The Williams Elementary/Middle school where we have been playing indoor pickleball is resurfacing the gymnasium. Tom and I decided to buy some chalk and create pickleball lines on one of the outdoor tennis courts. We were successful, and we invited Libby and Gus Beatty to come play with us Sunday morning. Although it was windy, we had fun!
Monday was my hair appointment and Flagstaff errands. Tom had his truck serviced at Jiffy Lube while I my hair was cut and colored. I was finished before Tom, so I walked a block to a street fair by the City Hall. And, wouldn't you know it, I found several things to purchase!
Tuesday morning, Tom, Libby, Gus, and I played pickleball on the chalked tennis court once again. This day, it was REALLY windy. So, we only played for an hour.
We leave on Thursday, July 5 for a vacation in Oregon. So, the trailer was pulled out of the RV barn and we started packing it later in the afternoon. Mark Burson and his three Australian shepherds were making their trek from Oxford, Mississippi, to Malibu. He and the dogs were going to spend Wednesday, July 4, at our home. So, we decided to get the trailer ready for departure early. Mark and the dogs arrived at about 11:00 am on Wednesday.
On Mark's last visit, we realized that his dogs and our dogs could hang out together. That made it easy!
We had barbecued hamburgers and beer bratwursts for an early dinner. Then, Tom, Mark, and I went to town to watch the 6:00 pm 4th of July parade down the main street of Williams. Our main street is part of historic Route 66.
The parade was festive, but again, hokey. Neighbor Shaula and her German shepherd, Issy, were in the parade.
There were also homemade floats and decorated fire trucks.
Wendy and Kai are already at their Bend home. We will be seeing them soon. But, it was fun viewing an Instagram post of them --- all decked out for the 4th of July.
Thursday morning, Mark and his dogs left for Los Angeles around 3:00 a.m. Mark always likes to beat the heat of the Mohave desert, between Needles and Barstow. Tom, the dogs, the trailer, and I left on a three week RV trip at about 9:30 a.m. Our first stop was Beatty, Nevada. Can you say hot, hot, hot?!? It was over 105 degrees.
I tried to walk the dogs in some shade, but it was scarce. We heated up left-overs for dinner from yesterday's barbecue.
We got an early start Friday morning. It was another 340 mile day --- ending in Reno. I reserved an RV site at Bordertown Casino and RV Resort, north of Reno on Highway 395. It was a very nice facility --- all pull-thru sites, green grass, shade trees, and a large dog park. Tom and I had dinner in the casino restaurant. No cooking tonight! On the final dog walk of the day, I captured a beautiful sunset photo.
Klamath Falls, Oregon, was our next stop. It was only a 225 mile trip on Saturday. We reserved a long pull-thru site at a KOA Campground. The campground had a "no vacancy" sign at the check-in building. Glad I made reservations!
Over the years, I learned that it was important to get to a Thousand Trails park early in the day --- maybe by 11:00 a.m. While reservations are assured, the sites are all "first come, first served." With that said, we only had a 120 mile day to get to the Sunriver/Bend Thousand Trails RV Resort. It is a very large park --- over 800 acres --- and 317 RV sites. We found a nice site near the family lodge, the pools, and the pickleball courts.
My sister Wendy, and her husband Kai, hosted dinner that night at their recently built second home in Bend. My sister Carrie, and her husband Brent, cooked the meal. It was a very nice meat pasta, green salad, and cake for dessert.
Carrie and Brent drove up to Bend from their home in Coto de Caza. It was a two-day trip --- about 900 miles. They love the Bend area and are house guests at Wendy and Kai's home for a little over a week.
Brent's brother, Greg, and his wife and family were also in Bend for a week. It was nice to see all of them, too.
Wendy and Kai's home is beautiful --- a Frank Lloyd Wright modern architecture. While the home is finished, they are still working on the landscaping.
The Thousand Trails park is very wooded. I spent an hour or so trying to get the DirecTV satellite to work. Not happening! The good news is there is strong cell phone and data service coverage. Monday night, Wendy invited Tom and I to meet for dinner at the 900 Wall Restaurant. It was the six of us --- three "Shelton" sisters and spouses/significant others.
The food was delicious! After dinner, we walked a block to a wonderful gelato shop, Bonta. And of course, we sampled the merchandise!
The next morning, the dogs and I took an early morning walk on the Bend-Sunriver preserve. They like the vastness of the property --- over 600 acres.
I played some pickleball at 9:00 a.m. Several of my longtime friends in the Thousand Trails system are at this park right now. So, it is fun to gather for morning pickleball!
After pickleball, Tom and I did some sightseeing in Bend. We drove to the Old Mill District, parked the truck, and walked along the Deschutes River. In a few days, we will be tubing down the river with my sister Wendy and several of her friends.
We had lunch at Anthony's Restaurant on the waterfront. We walked over a bridge and headed back to the truck on the other side of the river. We saw a white water shoot created for the floaters several years ago.
Sometime in the last 30 days, the truck received a chip in the front windshield. While we were settled for several weeks, it seemed appropriate to have it fixed. I called my insurance company and The Ugly Chip service was called. An appointment was made that afternoon and the problem was taken care of!
On Thursday, Tom and I drove a 90 mile loop from Sunriver, to the Cascades Lake Parkway, a lunch stop at Elk Lake Resort and Marina, and then back through Bend. I have been to Elk Lake before. The resort has a nice restaurant and a lovely view of the lake and Mt. Bachelor. It was all so very civilized and fun!
On Thursday, we met at Wendy's home around 1:00 p.m. There, we met up with two of Wendy's friends --- Denise and Elizabeth. It was decided that our truck would be a good way to transport the five tubes to the river. Done!
We parked the truck near a large dog park and launched the tubes into the Deschutes.
It was a lot of fun floating down the river for about 90 minutes.
When we finally took the tubes out of the river, there was a municipal shuttle that took us back to parking lot where our truck was parked. The cost of the shuttle was $3.00 per person and a bracelet could be used for the entire day. For us, we were only doing the float trip the one time.
On Friday, we knew that it was time to dump our gray and black tanks. At this Thousand Trails park, there is no sewer hookups at the 317 sites. Also, since I have been unsuccessful in getting a satellite signal for DirecTV, it seemed appropriate to move to another location where I might have satellite success. So, after we drove to the sewer dump station, we moved a few sites down --- from site L-1 to site L-8.
I also purchased a 50' coax cable to take the dish to an open field. My 25' cable was not long enough. And yes, the DirecTV finally worked!
The day was very hot --- nearly 100 degrees. Neither Tom and I were inclined to cook. So, we took advantage of a food truck at the entrance of the park. Panini Pizza to the rescue! And, it was very good.
The next morning, I got up early to get to Wendy's home by 7:45 a.m. Several of us lady folk were going to the 43rd Annual Outdoor Quilt Show in nearby Sisters. I have always wanted to attend this international affair. This small town of 2,000 residents swells to 12,500 on the second Saturday of July each year. So,Wendy, Denise, and I headed over there. The traffic was backed up the last 20 minutes of the drive. But, we made it!
Throughout the entire town, quilts are on display and hanging from all the buildings.
As a dog lover, I enjoyed the comedy of one quilt in particular. But, no Dalmatians!
Most of the quilts are for sale and part of the sale proceeds funds a local non-profit that supports the Sisters community.
Our next stop was FivePine Lodge in Sisters. When I worked at Bright Angel Lodge, Bev Garcia was my front desk manager. Three and one-half years ago, she started working at this four star resort. It was fun to see her!
One of my long-time friends, Craig Apregan and his wife Pattie, retired from Los Angeles about ten years ago and bought the beautiful Black Diamond Ranch between Sisters and Bend. On this property, they built a magnificent home on top of the hill overlooking the ranch property. Craig and Pattie are on vacation in Europe, but we drove up to their home for a photo opportunity.
The next stop was Bendistillery. There was a tasting room right off Highway 20. Wendy, Denise, and I tasted some of their vodka blends. Cheers!
Our final stop was Snow Diamond Alpaca Ranch. Those Alpacas are so cute!
That evening, our RV park had live entertainment from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Bryan Keith from Yuma, Arizona. Tom and I took our lawn chairs, and we danced to some of his country hits. It was a nice evening!
Sunday morning, the dogs and I met up with some local park fauna on a forest walk. The deer are very puzzled by the white dogs with black spots. Two fawns had scurried away earlier.
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