06-15OCT11 - Various WA, OR, UT, NM, TX & LA

We departed Monroe on Thursday, 06OCT, & stopped in Leavenworth, WA, for lunch with Dan’s cousin Sheila. Since we hadn’t been able to get together during the summer, we made a lunch date on our drive east & south. Although it wasn’t the same as spending a couple of days together like we have in the past, it was an excellent time together. Next year we need to try harder to spend a couple of days in Leavenworth.

http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2010/08/01-07aug10-various-wa-if-its-tuesday-it.html

We then departed Leavenworth for cousin Steve & Bonnie’s in Kittitas, WA. Friday was spent on last minute errands, RV maintenance, & an oil change on the TOAD. Later that afternoon a “successful” hunter brought by an elk he had shot to be butchered. We know elk are large animals; but only when we saw the carcass being moved around on the end of a tractor, did we realize how really big they are! Meanwhile Dan & Steve were “co-cooking” BBQ ribs for dinner. They were working as a team because Dan had supplied & marinated the ribs, & the actual cooking was being done on Steve’s fairly new smoker. It was a constant battle between Steve turning the heat down & Dan turning it up. But in the end peace prevailed & the ribs were excellent.

http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2011/05/01-11may11-monroe-wa-via-kittitas-wa.html
Saturday morning, 08OCT, we commenced our dash to Houma, LA. Why the hurry? Because our daughter, Rebecca, is having her (& Raymond’s) first child (aka first grandchild) in DEC, & for some reason Corrie thinks we need to be there NOW! Anyway, it was a beautiful drive to Huntington, OR, thru the Blue Mountains. Sunday we drove all the way to Provo,UT, only to find the off ramp to our chosen RV park closed due to construction. Luckily Dan spotted a small & partially hidden RV sign. It turned out to be the very same RV park we stayed at 17SEP04 while Dan got our computer fixed.
We then departed Provo early Monday morning on US 6 through the scenic canyons of Unita National Forest; driving the length of Utah through red rock country of Moab & the four corner area. We have driven through the four corner area a couple of times, but we need to come back & spend time in amazing National Parks & Monuments. Monday night was spent in Gallup, NM. Tuesday was a 500 mile drive through Albuquerque, Roswell, & Carlsbad, NM, to spend the night at an Escapee Park in Pecos, TX, that we had stayed at once before.

http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2010/03/1718mar10-pecos-tx-roswell-nm.html

Wednesday afternoon, 12OCT, we arrived at Dan’s sister Sharon & Tim’s in Kerrville, TX, to spend the next two days relaxing & decompressing from the drive. While there we checked on our household goods that have been in storage since 2007. we are not sure how, but we need to figure out how we are going get all this “stuff” moved to our just completed house in Sultan, WA?

http://theryanrvexpress.blogspot.com/2011/03/12-20mar11-kerrville-tx-south-by.html

Early Saturday morning it was back on the road to finish trip to Houma, LA, with an overnight stop at the Coushatta Casino, in Kinder, LA. There were no winners this visit, but Dan noticed Willie Nelson was playing a concert on 18NOV, at the casino. Since it is only a three hour drive from Houma to the casino, we bought tickets to see Willie & Family.

After a short drive Sunday, 16OCT, finally arrive at Rebecca & Raymond’s in Houma, LA, & are now parked in their driveway waiting for the stork.