Travel Day to Wilsonville, Oregon

Once again we rolled out of our campsite at 7:49 a.m.  Maybe someday we’ll learn to sleep in, but that hasn’t happened yet. We had a long day ahead of us and we were eager to get on the road.

My sore back was much better and I was determined to keep it that way. First, I began using a back support in my chair, and second, we made more rest stops so I could walk and stretch. That seemed to do the trick, because I haven’t suffered anymore back pain.

At our first rest stop, I had to do a bit of parallel parking. I had a wide berth, but if I had known it was not a pull-thru configuration, I probably would have avoided it. Live and learn.

Even though we didn’t need to, we decided to stop and fill up. We did it for the practice more than anything, plus it counted as a rest stop.

The first time we filled up a few days earlier, it was a scheduled stop that we had thoroughly discussed with Laurie and Odel, right down to the number of gallons we would probably need.  Steven went inside he told the gal he wanted 60 gallons of diesel, but when he returned, he informed her it took only 48 gallons to fill up. A woman standing at the counter said, “How did you miscalculate that so badly?” He replied, “We’re newbies and this is our maiden voyage.” She squealed. Yes, actually squealed. She said she and her husband sold their house five years ago to go fulltiming and they have never looked back. She was very excited for us.

When we decided to fill up again – unscheduled!! – we pulled into the station and followed the big trucks. Steven went inside to pay first, and after some discussion, the gal behind the counter got out her calculator and suggested $150. Steven said no, he thought $135 would do it. The total came to $135.38. Even the truckers were impressed. It was only after we pulled out that we saw the sign pointing to the RV section. We had gone to the trucker section. If I had seen that sign first, I would have been too intimidated to go with the big trucks, but it turned out well, and filling up was zippy fast!

The closer we got to Portland the heavier the traffic became. I have gotten quite comfortable with the driving part, but once I exit the Interstate, I am at the mercy of my navigator and his reliance on turn-by-turn iPhone navigation. As I have said, Steven is doing a really good job on this trip. He’s up early looking at maps and Google Earth and trying to give me the information I need. Still, the devil is in the details, and he is recognizing there is a distinct difference between navigating for an RV versus a car. There is more work to be done.

We nonetheless made it safely to the Pheasant Ridge RV Resort and were soon settled into our site. When we made all of our reservations, we made sure to let everyone know that we are inexperienced RVers arriving in a big ass rig, and if they valued their signs and landscaping, they should put us in the least challenging site available. The management at Pheasant Ridge did not get the memo. We got in just fine, but I only had two days to figure out my exit plan.

Our friends Glenn and Kris arrived just after dinner for a tour of Scoopy and some wine. I had not seen them since our cruise to Alaska last summer and it was great to catch up.

For our rest day in Wilsonville, the boys planned an impromptu movie-making day while Kris and I planned some retail therapy. When we arrived earlier we couldn’t help but notice the Costco, Target, Starbucks and a host of other retailers just across the street from our campground. While they may be close and easy to get to, it’s tough to carry things back. Thank goodness for friends with cars.

UP NEXT: Home decorating and a murder!

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