DESTINATION/Coeur d'Alene, Idaho to Kelowna, BC

Start   42,031   8:15 am
End    42,496   6:30 pm

Total   465 kms  / 290 miles

Our final day on the road was good travelling. We came in contact with a few rain showers but for most of the day it was fine. The temps were hovering around 15c. The traffice was relatively light.

We took our first break at MacD's in Deer Park, Washington and later had a really delicious lunch at Omega II in Grand Forks, BC.






It was great to see the Canadian flag again at the border crossing. It was hard to believe that we had actually made it to home turf.

The route onward to Kelowna on Hwy 33 was a very winding road but there were no deep canyons visable from the road. So except for some nervousness on hair pin curves I felt great. A very different mountain drive than I have experienced in the past. HP said that he was fine with it too. It is a route he has travelled many times before so he felt comfortable driving.

Just past Big White we stopped to visit HP's friends S&B. They were packing up for a camping trip to the Kettle Valley. They delayed their trip to spend some time with us. S made us an excellent supper of salad,vege, and BBQ. I was very impressed with her efficientcy with the preparations and the food was so good. It was really nice to be greeted with such friendship and hospitality.

We then travelled on into Kelowna where we stopped at Canadian Tire and bought some air mattresses and a pump. Soon after we were arriving a HP's new front door. Again it seemed unreal that we had finally made our destination. Very tired but in good shape and happy.

The final stats for our trip are:

Start   35,954  kms     Kingston, Nova Scotia

End    42,496  kms     Kelowna, British Columbia

Total   6,542 kms / 4,089 miles

Our thanks to everyone for your support, comments and well wishes along the way :-)

AMEN to that :-)

On The Road

We are currently on HWY 395 North on our way to Colville. stopped at MacD for our first on the road coffee. Just wanted to let everyone know that we won't have Internet until we get to Kelowna and can use the WIFI at the library until HP gets hooked up at home. So you may not here from us tonight. It was raining when we started but all is stopped now. It's a two way highway so HP will have a bit more work driving and then there are the mountains!!!! Talk to you when we can,,, Thanks for following

Columbus, Montana to Coeur d'Alene,Idaho

Start  41,268  km   9:30 am
End   42,031  km   6:00 pm

Total  763  km   477 miles


Last night we decided to go to the Casino and spent 2 hours losing $20 each. It was fun and we laughed a lot at our inexperience at the slots
 :-)












Today was our longest travel day to date. We stopped in Bozeman for a coffee break, in Missoula, Montana for lunch, then all the way to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The scenery was beautiful on this drive as we were in the mountains part of the time and in very lush valleys at others. It rained some in a few places but not heavily. The temps were cool from 9c to a  high of 15c. Most people were dressed more warmly than we are.





The road was very winding in places and the hills down were as steep as the hills up. Our highest elevation of the day was 4,760 feet. Anyone who knows me will know that I had some nervous moments. I asked HP to drive at 70 mph because I found that less hairy and he very kindly oblidged. There was quite a lot of road work happening too which slowed us down in places.









I didn't see any antilope today but there were horses with fouls and herds of Red Angus this time. Also some sheep. No pictures of these critters today.








As I write this we are very happy to be settled in a very nice Best Western and looking forward to a good rest.

Our goal for tomorrow is to travel as far into Canada as we can. We are only 150 miles from the border here so that will be "doable" for sure. Just how far we will see.

Wish us luck with that,,,,,

Talk to you tomorrow evening,,,

Wheatland, Wyoming to Columbus, Montana

Start   40,578  km   7:30 am
End    41,269  km   4:00 pm

Total  691  km /  431 miles

HP was very sick during the night so we had some concerns about how this day would turn out. We left the motel without having breakfast and waited for a couple of hours before stopping. When HP was feeling a bit better  we stopped at I-Hop in Evansville, near Casper, and had a nice breakfast. Then we drove on to Sheridan where we had a snack and coffee at MacD and then on to here - Columbus, Montana.

We are seeing lots of Casinos - tempting for me but not for HP :-)

The goal today was for Billings, Montana so we made that and a little bit more.



The country was beautiful today and unusual even though it was miles and miles of rolling hills. The wind was very strong and it was really cool this morning (9c) and for the rest of the day. The highest the temp reached was 21c and is now back down again to about 15c. Everyone we saw was wearing jackets.  Traffice was relatively light.







The goal for pictures was to get some of the elk or antelope and horses. We saw quite a few antelope but not fast enough for a picture. They are really beautiful creatures. We saw some singles and a couple of groups. There were lots of horses too and I did manage to get one picture of those.







We can now see the mountains from some viewpoints now so that tells us we are getting closer to home.
Tomorrow is closing for the homestead sale so HP is naturally anxious for that to be completed. Then everything from the past will be settled and he will be ready for his new home.








Our goal for tomorrow is to reach the border of Idaho. (Mullen, Idaho)

Wish us luck with that,,,,

Talk to you tomorrow evening,,,,,

Grand Island, Nebraska to Wheatland, Wyoming

Start  39,877   9 am
End   40,578   5 pm

Total   701 km    :-)

A good travel day today. The temps started out at 15c and ended up at 23c. This made it nice and comfortable. Even with the A/C you notice the temperatures and when they change.



We stopped in N. Platte for coffee and in Sidney for lunch. We also stopped in Chugwater for gas. We noticed that we have bugs on the car for the first time this trip. That will probably continue for awhile.

 

Today there were lots of rolling hills, mesas and cattle; black angus mostly. I tried to get a good picture of a herd but at 75 mph it was a daunting task. I didn't succeed the way I wanted to :-(

The mesas are always fascinating to see. It would be interesting to read up on how they were formed.

After Cheyenne we got some glimpses of the mountains when we were at higher levels on the road. That will be our experience beginning the day after tomorrow. It will be neat seeing them getting closer and closer.

 
There was a lot of cross wind over the barren lands which made it difficult driving for HP at times. As usual though, he had the goods to make it :-)

Our goal for tomorrow is Billings, Montana,

Wish us luck with that,,,,

See you tomorrow evening.

Iowa City. Iowa to Grand Island, Nebraska

Start   39,242  km   8:00 am
End    39,877  km   4:30 pm

Total  635 km



Today was one of our best drives, or so I thought anyway. After having our first coffee in De Soto, Iowa, we drove on to Council Bluffs for lunch. In between there were miles of rolling hills, mostly farmland and the wind mills. We had a CD playing, the temperature was a little lower than yesterday, and the traffic was lower because it was Memorial Day.



Also while we were in Council Bluffs we went shopping for the first time. There was a huge mall there and some of the stores were open. I bought a new casual jacket from a discount store. HP couldn't find the kind of shirt he wanted so he came away empty handed. Even with stopping to shop a bit we still made our mileage quota for the day.
From Council Bluffs we drove into Nebraska and eventually arrived here at Grand Island and the Best Western for the night.


The windmills are part of what is called the Adair Wind Project. We put a short video of them on YouTube.

Sadly we saw a lot of deer carcasses on the road today. There are warnings all along the highway. I imagine the accidents happened in the early morning or at dusk last night.

On the pleasant side there were Black Angus cattle in the fields with lots of tiny babies.




Tomorrow HP plans to get to Cheyenne, Wyoming and perhaps further.

Wish us luck,,,




See you tomorrow evening,,,

Freemont, Indiana to Iowa City, Iowa

Start    38,648  km  8:00  am
End     39,242  km  3:30  pm

Total  594 km

Last evening we met a truck driver when I was doing the laundry. We had a conversation about our travels and he made a suggestion that we should alter our route a little bit. He said that we should either take 290 and 294 around Chicago or drop down to 80 and miss it altogether. HP  decided the best was to take I-80.



We are so happy that he made that choice. Getting by Chicago was a piece of cake :-) No trauma at all. Good for us. There was also a lot less traffic generally probably because it is Sunday.

It was warm travelling though - 94c all of the day. It made for a bit of testiness on both sides (mostly me) by the end of the day :-)





We stopped for coffee at Mac D's in South Bend and then lunch at Sub Way in a rest centre in Northern Illinois. Our final resting place for today is at the Travelodge here in Iowa City. At Mac D's we sat outside and listened to lots of little birds chirping in the trees. I took a small video which we'll put on YouTube a little later.





We forgot about the time change so we have an extra hour on our hands and plan to use it by going out to a Pizza restaurant that is near the motel.

All and all it was a straight forward day. Some fun and some not so much but all good in the end.

Wish us all good for tomorrow,,,,

Talk to you tomorrow evening,,,

Texting ??????   No ----  just kidding :-)

Neat Windmills along the way

Buffalo, New York to Freemont, Indiana

Start   37,974  km        8:00 am
End    38,648  km        5:00 pm

Total   674  km

Another good travelling day. Still pretty warm but not as warm as yesterday.

It took us almost two hours to drive the expressway through Cleveland, Ohio. It was quite an experience with so many cars and so many signs. But we managed to stay on our route without any detours. I really congratulate HP  on having the nerve and stamina to get through it. After Cleveland it was a lot easier going.

We stopped twice along the way for coffee and lunch arriving here at the Holiday Inn Express at 5 pm.




There is this tall grass that grows along the highway and makes a really pretty picture because of its bronze color. We aren't sure what it is. Also I saw some deer along the way too but we went by to quickly to get a picture. They were beautiful too, all smaller ones and no antlers.




Lucky for us there is a quest laundry here. So as I write this the laundry is getting done efficiently :-)



HP studies the map each night to see how far he plans to get the next day. We have Chicago to look forward to tomorrow. I hope we can navigate the "thru fare" as well as we did Cleveland.








Wish us luck with that,,,,

Talk to you tomorrow evening,,,

Haverhill, Massachusetts to Buffalo, New York

Start     37,270  km           8:30 am
End      37,972  km           5:00 pm

Total 702 km













Today was  heavy duty travel day. Lots of kms. Travelling was all on Interstate I-90 toll way.  We stopped for coffee while still in Mass and then for lunch in New York State. This time there was a Burger King in the rest centre.






Lots and lots of people on the road. Temps are ranging around 31c. Thank goodness for air conditioning.














We had a little incident at one of the toll booths. We got stuck between two tractor trailers. All you could see on both sides was wheels. HP and I were a little shook up on that one !!!! He especially of course - being the driver.







The rest of the day went really well and we are now safely lodged at Best Western. A few frustrations getting the WIFI to work but otherwise all is well.

Safe and sound,,,

Talk to you tomorrow evening,,,,

Groveland, Massachusetts

We spent the day today with P, B & L in Groveland. After a wonderful breakfast prepared by P and served by she and L, B took us for a scenic tour of the area.








We travelled along the coastline to Plum Island, Ipswich, Essex and Gloucester, among others. It was a beautiful sunny day and made for a lovely drive.

We returned to a nice dinner prepared by P while we were sight seeing.
























This weekend is Memorial Day weekend in the US. Today we attended one of the advance services. B is a member of the Coast Guard reserve and it was a special day for him. Here you see him looking grand in his uniform. It was a nice ceremony and parts of it brought tears to my eyes. Members from most of the services were there and also a group of boy scouts. One of Groveland's school bands performed a medley of patriotic songs. It all looked grand with the flags flying in the breeze and all the guys in uniform.


After the ceremony we returned to P & B's where there were some sad goodbyes and hopes of other visits sometime in the future.




















B had been coming to meet us at the hotel and leading the way to his place. Tonight we decided that we would be able to find the way back on our own. After a couple of short detours we made it back safely. I was quite proud of us.

Tomorrow we set out again and will be travelling through New York state and perhaps beyond.

We'll see you at the end of that day,,,,,

P & B's beautiful house

Our host & hostess