Santa Nella, CA

In Santa Nella, CA, a wide spot on I-5 south of Stockton, CA. Gas stations, restaurants and a small $28 a night RV park. We tried two previous truck stops but found no place to park except between reefer running big rigs and I did not want to face that after a long drive.

We stopped at the Olive Pit in Corning to stock up on three jars of fancy olives, feta stuffed, anchovy stuffed and pimento stuffed. This decision was made after ample sampling.

StarChoice was hooked up after a short delay finding the RV park in Dishpointer but then it went well. A nice relaxing evening watching TV and eating. About 600 miles to go. The adventure continues!

Anderson, CA

We drove through the mountain passes today getting into California finding no snow along the way. We passed through the CA Agricultural inspection with no problem as all we had were tomatoes and onions, both of which were allowed into the state.

We then stopped at All Star Liquors to stock up for the winter. For Canadians the priced here are incredible! 750 ml of single malt for $19.99US and 1.75 litres of vodka for $17.99. For under $200 US we have enough booze for the winter with probably enough left over it will cause problems on the way home. All we have to buy is beer and wine. And tequila but we will take care of that in Mexico.

We are in Anderson, CA where we just got the oil changed in the motorhome and the Honda. Cheaper than last year. A welcome savings given the dollar but go figure. We will park overnight in their parking lot and head out in the morning after Norma gets her nails done.

The trip so far has been uneventful, just as I like it. So far I have talked to two Americans and one Canadian who are incredulous that we are driving into Mexico. The last one, an American told me it was very dangerous. I told him it all depended on which drug cartel he was a member of. I said if he was a Zeta then Mazatlan is very dangerous and if he is a member of the Gulf Cartel then he should stay out the northeast of Mexico. He looked at me strangely and I asked him which cartel he belonged to. He said he did not belong to any drug cartel so I told him he had nothing to worry about and that he would be welcomed anywhere in Mexico just as we are.

I am getting tired of answering this same question. Can you tell? Mexico is safe. Safe as Canada and maybe safer than the USA.

Day Three

We are parked in the free RV dry camping area at Seven Feathers Casino on I-5, 99 miles from the OR / CA border. We put in a longish day today and actually gained a day as this is where we usually spend our fourth night. We will catch the shuttle to the casino later and donate a few dollars to pay for our stay.

StarChoice set up very easily using the DishPointer site where you enter an address and it shows your location on Google Maps with the path to the satellite highlighted. This let us find the bird in about 20 seconds after setting up the dish and connecting the four cables.

Anderson California tomorrow where we will get oil changes in both vehicles and maybe a set of cheap tires for the Honda.

Stay tuned!

We're Off!

We are parked at the Black Ball Ferry dock in Victoria using their free WIFI! One panic with the fridge on the way down but OK since then. Fingers crossed. We visited with LindaLee's parents last night. Lots of fun. Janice and I had our requisite 'discussion' on politics. I'm right, she's wrong but it is not likely we will ever agree!  :) The discussions are always fun and she keeps me on my toes.

I stopped at my bank on our way into Victoria and when I got back to the rig the check light was on! I reset it and drove to the ferry and when we got there it was on again! I reset it and it worked fine all night. That fridge is causing way too much stress!

Short Delay

Launch Delay

We had the burner on the fridge cleaned on Wednesday, Norma loaded the freezer on Wednesday night and all seemed well. This morning (Friday) I got up early to turn the rig around and load the car on the dolly and noticed the 'check' light was on again! The food was still frozen but the inside walls of the fridge were room temperature. We quickly put all the food back in the house freezer. I called the repair shop and he said to bring it right in and they would look at it. I was there just after 8:00 AM and the tech diagnosed a blown re-igniter board. He changed it and told me he was 95% sure that would fix the problem. The main board was working fine and that narrowed it down to the re-igniter. He said we would know within 12 hours if it was going to fail again. If it does then it becomes a major diagnostic problem taking several hours so our fingers are crossed. Another failure may be the indicator that it is time for a new fridge. Paying six hours labour at $100 per hour plus parts is just not worth it when you still end up with a repaired ten year old fridge.

In any case, we do not want to be in the US or Mexico with a bad fridge and nowhere to keep our 50 pounds of frozen fish. We will stay an extra day and leave here Saturday, catching the Sunday morning ferry to Port Angeles. That will give the fridge 24 hours to tell us if there is still a problem. We will sleep in the rig tonight so we can keep an eye on the 'check' light. We will still make it to Algodones for my November 16 dental appointment. If all goes well.

Glitch Update And Other Expenses

We took the rig into Bill Howich RV Repair. The fridge only needed the burner area blown out with compressed air and it works fine - no charge. The ceiling fan (did I mention it did not work?) worked for them and works now. It just needed a drive to the repair place. The furnace was another story. The main board was shot so they replaced it with a Dinosaur brand board ($236) they had in stock and replaced the high limit switch ($34). Add labour and taxes and it came to $650! Ouch!

I called Desjardins in Quebec for travel medical Insurance and feared the worst as we are not getting any younger. I was pleasantly surprised when she told me $3,700, only $200 more than last year. About $10 per day each. Great. I then called for Mexican vehicle insurance. I had advice to change to another company but we stuck with San Xavier as they treated us really well with two previous claims and their price was only a little higher. The peace of mind was worth it. Anyway that came to $684 US to insure the motorhome, dolly and car for six months. After currency exchange, it totaled out to $923 on my credit card. In BC we are lucky because when we get home I can claim whatever portion of my Canadian insurance that we were out of their jurisdiction (Mexico) for and get a refund of more that what the MX insurance costs. Move to BC folks, it's a perk!

So that is the major expenses done. Ferry to get off the Island will be around $350 followed by gas to get to Algodones and the dentist and after that it will be only ice cold beer and fish tacos! Oh yes, and wait for the magic of compound interest to re-fill the piggy bank. Ya, Right!

Baja Is Small

I have to keep reminding myself how small Baja really is! The total drive from end to end is only 1800 KM and the very bottom, Cabo San Lucas, is right across the Sea Of Cortez from Mazatlan which we know is only a two or three day drive from the border. Maybe a better comparison would be the drive from Vancouver, BC to San Francisco, CA which I once did in one day when I was young and foolish and we only had a four day weekend off.

We will be doing a lot of parking and exploring, spending a week or so in every popular/scenic location as we travel. For the most part we will be traveling the same route back as we did on the way down so we will gain knowledge of the best places to stop for the return trip. We may take a couple of side trips but we will decide that as we go.

Gas is more expensive in Mexico than it was last time we were there but considering the reduced distances we will be traveling we should get by with ten or twelve tankfulls for the time we are there.

It will be an adventure. A shorter drive, but still an adventure.

Quicken Discovery

I have been using Quicken for my personal finances for about 20 years now. For travel, I have always used a general 'Cash' account to track cash spending using the same account for whichever country I am in, converting the currency I am using to CAN with every transaction. I estimate the amounts and once every week or two I reconcile what I have in my pocket with what Quicken says I should have. It is always within a few dollars so I just change a large cash purchase (usually groceries or dining) to make it balance. Close enough.

Yesterday I was playing in the Google sandbox and discovered Quicken offers multi-currency support! I set up two new accounts, 'Cash (US Dollar)' and 'Cash (MX Peso)', told quicken which currency I wanted to use in each and presto! Quicken communicated with the MotherShip for the current exchange rate and is now tracking my spending in the currency of each country at the appropriate exchange rate! When I ask for a report, on say, how much I have spent on gas, it converts the amounts back to CAN dollars within the report. I will still have to do a reconciliation once in a while but it should be pennies (pesos) instead of dollars. Life is Better!

Starting Off Glitches

I was checking out the motorhome today to make sure it is ready to go next weekend and a couple of problems showed up.

The fridge does not want to work on gas. It runs for a few minutes and then the 'check' light comes on. I have tried it several times and the same thing every time. It works fine on electric. The furnace is the other thing. Sometimes it clicks like it is trying but shuts down immediately. I know I have gas because 1) it shows full, 2) the range burners work and 3) the hot water tank works on gas. Both items worked when we parked the rig in April.

These are two of the things I do not have the expertise to work on myself so I made an appointment at the local RV repair place for Tuesday morning. A very similar scenario happened a couple of years ago when the fridge and hot water tank would not work on gas. However that time everything repaired itself just by driving down to the repair shop. I got there and tried to show the guy that neither appliance worked and what do you know! They both fired right up and stayed on. You can't fix what ain't broken so that was that.

Monday would probably have been a better day but we have an appointment with the house sitter to show her around and we have to go down and but the motorhome insurance. Then I have to maneuver the rig out of it's parking place and aim it down the driveway.

I am not too stressed about this. Everything else works!

The High US Dollar Is Hurting!

I am just booking my Mexican vehicle insurance. My friend Rae found a company in Nogales where she got a good deal. I checked out their prices but they are only a couple of dollars less than San Xavier where we always get ours and where we have had two claims and great service. We will stay with them. The last time we bought Mexican Insurance was in 2012 and cost in US which converted to $740 CA for six months coverage. This time it will be $920 CA, almost $200 more, mostly because of the inflated US dollar. One nice thing about living in BC is we get a refund on our Canadian vehicle insurance for the time we are out of their jurisdiction. This refund will cover the cost of the Mexican insurance but we will not get the credit until after we get home.

I still have to call about Travel Medical Insurance and I am not looking forward to this call. We paid $3,500 Canadian last year for six months but we are both a year older and may be penalized for this, Getting old sucks. In Canada this cost is tax deductible as a medical expense.

I am waiting for a money transfer before I commit myself on either of these. I had to dip into the 'Rainy Day Fund' one last time before I converted to a RRIF as I also have a $5,000 CA dental bill as soon as we get to Yuma and Algodones, Mexico on November 16.