5/12/10
Home Sweet Safe Home
So yesterday Eric IMd me from work and asked how I felt about having someone stay with us this summer. I wasn't sure what that meant at first, but then he explained. There is a student that he knows from the sailing club that was going to sublet a studio apartment from a friend of a friend. The arrangement fell through this week and he needs a place to stay until his new lease starts in August. Eric has known this guy for a few years and said he's very responsible. He just needs a place to stay for 8 weeks as he will be flying home later in the summer to see his folks. So it's a no-brainer. We will be gone for 5 weeks and need someone to watch the house. This guy is a dog-lover, so he is willing to watch the dog too. So now our house will be safe while we are away and the dog doesn't need to be boarded! w00t!
5/10/10
Brake Buddy Bought
Yesterday I found a supplemental brake system for the Jeep while it is being towed. Nearly every State or Provence we will pass through and including Alaska requires a braking system for towed vehicles.
The Brake Buddy sits in the Jeep and is connected to the brake pedal. When it senses the RV slowing down it in turn presses the brake pedal. It improves (shortens) the braking distance dramatically.
I exchanged a few emails with the owner of the system and we worked out a deal. I sent the funds via PayPal.
-- Eric
The Brake Buddy sits in the Jeep and is connected to the brake pedal. When it senses the RV slowing down it in turn presses the brake pedal. It improves (shortens) the braking distance dramatically.
I exchanged a few emails with the owner of the system and we worked out a deal. I sent the funds via PayPal.
-- Eric
5/5/10
Plans!
Things are coming along with the trip planning. I've spent a lot of time over the last week trying to figure out a basic itinerary. After reading through books, doing online research, and asking questions at RV forums, I've come up with a plan!! I also made reservations at Laird Hot Springs in BC and Denali Nat'l Park in AK. We will be at those places on weekends, so I thought it was important to have reservations. Other places we might just wing it.
I've felt a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders with the itinerary figured out, so I have turned my attention to this blog. I had a cute idea to have a pic of us coming out of the RV waving, but I decided to have it moving instead. I'll be tweaking the design and might make changes before we leave.
I've started purchasing things for the trip. I figure if I buy things little by little then things might not feel so overwhelming at the end. I know we have a lot of storage in the RV, but I will have a better idea when we bring it down in a few weeks. I plan on bringing most of our (non)perishable food with us and precooking several meals and freezing them. I saw a tip at a forum that said to freeze them flat and then line them up like a bookshelf in the freezer. Not sure how long things will stay good, so I will wait til a little closer to the trip to start cooking.
Eric continues to do vehicle prep. We went up to work on the RV with his dad a few weeks ago. The main thing they got squared away was the towing. He got a chance to practice driving around with the Jeep in tow. He said it doesn't even feel like you are pulling anything. We still need to get an axillary braking system and come up with a way to protect the front of each vehicle from rocks and debris. We will have some drives on gravel, so we risk cracking windshields and lights.
We made reservations at a nearby campground for Memorial Day weekend. We figure this will be a good chance to get a feel for life in an RV and work through any issues we might have. The campground is just beyond the city limits, so we will be close enough to run to a store or home if we need anything. We will probably camp at least one other night before we leave. I am thinking we need to try a Walmart parking lot. Probably not the quietest place, but it would give us a chance to practice camping without any facilities. I am sure there will be quite a few nights without any services on the trip.
I've felt a HUGE weight lifted off my shoulders with the itinerary figured out, so I have turned my attention to this blog. I had a cute idea to have a pic of us coming out of the RV waving, but I decided to have it moving instead. I'll be tweaking the design and might make changes before we leave.
I've started purchasing things for the trip. I figure if I buy things little by little then things might not feel so overwhelming at the end. I know we have a lot of storage in the RV, but I will have a better idea when we bring it down in a few weeks. I plan on bringing most of our (non)perishable food with us and precooking several meals and freezing them. I saw a tip at a forum that said to freeze them flat and then line them up like a bookshelf in the freezer. Not sure how long things will stay good, so I will wait til a little closer to the trip to start cooking.
Eric continues to do vehicle prep. We went up to work on the RV with his dad a few weeks ago. The main thing they got squared away was the towing. He got a chance to practice driving around with the Jeep in tow. He said it doesn't even feel like you are pulling anything. We still need to get an axillary braking system and come up with a way to protect the front of each vehicle from rocks and debris. We will have some drives on gravel, so we risk cracking windshields and lights.
We made reservations at a nearby campground for Memorial Day weekend. We figure this will be a good chance to get a feel for life in an RV and work through any issues we might have. The campground is just beyond the city limits, so we will be close enough to run to a store or home if we need anything. We will probably camp at least one other night before we leave. I am thinking we need to try a Walmart parking lot. Probably not the quietest place, but it would give us a chance to practice camping without any facilities. I am sure there will be quite a few nights without any services on the trip.
4/15/10
Mid-April Update
Things are cruising along. Eric has been doing lots of prepping and planning. The trip is just over 2 months away and this is what has been accomplished~
- RV fixes: The hydraulic jacks & the fridge have been fixed. The RV dealer told us that we would need a new fridge $1500 + installation, but Eric did some research and found the part we need online for $500 and his dad got it installed. He & a neighbor friend also fixed some other little things on it.
- This weekend: Eric is going up to work on the RV with his dad. They will be installing seat belts on the sofa, bolting the sofa in place, installing the CB and new back up monitor (courtesy of our BIL), and getting the towing/hitch stuff in place.
- Jeep: Eric has been getting his Jeep ready to go. He finished his roof rack and painted it, he has a working CB, and has been looking over the towing.
- Eric has mapped out our drive up. I need to now find places for us to stay and decide if we are just going to show up or make reservations. The only time I am concerned about reservations on the trip is around 4th of July. I am thinking we will be near Anchorage at that point.
- We are starting to make our pack lists and I am buying a few things each time I go to the store.
3/24/10
Spring Update
It's been over 3 months since I've posted here. The trip got put on the back burner for a while as it was winter and it seemed to far away. All of a sudden we are under 3 months away from the trip and it doesn't seem like enough time. LOL!
This is what has been accomplished recently~
Upcoming plans will include finishing mapping out the trip and making reservations, making pack lists, and of course giving this blog a new look!
This is what has been accomplished recently~
- I have secured boarding for Cooper while we are gone. He will be staying with our groomer, who will incorporate him in with her dogs. He will learn so much as he lives in her house and with other dogs. Plus he will see dogs come and go for grooming as she runs her biz our of her garage. This is a HUGE concern of ours and is now taken care of. We are not worried about how he will do while we are gone at all!
- We got our 2010 Milepost magazine. The Milepost is The Bible of North Country Travel. We were borrowing the 2009 version from some friends, but this is nice to have our own to mark in. We've also started a 5 subject notebook that we will be using to keep organized.
- Eric has started mapping out our travel. We will be leaving on June 20th and need to return by July 25th.
- We got our passports renewed today. We also applied for Dori's US passport. They should arrive in about 4 weeks.
Upcoming plans will include finishing mapping out the trip and making reservations, making pack lists, and of course giving this blog a new look!
12/12/09
Updated Plans
Gosh...it's been a while since I posted. Let me catch you up...
First off, after calculating the price we have decided that we will not be going on the Alaska Marine Highway at all. It is going to cost us roughly $8000. YES~ $8K! That is just too much!! I was bummed at first, but now I am ok with it. There is still so much to see and do.
We've also started to figure out what we are going to see. We went over to Connie & Kent's a few weeks ago and spent several hours discussing AK with them. Kent has worked up at Denali NP the past several summers and Connie (who retired in the spring) joined him this year. They had a lot of great tips and suggestions for us. I hope to get together and talk with them again as we basically just covered the first half of the trip with them. One of the best things they told us is to purchase a booked called The Milepost. The Milepost is a mile by mile guide of Alaska, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and British Columbia. It a very thick guidebook, but it covers EVERYTHING! They publish it each year, so we will order ours when the 2010 edition comes out in March. C&K did pass on several guide magazines that they've received in the mail, which have a lot of info also. Eric just finished up his last final yesterday and plans on using the time between semesters to do lots of research on AK and map out the whole trip.
Last week we sold 2 of our vehicles~ the Porsche and the little red pick-up. It's so nice to have our driveway open. Eric's parking the Jeep in the garage. He's also doing lots of work on the Jeep...routine maintenance and some other stuff. He recently purchased the a tow hitch so that we can tow the Jeep behind the RV. So we have officially decided that the Jeep will go along with us. We also purchased a kewl bikerack off Craig's List that hooks between the hitch & the RV. We need to gather some rugged bikes for all of us to take with us. I'll be keeping my eye on Craig's List for that. Don't you just love CL? BTW~ the funds from the sale of the 2 vehicles will used to get braces for Jake.
First off, after calculating the price we have decided that we will not be going on the Alaska Marine Highway at all. It is going to cost us roughly $8000. YES~ $8K! That is just too much!! I was bummed at first, but now I am ok with it. There is still so much to see and do.
We've also started to figure out what we are going to see. We went over to Connie & Kent's a few weeks ago and spent several hours discussing AK with them. Kent has worked up at Denali NP the past several summers and Connie (who retired in the spring) joined him this year. They had a lot of great tips and suggestions for us. I hope to get together and talk with them again as we basically just covered the first half of the trip with them. One of the best things they told us is to purchase a booked called The Milepost. The Milepost is a mile by mile guide of Alaska, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and British Columbia. It a very thick guidebook, but it covers EVERYTHING! They publish it each year, so we will order ours when the 2010 edition comes out in March. C&K did pass on several guide magazines that they've received in the mail, which have a lot of info also. Eric just finished up his last final yesterday and plans on using the time between semesters to do lots of research on AK and map out the whole trip.
Last week we sold 2 of our vehicles~ the Porsche and the little red pick-up. It's so nice to have our driveway open. Eric's parking the Jeep in the garage. He's also doing lots of work on the Jeep...routine maintenance and some other stuff. He recently purchased the a tow hitch so that we can tow the Jeep behind the RV. So we have officially decided that the Jeep will go along with us. We also purchased a kewl bikerack off Craig's List that hooks between the hitch & the RV. We need to gather some rugged bikes for all of us to take with us. I'll be keeping my eye on Craig's List for that. Don't you just love CL? BTW~ the funds from the sale of the 2 vehicles will used to get braces for Jake.
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