality time you all will ever spend together. It is so great that you are doing it while the kids (and mom and dad) are young. Just thought of a new/old jingle...."see the USA on the way to the BCA" he he he

take care and let us hear from ya

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Guest imported_Thriller

Lamar - it was great to meet you and Rita as well. The kids enjoy these trips, but can get a bit overwhelmed with a bit too much "adult" stuff.

Anyway, after Mass and supper tonight, we will be packing up to get ready to leave Oregon in the morning. I can't see us stopping at Rooster Rock as that will add a bit too much to our trip. Tomorrow night is planned for Spokane / Coeur D'Alene, Monday night in Montana, Tuesday night in the Bismarck / Fargo corridor, and home on Wednesday.

I did upload a couple of photos...Suzanne had the camera and told me she'd missed the whale. Anyway, as we were waiting for the tour boat, this harbor seal was hoping for a handout from the guys cleaning fish that came off the party boat.

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Here's a bit of a gray whale south of Depoe Bay, OR.

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I have a photo of the view of Devil's Lake from the house here, but it isn't uploaded and the laptop is already packed up. If all goes well, I may be able to have that up tomorrow.

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Guest imported_Thriller

Not that anyone wants to know, especially since there are no photos right now (camera battery charging), but here's what has been up the past week.

Sunday, we drove down to Lincoln City, OR from Bellevue. Monday saw us doing the whale watching and chasing kids around gift shops in Depoe Bay (and to think my feet were already sore from the meet). Tuesday saw us visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium and, of course, more shopping. Wednesday was a bit of a quieter day with the guys hanging around the house and the gals shopping (what else?). Thursday, Suzanne's sister kept our kids and we went to McMinnville for some wine tasting. There were a couple of issues surrounding that, but it was a nice day. It sort of serves for a substitute celebration for our anniversary, which will be spent on the road tomorrow. We also stopped at The Brigittine Monastery in Amity - they make amazing fudge. We also sat in the chapel for a bit and happened to take in the mid-afternoon prayer. Friday saw us hit the beach, and Saturday was packing day.

Today, we left the house in Lincoln City at about 9:10 PDT and arrived in Coeur D'Alene at about 6:30. I'll be trying to give Tad a call shortly before joining the rest at the pool.

Tomorrow will see us spend the night somewhere in Montana.

Hopefully I will be able to update with a few photos later.

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Guest imported_Thriller

Well, we made it home. To make things interesting, a trailer wheel came off just a few miles from the hotel on the Interstate...as I was slowing, there appeared around the corner an area where we could safely get off the road. The wheel bounced and rolled almost to where we stopped, so I was able to retrieve it. After calling AAA, and not having RV coverage, they were able to put me in touch with Les Schwab in Coeur d'Alene, who do service calls...the most expensive lug nuts I've ever bought at almost $20 each. That delayed us the better part of two hours, so when we had cell coverage, we canceled the hotel in Billings and booked one in Bozeman. Since we also stopped in Missoula to find a dust cap for the axle stub, we had lost perhaps another hour. For a $1.50 part, it sure is hard to get on.

We stayed at the Microtel in Bozeman, which, although it has a pool and continental breakfast, I wouldn't recommend. Mind you, when you start phoning late in the day and the first two choices don't have any non-smoking rooms available, you take what you can get. To top it off, the slave DVD unit stopped working, so the back seat was a bit louder than usual. Also, the camera (purchased in May for either Mother's Day or the boss' birthday) got banged and now is non-functioning. I'll be able to read the card with the old camera though. What an anniversary!

That made Tuesday a longish day to get to Bismarck, but we did more shorter stops, which seemed to help things out a bit. Last night we stayed across from the mall, so I had to check out the new Scheels...then we went across the street to Famous Dave's for some comfort food.

We awoke late this morning (almost 8) to thunderstorms...stayed wet until almost Fargo. After that it was showers on and off the rest of the way home...the border was an easy crossing, which was nice. We got home around 6:30 or so...I picked up a bit of fresh gas to assist in starting the '41 while the others unloaded other stuff...we got the car down and tucked away - it needs a wash, especially since it is in another show on Saturday.

I'll have a few more details and possibly some photos tomorrow...I'm just too wiped now and starting to look forward to my own bed for the first time in over 3 weeks.

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