Final Departure

We spent our last evening in Scoopy at Blue Sky RV Park in Preston, WA with a visit from the kids and my Mom, who arrived for a potluck dinner so we could eat up all our leftover food. There wasn’t much, but we managed to pull together enough for everyone.

They also brought a cake so we could celebrate Zoe’s 21st birthday, though she couldn’t get it together to bring all the makings for margaritas. I wanted to be a cool Mom and make my almost-21-year-old an alcoholic drink, but if she wasn’t all that interested, oh well. Clearly, I have done my job well.  🙂

We envisioned that upon their arrival the kids would root around, ask interesting questions and oooh and ahhh over Scoopy . And while they definitely thought she was cool, it took about two seconds before the entire brood declared their imminent starvation and the task of putting dinner on the table was underway. This was a great reminder of why we never wanted to go fulltiming with kids. They are just too darn demanding!

After a couple of hours, we kicked them out, because they were perfectly comfortable just sitting around. We had work to do to prepare Scoopy for storage. That was our excuse, anyway. The truth is that we were terribly depressed that our adventure was coming to an end and we did not want to drink heavily in front of the kids.

Steven did get a lovely family photo in Scoopy, unfortunately, something terrible happened (he deleted it) so you will have to settle for an actual reenactment.

The next morning, we were ready to go. Mom and Zac were to arrive at 10:00 a.m. and we planned our departure a half an hour later. The plan was to wait for them so they could watch us prepare for departure (so they could see all the steps involved and the slides move inside, etc.) and then follow us out to our storage facility so we’d have a ride home. But, ours is not the most dependable brood on the planet, so we gave them a call just after 10:15 a.m. Zac was still eating his breakfast, a ritual that cannot be interrupted or rushed. We finally said, screw it, and began bringing in the slides. By the time they arrived, all we had to do was transfer our stuff from Scoopy to Ace Yukon and we were off!

We both feel that our trip turned out even better than we ever expected. Sure, we had a few challenges, but in the end, it really went perfectly. Still, from day one, there was one little thing looming over me, and this was the day to tackle it. Parking Scoopy in her itty bitty storage slot.

Scoopy’s spot is number 304, fourth from the end. The slots are ten feet wide and forty feet long. A tight squeeze made even tighter by the fact that in each little section, there are four slots separated by some serious poles on each side, the bane of my RV existence. Our set of poles are on the right, and there are no poles to the left, only another rig. I have strategically pondered this scenario over and over for days.

I desperately wanted to back Scoopy into her slot. This would not only protect her diesel engine from the elements, but it would also allow her to face forward and see all the goings on around the storage facility. I know. She can’t really see, but in my heart she can, and I did not want her staring at the butt of another rig. Ewww. Also in my heart, I knew it would be a miracle if I actually could back her in, so I was fully prepared to drive in front first.

When we arrived, we were overjoyed to see that the slot in front of Scoopy’s was empty! All I had to do was drive around to the other side and drive right in! OMG! This was cause for much celebration, but it was short-lived. I soon found out that being forth from the end really didn’t give me enough room to make a turn wide enough to drive right in. That was a pipe dream. Still, I felt this was our best approach. Steven got out and using his still iffy hand signals, he began guiding me in. About 20 feet behind him, my Mom, using her own special brand of iffy hand signals AND mouth gestures and distortions, was also guiding me in. I so wish I had stopped to get a picture of the two of them, because you would clearly be able to see the source of my confusion.

In the end, I pretty much ignored both of them. I knew exactly what was behind me, to the right of me, and to the left of me. I moved forward, then backed up to reposition, and did it all over and over in what was about a 10-point turn until I knew I had cleared the poles, and then I drove her right in. She looks amazing in her slot. Not bad, if I say so myself!

Compared to the day we flew to Sacramento, we have learned more than I could ever have imagined. We had an amazing trip.

Now don’t go anywhere because we have another trip coming up soon and we’ll be writing more about our brilliant adventures in Scoopy!

UP NEXT: Steven’s Top Ten List.

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