Off We Go Again

Well here we are, who would have thought that the adventures would continue. The thought bubble was created back in Darwin when we returned to OZ in 2013, if work wasn’t to our liking then we would be off again. No point wasting time when life is so short. Jen’s mum is testament to that, she so sadly passed away in July 2013. An avid blog follower and the prime reason why we started blogging in the first place.

Barb as we remember her

 

After sailing back to Townsville in 2013, some much needed boat work and a 3 month trip up to Lizard Island in 2014 we hauled out in March 2015 and headed south to Airlie Beach in April. The Whitsundays brought back many fond old memories and a chance to catch up with some old friends.

Peninsular Apartments Airlie Beach, one of many projects completed with Watpac




A local of Percy Islands enroute to Sydney, us not him

The plan was to head to Sydney for Xmas/New Year and then East to Vanuatu in 2016. Well, the first part happened and was great but we’ve gone a bit further than Vanuatu. We’re in the US, not by yacht, but by the big windward bird VIRGIN AIRLINES. Dreamweaver has been left behind this time on a mooring at Wangi Bay in Lake Macquarie, covered in bird mesh and forlorn but not forgotten.



New Years Eve 2015 Sydney Harbour

First stop after 13 hours very pleasant flight was LA International, uncomplicated clearance through US Border Patrol, except for 1 officer who thought that since we were intending to purchase an RV and had a 5 year visa we would want to take up residence and get a job, rather than return to OZ. How so not true we informed him.

Sleeping arrangements were pretty tight NYE with 11 aboard, Blakey managed a good night under the saloon table



Next stop was the Econo Lodge in Mesa Arizona after a very crammed domestic flight where you pick your own seat once onboard, a bit like a bus ride, pays so we found, to get at the front of the line. By this time we were so tired we didn’t care if we sat on the wing. We left Sydney at 1000 on Monday 30^th May and arrived in Phoenix at 1400 the same day, 28 hrs squeezed into 4, confused? So were we, and lagged.

Wangi Bay, Dreamweaver's new home for a few months

Sadly Dreamweaver was injured in the recent East Coast Low a week after we left OZ while sitting on her mooring. After surviving the storm conditions with bird netting still in place an idiot on another yacht collided with her after dropping of the public mooring in 60 knots. We now have to deal with sorting out this mess while away. Thankfully there was no hull or rig damage.



Mesa was hot, we had arrived in the middle of a heat wave 45C plus (120F) and this swayed us to keep the hotel room rather than rent a RV for the expected week it would take to sort out the RV purchase and get payment clearance. The next day we met with David from Cruise America the company that we were buying the RV from, we inspected the unit we’d selected from the website a refurbished 2012 model, class C, 25ft motorhome not quite a Berniebus but big enough for us, then went about sorting out the mass of paperwork. David was great he let us use his car to run around town and buy groceries, get a mobile phone provider which worked with our smart phone and set up a US bank account at Wells Fargo Bank (yes the same mob that had the stage coaches in the movies, hang on, they were always getting robbed!!). None of these tasks is simple in the US but we managed reasonably well. The American people we have dealt with have all without exception been fantastic, extremely helpful, polite and friendly, love a joke and go out of their way to help, even to the point of phoning to make sure all is good.





Gee wiz we won't win a photo comp this trip with a camera that takes shots like this. Our new home away from home



In order to save the sales tax on the purchase price of the RV which is about 10% and other additional yearly costs and restrictions in Arizona we set up a Montana Based LLC (Limited Liability Company) which will own the RV, this setup will also limit our financial exposure if involved in serious insurance claims.





Everything in the US is BIG!!





The week progressed slowly as we both began to develop flu symptoms, foreign AC or just the flight across not sure. By Friday morning the transfer had cleared and we arranged comprehensive RV insurance and then took possession, went shopping at Walmart to fitout all necessary living equipment and stock up. Mesa was stinking hot again and the fridge did not handle the heat so we unloaded everything into the hotel fridge/freezer for the night hoping by morning the RV fridge would be cold. Next morning we discovered that the fridge had stopped running and was as hot as Mesa. We tried everything to get it working again but to no avail. We headed back to CA for assistance and graciously they installed a brand new fridge for us but stated it would take 12 hrs to cool down so we decided to stay in the hotel for another night just in case. With time on our hands we went looking for a GPS that would cover the whole Continent and found a Garmin that satisfied the requirements, despite having a stroppy Yankee sheila named Samantha controlling all our movements who only understands a deep American drawl and totally ignores Jen even when she tries REEEAL HAAARD LIIIKE!!!



 



WOW 6 lanes each way and minimum 75 mph speed limits



 

Sunday morning the fridge was cold and still running so we loaded up and grabbed as much from the hotel kitchen as we could. We headed off north looking for a cooler town with some shade. WOW first day on an interstate highway, 4-6 lanes each way, huge semi’s travelling at 75 mph, absolutely mind blowing stuff and all on the wrong side of the road!! and Sam being a real bitch. It takes a long while to get used to driving on the left side of the vehicle. Jen likes it because I often unlock her door first thinking it’s the driver’s door, she doesn’t believe me when I try to pass it off as being down right gentlemanly!!

20ft high cacti just out of Phoenix



First stop Red Rock State Park just south of Sedona, the info centre explained the geological history of the region and how the Colorado Plateau was formed. This plateau was uplifted 70M years ago after 2,000M years of formation building with layer upon layer of sedimentary deposits due to mountains forming and eroding away and sea levels rising and falling. The plateau averages 7,000ft elevation and spans parts of Nth Arizona, Sth Utah, W Colorado and NW New Mexico with many peaks above 14,000ft.

Red Rock Canyon south of Sedona, Arizona

After a very scenic winding road through a canyon we arrived in Flagstaff, a lovely town on the famous Route 66, we found a great free camp site in amongst the pine trees just 3 mile out of town. Average temperature 25C, luverly!! We R&R here for a couple of days to get over the Mesa stresses and get used to living in an RV that doesn’t swing to the breeze, rocks but thankfully doesn’t roll.

And the Americans say venturing out in OZ is dangerous

Life in the RV is similar to the boat, except we have to be more power, fuel and water conscious, we have to carry our waste products instead of dumping at sea, so we have to find a dump station at a servo along the road. The challenge is finding a free one. Fuel prices vary considerably from US$2.10 to US$2.60 per gallon (3.8 litres) and the rig does 9 – 10 mpg about 500 mile for a 58 gal tank. We have a 9 gal propane tank that services the fridge, hot water heater, 3 burner stove top and a furnace (a what???). We also have a 4kw gas (petrol) generator that services an AC, microwave, fridge when not on gas and many power outlets. It hasn’t been used much yet. Similar to the boat we have a shore power connection if and when we ever stay at a park with powered sites. Unlike the boat all these operate automatically with the touch of a couple of switches, on a control monitor. Definitely not a KISS system. Time will tell if we like it.

Now this is the wildlife we expected

Ceee yaaawl nooow, baaack reeeal soooon!!!





Beers and Cheers with a Coors Banquet Beer brewed in Colorado with Rocky Mountain spring water. Not Bad, much better than Bud!!

J&J