Two Penny Travels

Quick Fishing Report

The good news is that I still know how to put a fly-rod together, how to tie a fly onto the end of the leader, and how to do basic fly-casting. I proved all that last evening down at the little lake here at SnowFlower TTN.

The bad news is that I still drop my backcast enough to snap the fly off the end of the leader. But that doesn't make much difference when there are no fish rising to the bait. Maybe next time.

Oh yes, I am scheduling more time along Hat Creek just north of Lassen on this trip. There should be several good opportunities, and there may be some fish rising for the evening hatch. If I can just keep my backcast up so I have something to put into the water.

Sam Penny, aka the Prudent RVer, the guy with the LEDs for your RV

Finally off the road ... fishing

Finally, off the road. After 40 days and over 5,000 miles of getting from here to there and visiting with family, we are settled into a forested campground off the beaten Interstate. We are having to replace the noise of diesels, trains, and trucks with the sounds of stellar jays, squirrels, and chipmunks.

We are camped at the SnowFlower TTN Park a couple of miles off I-80 near Yuba Gap. We are about 25 miles west of Truckee on the west side of the Donner Summit. The elevation is 5,781 ft, the temperature right now is 78F, and the sky is clear. A mild west breeze circulates the air around the rig.

A chipmunk just found my offering of a peanut -- probably not good for him/her, but that is about the only one he/she is going to get. Enough food for a critter that size to last a day.

I splurged yesterday and bought a fly-fishing rig: rod, reel, line, leader, flies, and a fishing vest. I bought a fishing license this morning in Truckee. This evening when the sun gets off the water, I will walk down on the dam of the little lake here and see if I still know how to cast a fly.

Nearly thirteen years ago I lost my entire collection of fishing gear in a forest fire that ate up our travel trailer parked at Lake of the Springs TTN Park above Marysville, CA. All my rods, all my reels, my fly tying station, my vest and waders turned into ashes. Insurance paid for the value of all those things, but I had also lost my enthusiasm for fishing. It just wasn't the same.

A few weeks ago while driving through Kansas I got to thinking about the joys I had experienced fishing back in the good old days. That was when I decided to try it again. It has been many years, but maybe I can find some of that old enthusiasm. We will see on this trip as we visit some of my old fishing haunts. I know the fish I remember will not be there, but much of the joy of fishing is simply watching your line drift down the stream, keeping an eye on the leader or the fly to see if some fish lurking under the water will check it out. It is all anticipation and hope. Most of the time you don't get a strike, but when you do...

sam

Across Nevada

We spent three nights in Wendover at the KOA. Alice did the laundry and I was involved with reviewing the Q2 financial results for Jojoba Hills. The weather actually improved.

We checked all the major casinos in town and found that three of them are owned by the same outfit -- at least the decor was the same. The Montego, Peppermill, and Rainbow all have pink neon with blue LEDs for their lighting. Everything is reflective, so it is really hard to get your bearings. The best meal was at the Peppermill. Lunch at the Rainbow was more than ample, and we finished Alice's chef salad the next day on the road.

Friday morning I took my LED orders over to the post office and mailed them out.These included two more fLED12-ZLS fluorescent replacements. That is becoming increasingly popular with its 1320 lumens of LED light.

We had to buck a strong wind from Wendover to Winnemucca, and with the various climbs our fuel mileage was just under 12mpg. As I was coasting down one long slope in the west bound lane of I-80, I saw an extra long rig (a 24 wheeler with big earthmover) creeping up the east bound truck lane, maybe doing 5mph with its lights blinking like it was supposed to do. An 18-wheeler was coming up the hill behind it, maybe doing 35mph. Apparently, its driver was asleep at the wheel, because he crashed smack dab into the rear of the 24 wheeler. His hood flew off and it looked like he crumpled the front steerage under his truck. As I passed by I could see the 18 wheeler driver alive and well but with a startled expression on his face. There was no way for me to stop and help, so I continued my coast on down the hill. That is the third accident we have seen on this trip!

We made it into Winnemucca and found the Model T RV Park and Casino. It is under new management, and things are a little down-hill from what I remembered, but it was still convenient and reasonable. After getting the rig set up, I located the hospital on Google Maps plus Streets, and we headed over to get my INR lab work done. They did not have an INR machine, but took a vial of blood instead. I suppose I will hear from the nurse on Tuesday how I did.

We had an early supper at the Model T and got the special: a large steak and shrimp dinner for two for $19. We are still working on the steak. We then played our obligatory $5 on the penny slots and went back to the rig.

Today we drove on over to Reno. That part of I-80 is pretty level, and the wind had abated, so our mileage was more like 15mpg. We checked into the Grand Sierra Resort RV Park. It used to be the MGM Grand, then Bally's, then something else. KOA used to run the campground, but now it is Grand Sierra. The lake is not entirely full, and the grounds are a little unkempt, but at least it is what we remember. On Monday we will go up the hill over Donner summit to TTN's Snowflower Preserve for a week's stay.

It will be good to not drive so much.

Sam Penny, the Prudent RVer

Impacts of altitude on I-80 West

Rawlins, WY, home of the early Wyoming state prison, is at an altitude of 6,700 to 6,900 ft where US287 leaves I-80. The town is about 50 miles east of one of the two"continental divides" that wend their way through the state, enclosing the Great Divide Basin.

We reached Rawlins mid-afternoon of the 17th and checked in to the Western Hills RV Park, a good choice. A line of mountain showers was active south and west of us, and it was breezy. Another couple, Art and Jo, in a Phaeton pulled in about the same time and parked two spaces away. They had been full-timing for 11 years, and we all sat outside having a good talk about the joys of having no stick home to worry about and all the things to see out on the road.

When the showers reached us, the wind started to blow fiercely and kicked up dust, but it was comfortable in the rig.

On the way east I had been bothered with shortness of breath in bed when I removed my cPAP machine early. I did some calculations and found that it added about 0.53 psi to the air in my lungs, so I made a resolution to keep with it during the night. That would make my effective altitude about 5,600 feet, near where I had been in Barr Lake.

My strategy worked, and I had a good night's rest. We decided to stay another night rather than race for lower elevations.

On Monday we drove on to Evanston, WY and stayed at the Phillips RV Park, another good selection we had enjoyed a couple of years back. Again we were at near 7,000 feet elevation, and the cPAP machine did its thing again.

Yesterday we drove across Utah to Wendover, NV and camped at an elevation of 4,400 ft. My breathing was decidedly easier, though I did use the cPAP during most of the night. The only problem is that the temperature is now about 15 degrees hotter than up at altitude in Wyoming.

So we plan 2 nights here, 2 nights in Winnemucca (4,300ft), and some time in Reno (4,400ft), and the forecast all along the way is for hot -- in the high 90s. I am now in a physical state where the altitude does make a difference, and that correlates inversely to the temperature this time of year. Bummer!

Sam Penny, the Prudent RVer (www.prudentrver.com)

Sometimes you [should] change your mind

This morning we packed up, dumped the tanks, and left Barr Lake RV Park (elevation 5,082ft) on our way to Grand Junction, CO. We got on I-76 west to Denver where we intercepted I-70 and continued west. As we approached Applewood (exit 264) the road started to climb, seriously. As I drove on I watched my engine temp climb and climb, past 240 degrees and into the red zone. I pulled over and let the engine cool a bit and then made it on up to exit 256 at an elevation of 7,160ft. We still had 3,500 more feet to climb in the next 50 miles.

I have a new transmission with an upgraded, heavy-duty torque convertor, but it appeared my cooling system and engine were not suited for heavy climbing while pulling our 25ft 5th-wheel trailer. So, I changed my mind -- a privilege of a retired person. I didn't want to see Grand Junction (with an expected temp of 103 today) anyway.

We turned around and headed back down to Denver, caught I-25 north, then 287 out of Ft. Collins to Laramie and further west to Rawlins, WY. That is where we are spending tonight. Tomorrow we continue west to Evanston, WY and eventually to Truckee and other points of interest in NoCal. Sorry to miss the trip across Nevada on Hwy 50, the Loneliest Highway in the World, but sometimes, common sense trumps valor.

sam, the Prudent RVer (www.prudentrver.com)

On the road across the Rockies

Tomorrow morning we hook up and move from the east side of the Rockies to the west side, from Barr Lake about 20 miles west of Denver to Grand Junction. It appears the weather will be about the same: in the high 90s to low 100s with no serious storms.

We are still pulling our 25-foot 5t-wheel trailer with a Dodge truck. The truck is a year younger and 60K miles less experienced that our previous Dodge Ram. Still a diesel, still runs well. I had the transmission redone back in Roseberg, OR a month ago, and it seems to like the upgrade. We ran to McPherson and back (950 miles RT) and averaged about 24mpg on I-70.

Health-wise, we are getting older. I am now fighting with A-fib and sleep apnea, taking warfarin and sleeping with a cPAP machine. That seems to have settled things down for the time being. Alice is still fighting with her arthritis but is holding her own.

We do have a new home back at Jojoba Hills SKP Resort. We moved from lot 815 to 731 and took possession of a 97 Teton 5th-wheel. We sold our 98 Automate to a fellow in Corona. All in all, it was a good upgrade and the new rig (to us) will be a long term home.

I will give you some highlights of our travels as we head back west. We plan to go through central Nevada into the Lake Tahoe region. I may buy a fishing license and try my luck again. We will see what transpires.

Take care,

sam (aka the Prudent RVer) -- take a look at our LED website www.prudentrver.com

Long time no post! In fact, it was over two years ago and we were traveling in the Verdi Valley. We did quite a few RV rallies later that year selling LEDs. Then we drifted around on various trips. Now we are back on the road again to see family. At this time we are near Denver planning on heading west tomorrow.

My plans are to be more faithful on keeping up this blog. We will see what happens.

If you are on the road, safe travels and keep all your wheels on the road.

sam