Catching up and goodbye Beast

FOUR months since my last post which is a new record.  Sometimes a person is just not feeling it and distractions are many.  As time goes by and more and more things go unrecorded, it becomes a bit daunting to catch up.

But since I rule this blog, I can be brief and leap over the past four months, as little or as much as I want.

First of all, you may have noticed that the title no longer says "on Wheels"....... this is because the wheels .... AKA "The Beast" is  <<SOLD>>  As of six days ago.  Husband and I are still celebrating.

Backing it out of the driveway for the last time.

Wait, you may say.  Didn't I love The Beast?

Yes.  I did.

Then I didn't.

The Beast served its purpose for over two years, keeping us adequately sheltered.  I thoroughly enjoyed the escape from yard work and from multiple rooms that were seldom occupied except by dust mites who had to be evicted regularly.  And as I have previously said, I hated moving the thing.

Motorhomes are large investments .... even 12 year old ones like ours.  In fact I shouldn't call it an "investment" because the longer you own it, like with any vehicle and unlike a house, the more the value goes down.  And repairs can be costly and frequent.  We had to deal with a few of them.  So when you add a worrier (like me) into the mix, the result is not optimum.  I was always afraid it would break down on the side of the road.  Or present us with another leak on a rainy day.  Or that it would age beyond its appeal to any prospective buyer.  Or that it would suddenly demand new tires, shocks, radiator, batteries, a new fridge, AC unit, or what-have-you.

So after a few repairs and much cleaning ....  it sold within a week.  (Happy Dance!)

And we have decided that, for now, our version of camping will be in a tent.  In fact, just last month, we were in our little backpacking tent in a campground in southern Colorado .... the only tent-dwellers amongst many RVs, and we no longer envied the comfort of those big rigs with their kitchens, bathrooms, and flat screen TVs.  We were traveling minimalist-style on our motorcycle with no concerns of maneuvering in and out of our site, if our slides would retract in the morning, or if we'd be able to find a gas station we can fit into the next day.  

(Note:  Husband is not a worrier (like me) which is good, because if he was, we'd probably never venture out, take a risk, or do much of anything.  He provides the big ideas and optimism, and I provide the angst to keep us somewhat grounded.  It's called balance.)

Therefore, with that, another chapter in our life is now closed.


So ....... over the last four months, we have done TWO motorcycle trips.  The first was a sequel of last year with our great motor-biking friends.  We traveled into Idaho -- the Boise area where the guys could fish, up near Sun Valley where the guys could fish, then over to Rexburg where the guys could fish.  I got to see my delightful sis and some cousins.  Total score.  (Sadly we don't have many pictures.  We were all too busy having fun.)

All the bikes in our garage the night before the trip.  They all spent the first night with us, three days after we moved into the house.  (Thanks, Julie.  I took this from your Facebook pics.)

Husband on the Big Wood River, Idaho.

Awesome sister and cousins.

In August, we introduced our new home to our progeny (kids and grands) at our annual reunion and plan on hosting many more.

AND, to check another biggie off our list, we finished moving ALL OUR STUFF.

AND THEN Husband backpacked 85 miles (one week) on the Pacific Crest Trail with friend, Steve, who was hiking the entire Oregon portion.

Alas, I did not think to take an "after" shot when I picked him up a week later.

Then our second motorcycle trip we went alone, first by hauling our motorcycle in our little utility trailer to Utah where we visited some awesome relatives,

then we left the car and trailer

and rode our motorcycle into Colorado for nine days, camping and motel-ing along the way.  We saw Mesa Verde again ....

I went through there too.  It was the only way out.

And up this.

Cliff Palace in Mesa Verde

..... the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, the "million dollar highway" and the majestic Rockies with their splashes of golden aspens among the evergreens.  (I cannot EXPRESS how gorgeous those mountains are!!  Oh, poor Oregon .... you've been bested by Maine and now by Colorado too.)  We rode in elevations well above our own 11,000+ ft. high Mt. Hood.  

Colorado National Monument

We reconnected with more awesome family and then to our beloved southern Utah .... Arches National Park (for the umpteenth time), our fave Moab campground, and more.  Over 1800 fantastic miles on the bike

On the Home Front, we finished laying gazillions of pavers for our driveway.  Plus we watched someone put up the outside portion of Husband's new shop.  (Husband will finish the interior, as you may have guessed.)

There's a cement floor in it now.

The sand pile has shrunk considerably.

Landscaping is still on The List.  It WILL be minimal.

In spite of a warm fall, we're starting to use our wood stove, which I love.

And ..... we got a new puppy.  (I know, I know.)

Winnie The Poop

That's all.

For now.