Let the Good Times ROLL!

NATIONAL PARKS ACROSS USA -
Since September 28, 06, we have seen the following National Parks:
Badlands National Park – South Dakota
Big Bend National Park - Texas
Crater Lake National Park – Oregon
Great Smoky Mountains National Park – North Carolina
Mount Rainier - Washington
Mount Rushmore National Memorial – South Dakota
Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument - Washington
Redwoods National Park - California
Saguaro National Park - Arizona
Sequoia National Park - California
Yellowstone National Park - Wyoming
Yosemite National Park – California
National Parks and/or Monuments seen on previous vacations:
Jefferson Expansion National Memorial – St. Louis, Missouri
Lincoln Memorial & Washington Monument - DC
Everglades National Park – Florida
Grand Canyon National Park - Arizona
Haleakala National Park - Hawaii
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park – Hawaii
U.S.S. Arizona Memorial – Hawaii
National Parks we hope to see:
Death Valley National Park - California
Mesa Verde National Park – Colorado
Carlsbad Caverns National Park – New Mexico
Bryce Canyon National Park – Utah
Arches National Park – Utah
Canyonlands National Park – Utah
Zion National Park - Utah
Grand Teton National Park - Wyoming
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Lost Alaskan RV Park, Alpine, TX

Wednesday, January 10, 2007 We left Marathon, TX and drove to Alpine and settled in at Lost Alaskan RV Park. Yesterday I drove the truck following Ray on the bike. Ray left the bike at the Lost Alaskan Park so he wouldn’t have to put it up on the truck. Very nice park and spaced out nicely. Beautiful trees and very pet friendly.
Friday, January 12, 2007
Drove over to Ft. Davis and the Davis Mountain range. Ft. Davis at 5,050’ is the highest town in Texas. Went to the McDonald Observatory. As a unit of The University of Texas at Austin, the Observatory is one of the world's leading centers for astronomical research. Its facilities are located atop Mount Locke and Mount Fowlkes in the Davis Mountains of West Texas at 6,792 ft. It is the tallest mountain in Texas. This Observatory has the darkest skies in the continental United States. The tour took 90 minutes and we were able to see both the 107” Harlan J. Smith and Hobby-Eberly research telescopes. Although the information was way over my head, it was very interesting to see how the telescopes are moved around and how they facilitate the opening of the doors for viewing at night.
Ray's Reflections: The route between Alpine and Ft. Davis is very hilly with twisty turns. Good to take a ride on the bike. Just down the road from Marathon is a complete small town with numerous grocery/drug stores, fast foods, etc. I did have one day of great motorcycling in the Ft. Davis area north of Alpine. The road to Ft Davis both south and north became enclosed with rock canyons and lateral rock chimneys. Again, I was attempting to take an interesting road off the beaten path. After crossing several cattle guards about 15 miles off the main highway appeared a sign “Posted Private Property – Do Not Enter”. OK, with no one in sight and not having passed a vehicle coming or going, I get the point. Turn around and get your b____ out of there!
The weather for the day was high of 60 degrees with a cold front approaching in the pm. Now I am not from Texas and my thought was 'how had can a cold front be at 2:30 in the afternoon?' While riding the bike 12 miles north of Ft. Davis, through the rock canyons, I watched my trip meter on the bike start at 61° air temp and within five minutes drop to 44° and the cold-front grey sinister clouds were still in front of me. Again, I turned around and headed back to safety at home, except this time I picked up the pace considerably. It is amazing how well the Wing holds the road when you are running a little over the limit. That night the temp dropped to 19° and snowed for four days. The locals said this was the first time in 35 years that this has happened in Alpine. Thanks for saving it for us Floridians.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Today it is overcast and winds at steady 20 mph and gusts 28 mph. Ray took a bike ride due to home-bound-itis. Park is almost empty and people are heading south to get away from the weather.
Monday, January 22, 2007
We wanted to leave the Alpine area yesterday, but due to a late arrival of our Sony camera from the repair shop, we had to stay. It is now snowing and expect more tonight into tomorrow. Ray checked Weather Underground and looks like it will be another week before we can leave without fear of icy roads. Cannot take the risk with our rolling home.



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FULL TIMING

FULL TIMING? Our first thoughts on such a monumental change of direction in our lives started with the purchase of a 32' Toy Hauler-KZ 5th Wheel early 2006. We took a vacation in May and traveled the mountains of North Carolina. We liked the fact we had our own bed to sleep in and could see surrounding areas either on our Honda Gold Wing or GMC truck. However, during the vacation, we found that the KZ 32' 5th-wheel was entirely too small, even for a long weekend. We wanted to trade up. One thing led to another and we started to question the next three years before Marsha was scheduled to retire.After much soul-searching, prayer, and financial calculations, Marsha requested early retirement for personal and physical reasons.Full timing meant we were saying "goodbye" to all that is familiar. Everything happened so quickly we didn't have time to contemplate that aspect much. We research everything thoroughly before we purchase. This would be our new home and we wanted all the "bells & whistles" within our budget. Lazy Days in Seffner, Florida had a new National, 2006 Tradewinds motorhome available at the right price. It has a 400-HP Turbo diesel engine and many amenities. We did get the "cart before the horse" purchasing the RV before selling our home. It was the worst time of year to sell a home in Florida. We sold with only a month before closing! Thankfully, we had our new "home on wheels" in our back yard for preparation.

It became clear that our personal craving for travel and adventure overcame our requirement for a traditional home with all the things that seemed so important.Getting rid of clutter can be liberating. We did not want to pay for storage. Collectibles such as our Fenton glass, sets of crystal glass, or ceramic pieces were handed over to family members or close friends for their enjoyment. We had a two-day garage sale and anything remaining went to charity. We feel the flexibility and comfort of RV travel far outweighs any pinch felt at the fuel pump. Let the Good Times Roll!