Sept 14 - 19 Getting ready to leave and party time!

Sep 14
It's exciting and a little scary but we are doing the final organize and cleanup at Pineridge before we leave for the winter. Certainly normal feelings I think. Looking forward to traveling though. We have worked hard to get here. 
Leslie worked on some yard stuff, pulling solar lights etc. I worked on garage and shed and finished  putting stuff in the storage in the trailer for the road. It took most of the day and then we went inside to pack for overnight in Edmonton tomorrow. 
Sep 15
We woke up and outside it is snowing! Big wet flakes coming down hard. Yep, it's time to head south alright. We are driving to Edmonton today to visit some people and say "see ya later" and then spend the night at Ryan's and maybe a few drinks and games.

Just lovely !!

First stop today is Leslie's sister Lorin's house. Smoky is settling in real well there. Actually better than well. He is super happy. He has heated cat beds, great food and he's sporting a new haircut. It's getting better for Lorin too because her cat Gizmo and Smoky are getting along so much better. She just wishes Smoky would sleep all night in the house lol. She gets woken up every night and he wants out for a bit but then scratches to get back in! Thank you Lorin :) We had a nice visit with Lorin and gave her big hugs to say good by. We might see her down south around Christmas. We'll see how that goes. Our bad. No pictures at Lorins.
Next stop is Howard and Chris Faust house. If you remember they live in Edmonton but have a cottage in Bonnyville and that's where we became friends.

Howard, Leslie & Chris

We stayed for a little while and had a real nice chat. Hope you two have a nice warm winter. Now that Howard is feeling better I'm sure he will be out this winter clearing snow for the older folks!! He got a letter from city council a couple years ago for clearing snow on his block with his snowblower. He's a "snow angel" haha. He's no angel, right Chris? Also their daughter Kerry stopped by with their grand daughter Natasha from BC. Real nice to see them too. Tasha is full grown now and moving into the working world. Also while we we there, Margaret must have twisted wrong earlier in the day and had hurt her back. Leslie mentioned in passing that we had anti-inflammatory pills in the rig but that is an hour away. One call to Kerry and she came back to Howard's and gave us a pain pill from her dogs supply! Thanks Kerry! Margaret felt better fairly quickly. So awesome of her.Again some hugs and handshakes and we were off to Ryan's.  See you guys in the spring!

We had a nice supper at Ryan's and got out a new pack of cards for Cards Against Humanity. For those that haven't played the game let's just say it's not for younger kids. Definitely is rated R but I actually like playing it. It's a game you can play and still have great conversations and tons of laughs.

Me, Sam, Ashtyn, Ryan & Jess (Leslie's niece)

Leslie & Taco, Margaret (pain meds) Sam & Kirby

We played the game way past our bedtime and had a few drinks. Of course we added a couple shots of Jameson just for fun. I blame Sam for that lol. Actually we were fairly well behaved. I still have that half marathon coming up and getting way out of hand is not on the training plan. Big hugs to Jess when she was ready to go home but we'll see everyone else in the morning.

Sep 16

We had agreed to meet at XIX (19) a restaurant in southwest Edmonton. It's a nice place and they have a really good Sunday brunch menu. The cinnamon bun Ryan ordered was enough for all of us to enjoy and, OMG, was it good! We all had a real good breakfast and were ready to get going with our day. 

Ryan, Leslie, me and Sam

Outside the restaurant it was time to say good by to the kids and well that went good, sort of. Let's just say Leslie is really going to miss her kids. So with a few tears and big hugs and handshakes we said so long for winter. Miss you guys, maybe see you down south at some point this winter...hint, hint.

Leslie and I went to Princess Auto for some stuff and then for groceries in Spruce Grove. Back at the rig Leslie unpacked the groceries and I drove to Tomahawk for propane. It's been below freezing at night and we're using a 30 pound bottle every 4-5 days. 

Sep17

I tried to switch to the bike rack that we got from Barry & Ailsa but the extension I bought is too long and they don't have a shorter one. Last minute changes not working. I switched back to our old one for this winter and I'll get the better one mounted in spring. Leslie is doing a kitchen day today. She is making pasta sauce for the Ultra power pasta in Golden and a batch of split pea & ham soup in the Instant Pot.

2 pots of sauce, spicy sausage and regular

We needed to drop a box of stuff at Lorin's house that we forgot before so I combined that with a second trip to Princess Auto to return the extension. It's still a mix of rain and snow outside so it's a good day for a drive. We enjoyed a really good bowl of soup and toast for supper and relaxed.

Sep 18

Finally it's not snowing and there is actually a little sunshine! We started out with taking Margaret for a nice long walk around PGR. It's almost 4k for a round trip. We all needed a good walk after all the snow and being inside quite a bit.

Actual sunshine!

Back at the prep! Leslie is doing laundry and cleaning and I am taking the Mustang to the car wash in Wabuman. Also I'm taking the bottles back, need to find the bottle depot in Wabuman?? Got that done and back to PGR to vacuum and clean the interior of the car. Out with the floor jack and the car on blocks and add the cover.

Ready for a sleep lol.

We teamed up to cover the picnic table and a couple more things but we think we're ready. Phew, let's have beverage and relax for our last night shall we?

Not a chance it will blow off!

Sep 19

We both woke up a little early. We're excited to get started on this adventure we have chosen. So we had a nice breakfast and vacuumed, washed floors in the rig. I flushed the black tank and shut off all the breakers at our site. Bring in the slides for the last time in PGR this year. Back in and hook up and we can hit the road!!

Slides in and ready!

We plan to drive to Lake Louise in Banff National Park and stay there for one night. It's only about a 4 hour trip and will leave us about an hour to Golden on Thursday. It's a beautiful sunny day, great for traveling in the fall colours. We chose highway 22 south to highway 11, west to 93 and south again to Trans Canada #1. Should be spectacular! Hope the pics do it justice.

Happy travellers.

Looking south on 22

Jackfish Lake

West on 11 towards the Rockies, fresh snow!

Hwy 93 traffic stop!

Glacier water on hwy 93 what a day!

We pulled into the Park campground and waited in line to get a site. September 19 and it's lined up for spots, I didn't think it would be?

When we got to the window the park ranger informed us that they have no potable water but the dump station works. It seems their pipes froze with the sudden cold snap so they shut off the water. Good thing we have some water in the tank for tonight! Oh and they just found out that the power will be shut off from 5:30 to 7:30 tonight. That's great! What's next?? You are sending someone out to take away my beer? lol. We were in town when the power went out but the liquor store let us pay cash for a bottle of wine. So many people in town and the campground was almost full. WTH?? We retreated to the rig and took Margaret for a great walk around the park then just relaxed with a glass of wine and supper.

Omg she stuck her tongue in your mouth!

First day on the road and it's pretty good. We're off to Golden BC tomorrow and meeting up with Ailsa & Barry and more of Ailsa's family for a fantastic weekend at the Golden Ultra! My first attempt at a trail half marathon! They increased the distance to 23 km's this year from 20, isn't that just great. Next post.