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(Note: This blog entry represents a combination of writings and pictures already posted about our Cool Change II, Land Yacht Adventures 2021 through Cindy via Facebook and Rick via email. So for some of you, the following posts may be duplicative, but for others, this is the first time you are seeing them. I am repeating them here to centralize the record and share our experiences more broadly.)
JUNE 28 – JULY 5, 2021
CINDY’S POST
The Voyage of Cool Change II, the Land Yacht 2021, continues! We have gathered all week with sons Dan and Drew, and their partners Leanne and Angela, in Bremerton and Port Orchard, Washington, culminating in a dinner in Gig Harbor, where we are now. We reserved a sweet campground spot in a forest preserve/state campground on the water near Drew’s house for five days and then moved down to the Gig Harbor RV Resort for the 4th of July weekend. We gathered at our campsite for the first night and then each had us over to their homes for dinner. Drew bbq’d some amazing skewers (not pictured) and Leanne and Dan prepared a shellfish extravaganza!
It was wonderful seeing how settled our sons have become, and how loved they are by their partners. It is such a relief to see them mature so beautifully, create such satisfying work lives and own such happy homes. We also spent a day with our friends we met in French Polynesia, Rob and Susan, who live in Seattle. They came over to our campsite for a day but we were so busy catching up that I didn’t get a picture! So I included one of them in their house … tomorrow we head up to Leavenworth, Washington so Dad can get some boating in with Dan.
RICK’S UPDATE ON BREMERTON AND GIG HARBOR
The drive to Bremerton, our next destination, should have taken about 3.5 hours but it actually took us more than six. At one point on I-5 we hit a rough section on the road that was so bad I thought we had blown a tire. I got off at the next exit and found a place to look it over. The tires were good and I did not see any other damage so we got back on the highway. It was so hot out that we had to take it slow to avoid the risk of overheating.
One of our early “lessons learned” was to make it a point to go to truck stop fueling stations like Pilot as they are built to service RVs and big rigs. On this part of the trip we found out that there are exceptions to the rule! We had taken an exit to refuel at a Pilot station and when we turned in to the station, we got up to the fuel isle ok but while we were refueling, a tanker truck pulled into service the station and blocked the path we planned to use to exit the station. The worst part was that the driver of the fuel truck seemed in no hurry to empty his load and in fact, I think he was having his lunch break before he got started. So we ended up having to hold in place for about 15 minutes before we were able to circle around to another exit in between a lot of traffic at the pumps. It was frustrating and I am sure that I pissed off at least one person in the process but we got out of there without hitting anything so all ended well! So from here on out we will just look carefully at the situation before committing to pulling in any station.
While we were there, I filled the plastic gas can I keep to hold fuel for our generator. When I pulled it out of the back of the truck I noticed that the sides of the can were dramatically sucked in, a result of not being vented and traveling in the bed of the truck through different altitudes in the heat. I was planning on ordering a vent kit and have it delivered to our son Drew’s home in Bremerton. Soon though, events would occur that made for a change in plans and we came very close to having trip ender experience!
We continued on our way and finally arrived at Illahee State Park in Bremerton, where we had reservations for the next 5 nights. The location was perfect because it was just blocks away from our son Drew’s home and about 30 minutes away from our other son Dan’s home.
Drew had told us it was a nice park and that was an understatement. There were tall pines and cedars throughout so lots of shade. There was also a nice sea-breeze blowing in from oyster bay, which borders the park. Our site was a nice pull through site so it was very easy to get into. The facilities were very clean and offered 50 cent hot showers. There were several nice hiking trails that meandered through the park. If you were to walk or drive to the bottom of the park on the bay, there was a very nicely built pier that went from the shore to a perpendicular dock. Boats could come in and tie up for day use or pay for a space and spend the night. There was one very distressed looking sailboat tied up at the time that reminded me of some of the derelict boats we would see in Sausalito back in the days when Cool Change was docked there. Though it was a sailboat I don’t think it had moved in the wind for quite some time. In fact I’m not sure how it moved at all. There were mooring balls available in the harbor that folks could reserve online and tie off to for the night. Oyster shells were strewn all along the waterfront, I guess from people oystering there. We saw a few people with buckets and shovels working the beds.
We were both really exhausted after the drive, a little exploring and time spent setting up the trailer in our spot. We were also both really hot and sweaty by this time due to the heat wave now hammering the Pacific Northwest. All I could think about was getting into the shower and going to sleep. The trailer was insanely hot though from being in the heat of the drive so before I headed off to the shower I started up the generator & turned on the air in the trailer to start cooling it down.
I walked to the facilities that were just across the road from us and had a delightful fifty cent shower. As I was walking back to the trailer, something was not right. I was walking past the truck and realized the generator had stopped running. I should explain that we keep the generator in the back of the truck because we run it from there attached to a shore power cord that runs between it and the trailer. It is positioned to one side of the truck bed to keep lots of free space between the exhaust and the side of the truck bed.
While we were traveling I was keeping a five gallon plastic fuel can in that free space and I would always remove it before starting up the generator. In my exhausted state however I had failed to move the fuel can. It was tied down about a foot from the generator’s exhaust. So what happened is that the hot exhaust was being directed right at the fuel can and was hot enough that it melted a tiny hole through the can. The can was pressurized because of the heat of the day. When I looked to see what was wrong, I saw there was fuel from the pressurized gas can spraying directly at the exhaust outlet of the generator! I jumped into the truck bed quickly removed the gas can and moved it to a safe area and loosened the top to release the pressure inside and stop the spray of gasoline. I can only think that there is a safety sensor in the generator to detect fuel leaks on the generator and that shut it down when it detected that it was getting sprayed by the fuel. Either that or divine intervention? I was so relieved that we would not be remembered as the Californians who started their rig, and by collateral damage, the forest, on fire in the middle of the worst heat wave in recorded history in the Pacific Northwest.
Due to both the near death experience of generator vs plastic fuel tank and the other disturbing issue of the tank expansion and contraction, we made 2 changes! First, I changed the storage location of the generator fuel can to the opposite end of the truck so that I would not have to rely on remembering to move it when the generator is in use. Second, I replaced the plastic can with a high quality metal can that has a spring loaded relief valve built in to it. It was pricey but worth every penny.
We got a good night’s sleep in spite of my horrific blunder and in the morning we did some exploring and hiked one of the trails to the pier and back. That evening, Dan & Andrew and their partners Leanne and Angela joined us for a Taco Tuesday night in the campground. It was the first time we had all been together in one place in way too long. It was really fun catching up on all the latest happenings in their lives, and seeing them in their roles as responsible adults!
The next day, Wednesday, Rob and Susanne from Seattle, good friends we met cruising in French Polynesia, rode the ferry to Bremerton to come and visit with us. We did a nice hike together down to the bay and back and caught up on what has been happening in each others’ lives. Something that they shared with us was what it has been like living in Seattle through the pandemic. They live in the Capital Hill section of Seattle, very near to what was the autonomous zone during the protest. It was challenging due to the unrest and weeks long Black Lives Matter protests coupled with the homeless situation that was aggravated by the pandemic. They spent most all their time at home due to the unrest and chaos around them.
There is a sizable homeless population in Seattle and people are living in tents throughout the city. There are many dilapidated RV’s parked on the streets with people living out of them as well. Our son Dan had told us that the city had taken the position that if people are living in them, they would leave them alone rather than towing them away. It is an ongoing very difficult situation to be living in, and demands a solution.
We first met Rob and Susan in French Polynesia where we shared lots of good times together sailing in and about the islands of Raiatea, Huahine and Taha’a. We left French Polynesia in June, 2019 and sailed to Tonga, while they chose to spend another season or two in French Polynesia. We both ended up very unexpectedly locked out of the countries where our boats are located when the pandemic hit. We had all gone back home with the onset of the 2019 cyclone season in the South Pacific, which starts in November and runs through April. When we left, we were all planning to return in a few months only to find we could not get back to our boats due to pandemic border closures all over the world.
French Polynesia has since opened back up to foreigners but Tonga remains closed to this day. At the earliest, we might be allowed back in the country in March of 2022 but there is no guarantee of that. It was great as always to spend time with this couple reminiscing on adventures we had together in far away lands, and discussions about the state of our union and planet. We look forward to having them visit us back in California on a future date.
We shared a great halibut-in-cream-and-caper-sauce dinner that Cindy made, some wine, and then far too soon we needed to drop them off at the ferry terminal for the return trip back to Seattle.
It was also just wonderful being together again with our sons and their partners to enjoy some family time. The next day we went over to Drew’s home for dinner. It was the first time we had seen his new home that he only recently purchased. It is an older home with a big yard and they love it. They have many future plans for what they want to do with it to personalize it to them. Drew made us some very tasty shish kabob’s and Dan and Leanne joined us as well for another family night. We spent most of the evening in the back yard enjoying the cooling at the end of the day.
The next night we all met at Dan & Leanne’s home in Port Orchard. They had been planning a seafood boil for dinner that night and what a treat it was! For appetizers we had a round of fresh oysters, & then another set of oysters on the grill. The seafood boil was fantastic and we were so appreciative of all the work that Dan & Leanne put in to make it happen.
After an awesome week in the area we still had another two nights reservations to stay in Gig Harbor nearby the Tacoma area. We would liked to have stayed in Ilahee but the whole park was booked for the 4th of July weekend. Unlike where we had been camping in the State Park, this private RV park had water and electric hookups for the trailer. Though that is all very convenient, the drawback to these type of facilities is that they are usually very city-like and the sites smaller and packed close together to be able to generate the most revenue. It is a very different experience than camping in a state or county park.
What we found when we arrived though, was that in spite of being pretty crowded, there were lots of tall trees around our site. Although we had a large RV to one side of us, to the other side was a large area reserved for campers and there were only a couple of people camping there.
The facilities were nice and there was a laundry where we could get caught up on some wash.
I found it a bit ironic that on this trip so far we had been doing our laundry at our kids’ homes, since it is normally the other way around! But it was so much appreciated, each a save of a trip to a laundromat!
That night (July 3rd) Dan & Leanne came over as well as Drew. Angela could not join us because she had to be up at 4am the next morning to set up a fireworks exhibit in the area. Angela, among her many talents, is also a pyrotechnics expert and was in demand for the 4th.
We all went down to the harbor for dinner at a place called Tides Tavern. It was a wonderful last evening with the boys and Leanne all together in this quaint little village on the bay. The harbor itself is pretty small but just charming. There were many boats anchored out for the evening and one that though a bit larger looked very much like our own Cool Change. There was a public dock that boats could tie up to if people wanted to visit one of the bars or restaurants.
The next day on the 4th, Cindy and I walked the 1.5 miles into town and explored the shops along the waterfront. There were lots of people walking around and it hardly felt like we were just emerging from the pandemic. When we were ready to head back home, we were able to get on a free for the holiday shuttle trolley that dropped us off right at the entrance to the RV park.
Drew had told us that he was afraid to leave his cats alone on the 4th because the fireworks that the locals would be setting off get pretty crazy and pets can be terrified if left alone. Living in El Dorado County in California, it is hard to relate to because I cannot remember when fireworks were allowed there due to fire dangers.
In Gig Harbor, the public fireworks display had been canceled, I think due to Covid, and the city not knowing in time that they could have a big public event. The locals though were undaunted and were setting off their own fireworks late into the night. These were not the “safe and sane” varieties that you normally see sold at fireworks stands, but they type that are known for blowing off appendages if handled incorrectly.
Cindy and I decided that we should take advantage of having a commercial power connection and watch a movie in the trailer that night. The trailer has a tv as well as a stereo system and we have interconnected them so we have a good sound system when we are watching a movie. We had all the windows closed so we cut down the noise of the explosions all over town and we put on an action sci-fi apocalypse type movie and settled in with some popcorn.
Remember now that the trailer is still a pretty new experience for us and we are learning as we go. What I had neglected when we put our movie on was to acknowledge the difference between the “A” and “B” speaker settings on our stereo system; I failed to shut off the outside speakers that are on one side of the trailer! So picture the scene. The outside speakers are pointed towards the unsuspecting campers close by, so in addition to the fireworks, they are getting a wall of sound from our outside speakers aimed directly at them just a few yards away!
So while we were blissfully enjoying our movie, suddenly there is a loud knock on the door. I opened the door and there is a young man outside who says “can you please turn your sound down on your movie, because it is very loud!” It was only then that I realized we had the outside speakers on. So I immediately shut them off and finished the movie without further subjecting our neighbors to the audio. The next morning I went over and explained to our neighbors what had happened and they were very good humored and understanding about it.
We went through our ritual of preparing the trailer for travel and got ready to get on the road.
Our next destination was the town of Cashmere, which was about 3 hours away, over the Snoqualome pass and to the eastern side of the state. Dan and Leanne would be meeting us there along with Leanne’s twin 8 year old girls, whom we were going to meet for the first time. They had been with their father the week we were in Bremerton and this week was Dan & Leanne’s week to have them. Dan and I planned to do some kayaking on the Wenatchee river and I was really looking forward to that as Dan and I have not paddled together in years!
Stay tuned for the next installment!