Last spring when we travelled home from the Rio Grande
Valley, COVID19 was just beginning to rear its ugly head. I remember saying in
March when this all started that I was confident things would be on the
downhill slide by the time we left in early April. Well, we all know how that
went. I know everyone is tired of talking about it, but one must admit, this
has been a game changer for everyone. None of us is living our lives in the
same way we were this time last year. I know people who have come off the road because
of this and two brave souls who started this lifestyle in the middle of it.
Champ Volunteered at our regular summer gig at Saylorville
and once things were underway it was a normal summer work camping wise. Full campgrounds,
a couple of frisky thunderstorms and of course the historic Derecho. The only
thing that differentiated the rest of the season was severe drought and low
lake levels as apposed to the historic flooding of the past two summer seasons.
We left Iowa on Monday having not seen several people we would normally spend
time with during the summer. It felt weird to think it will be 2 years since we
have seen some including our oldest grandson and his family, assuming we see
them next spring when we return home. That was the hardest part.
Along the way we accepted and then withdrew ourselves from a
winter gig at a big resort in Mesa, AZ. I’m starting to think we will never get
to Arizona but am determined to make it happen next winter. This year is
totally on me. I started having doubts about being in a big metropolitan area
and did what I normally do. I looked for something cozy and familiar. That feeling came in the form of booking our
winter at Wilderness Lakes RV resort a few miles out of the little town of Mathis,
Texas where we spent two good months three years ago.
The trip south was pretty awesome. We travelled four consecutive days with no adverse weather and no incidents. That almost never happens. Me purchasing my motorcycle this summer set a chain of events in motion. We traded my Equinox for the pickup with the intent of hauling both bikes in the bed. Thanks to the talents of Champ and his son Randy, plus Randy’s welder and plasma cutter the boys were able to do the fabrication necessary to adapt the tow plate from the Equinox to fit the Dodge pickup we bought. Champ installed the hardware in the bed of the truck to tie down the two motorcycles and off we went.
We pulled out of Iowa towing about a ton more than we have
in the past. I am happy to report that yes, you can flat tow a ½ ton pickup
with 1100 pounds of motorcycles strapped into the bed with a gas powered
motorhome. No problem. Mountains might be an issue at some point, but we
decided if that poses a challenge, we’ll just unhook the truck and drive them separately
through the mountains.
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| All loaded up and ready to roll |
The trip was quick and to the point. Even though we didn’t
dawdle and sight see we did get to spend a wonderful evening with my cousins in
Kansas and caught up with one of our adult grandsons in OKC who was there with
the tree company he works for cleaning up the devastation from an ice storm the
previous week at a golf course in the area.
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| A fun welcome at my cousin's home in Kansas |
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| Boondocking on our first night |
The election debacle rages on, COVID is about the same here
as it is at home. But at the end of the day we are in our winter spot. The new swimsuit
I ordered online was waiting for me when I arrived today. The pool is open and afternoon
highs are in the 90’s. Trails for
walking wind through the woods that surround the park, and the winter will
unfold into a new kind of snowbird reality. The next couple of
days will be a blur of setting up our winter nest and meeting our new neighbors.
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| All landing gear down in Texas |
Until Next Time…
