New Arrival on the Ranch and Departing!!!

September 2015:

New addition to the ranch our new 10 x 16 barn!!! This will be used for storage and workspace for us. Next year we plan to insulate, put up paneling and some cabinets to make it more useful.

 

Our new barn coming down the road to the ranch.

We had to move the motorhome to the other parking pad to make room.

 

 

 

 

Picking the perfect spot.

 

 

 

All settled and ready for us.

 

 

 

 

 

Lisa putting together our new office chairs.

 

 

Closing up the ranch and heading back to Florida!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final night Sky!!!

One last look back!!!

 

Snow in Nevada Mountains!!!

 

Well we hit Vegas, side trip to LA then I 40 eat till we hit Texas down through Dallas and over to see Joe and Steph then back home, just in time to hop on a cruise ship!!!

And that story is for another blog....

 

 

Alaska!!!

This is from our 2015 adventures :

Alaska

As many of my family and close friends know I suffer from a disorder much like ADHD (Lisa will tell you I have that also) I have HTTF and I know some of you say that is really not a serious condition and to me it is not, however other around me while supportive at times do comment. (Mother In-Law for example) Those of us with HTTF just can’t get a grip on the living day to day in the same ole place for more than a week or so. So with that in mind it had been oh 6 weeks or so since we arrived at Rimrock it was time for a trip so of top Alaska on the Carnival Ledged with stops first in beautiful downtown Wenatchee and then Seattle!!!

Our closest Mall ( if  you can call it a mall)

 

The parking lot at the Wenatchee Airport where we pick up our rental car..

Not driving the Jeep over the mountains to Seattle.

 

 

Pikes Market!!!

 

 

Great boat tour of Seattle Harbor.

 

 

 

 

 

Drinks and dinner at Kell's Pub for my birthday!!!

 

Walking about in Seattle.

 

 

The famous gum wall!!!

 

 

Off to Alaska on the Carnival Legend!!!

 

We loving cruising this will be our 3rd Alaskan cruise. Not our best trip the weather leaving Seattle was great but then we had rain for pretty much the rest of the way. Good thing they have a Casino on board!!!

 

 

Well stocked bar for the week!!!

 

Lisa's at the bar when we were departing.

 

Raining

 

 

Our trip up the mountain, in the rain.

 

driving ATV's

 

Stop at the lodge for lunch

 

At the top looking at the fjord.

 

road less traveled!!!

 

Glacier Bay

 

Glacier Bay

Glacier Bay

 

 

Ketchikan Alaska and seals feasting!!!

 

Plane Landing

 

Downtown next to the ship.

 

 

Vancouver BC!!!

 

Flowers everywhere in Stanley Park

 

Some of the natives

 

and the drunks!!! (LOL she is pretending)

 

the skyline of Vancouver

 

Well that was Alaska not much this time due to rain but we did have fun!!!

Next up!!!

A new arrival at the ranch!!!

 

 

 

First Month of 2015 Rimrock Season.

Heat and Smoke

Well our first month can be summed up in two words, heat and smoke. So we arrived on July 13^th to a pretty empty Rimrock, most folks had evacuated over the weekend due to a fire west of the community. The fire called Douglas County Complex burned over 22000 acres.
(Check the story out here: http://www.king5.com/story/news/local/wildfires/2015/07/11/douglas-county-fires-grow-threaten-homes/30021269/ )

 

Some Pictures from our friend Kevin

 

 

Glad the wind changed and blew it back.

 

The fire was under control and pretty much out but the time were arrived all we got was some smoke and charred views. But we did get some heat yuck!!!

The temps slowly climbed back in to the low 100 levels and hit 107 for a day or two.

 

But our first couple of days we the great weather, sky and sunsets we come here for. Warm days and cool nights.

 

 

Having a Scotch and chillin!

 

 

Watching TV

 

Rainbow??? in the distance.

 

 

 

And of course great sunsets!!!

 

 

And my down home cookin!!!

 

 

Steak and Greens

 

Port Chops, greenbeans and taters

Eggs and corn tortillas

 

 

Chicken, Rice and more!!!

 

The ranch setup

 

 

The hooch!!! (Were my lovely wife does her nine billionth crossword puzzle (I think she is addicted)

 

Water bladder in the jeep

 

The pump

 

You may not know but we do not yet have a well(one day) so we drive to our community club house and pick up water in our 60 gallon water bladder then transfer it via the pump to our RV water tank. We do this 3 times a week. And yes you heard me we live on about 180 gallons of water a week. Navy showers are the standing order in the RV.

 

Propane tank and generator.

 

We run most of the day on solar panels we have 4x100 watt fixed panels and one suitcase 100 watt and a couple of smaller specific use type panels to run lights and stuff. We have 3 battery banks in the shed and the rv coach battery bank so all total we over 1000 amp hours. We also have a 2200 watt pure sinewave inverter, 1x1000 watt square wave and one 400 watt square wave. The 2200 is on the coach and the 1000 is for making coffee in the morning with our Black&Decker one cup coffee pot. The 400 watt is our backup and is used in Mornings when our main power sources are low. We do run the generator for about 2 to 3 hours to recharge if it is not hot. It hot then it run 8 to 10 hours to run the ac in the coach. The generators are both propane and both have run well. The Duromax did need a new voltage regulator this year and thanks to the Generator Guru I got a better one shipped to me at Rimrock.

 

 

My shop

Well I got more tools than I need at the moment, we are taking inventory when we leave so I don't bring my entire garage with me next year.

 

 

But warm days and cool nights left us and on came heat and smoke!!!

 

We hit 104 and 103 in back to back days and again the following week, good thing for us I got the Duromax Generator fixed and we stayed in with AC on. Ran that generator for 12 hours one day and it did just fine. We also hit the pool and just took it easy. Most of our weeks have been a day or two of heat, warm and then cool but always the smoke.

 

 

Smoke from Lake Chelan Fires

 

 

Sunrise in the smokey haze.

 

Cant see more than 1/2 half mile.

 

 

My buddy Pâté trying to stay cool in the heat!!!

 

Pretty sunset made by the smoke.

 

Well that was pretty much life for the first month!!!

 

The second month coming soon!!!