Hunting for wild potatoes is like fishing!

And I'm not into fishing. However, we still had a fun day out in the mountains. We picked up Martin and his father Don Jose, and drove out of town at just after 6:00am yesterday morning. Don Jose grew up in these mountains and knows the area well.

Picking potatoes?... at 6:00am?

Well, not quite but we will be leaving here at 6:00am...therefore posting this before going to bed!

Panama?

I was reading about RV'ing in Guatemala and Belize, and I thought we might take a trip through there in the spring. Then I thought, if we're going to do that, why not go all the way to Panama?

What a game!

If you think baseball is boring, then last night's game would have changed your mind. No point in going into detail, because if you're a baseball fan then you already know, and if you're not, then you don't care anyhow!

Back to Canada!

That's it, we've had enough of this damn blue sky and sunshine. And I'm tired of having to wear shorts and t-shirts every day!

The view from under our awning.

Another beautiful blue sky day. Last year, we managed to go three and a half months without a drop of rain. Wonder what the record will be this year!

A visit to the outskirts of Guadalajara

Yesterday, Barb was going back to Chicago to visit their daughters for a week and a half. Sal was driving her to the Guadalajara airport, and they asked if we wanted to go along for the ride. They were also going to stop at the Sam's Club and the Walmart, so we could pick up any items we might need.

Nice hike and then a meal out

Ruth and I went on a nice hike up another hill in the area. We could see a road in the distance on the hill, and wanted to see where it went. It was a private road with gates and fences, but the rancher working at the bottom said we could go for a walk, no problem.

Saturday is market day

Barb was going into town, and Saturday is market day in Valle de Juarez, so we went in with her. First, we stopped at her house and used Skype to say hi to our son, then we went to the main square and picked up some meat at the carneceria (butcher).

Hacienda Contreras (day 21)

Wow, I can't believe we've been here for three weeks already. And although we're not bored yet, we are getting excited about moving on especially after planning our route yesterday!

Planning our next destination

Well it looks like everybody who wanted to vote took the time to do so, and we want to thank everybody who participated in choosing where we're going next. It looks like we're taking the route around Puerto Vallarta, so I've been doing some planning for that trip!

A busy day with lots of photos!

More perfect weather, so we decided to hike up the hill in front of Hacienda Contreras. But first, Barb was going into town to see the metalworking guy who was building the frames for the windows for the new addition.

Hacienda Contreras (day 18)

Well, we just had a lazy day yesterday. Other than our two mile fast walk around the park in the morning, it was just a relaxing day. And once again, the weather was perfect.

Los Cazos, near Mazamitla

Yesterday after lunch, Ruth and I went into the town of Mazamitla. On the far side of town is an area called Los Cazos. It's a kind of a different spot because while there are homes and cottages in there, it's also gated and you have to pay to get in. But it's really nice to walk around, and there's a pretty waterfall.

A nice hike in the hills

Yesterday, we went for a nice hike in the hills. It was another beautiful sunny day. Barb stayed behind in case the tile workers showed up. She wants to make sure they use the proper tiles in the right place because once they go down it's too late!

The beautiful weather returns!

Clear sunny skies and a high around 26C (79F). Perfect! The clear skies do bring some cooler nights, but it's nice sleeping weather. Woke up this morning and it was 5C (41F) outside, however the sun is shining and it's starting to warm up already. Looks to be another beautiful day here in the mountains south of Guadalajara!

A visit to Sahuayo

Well I lied. Yesterday I said "today we'll visit Mazamitla for sure" or something like that, and then plans changed! Barb and Sal were going into the city of Sahuayo to order some floor tiles for the new construction, and asked if we'd like to tag along.

Hacienda Contreras (day 13)

Well the rain dogged us again on and off all day yesterday so we just hung out here. We did get patches of blue sky in the afternoon and we took advantage of that to go for a walk, but by evening it was raining again.

Payback

We have to think that all this rain is payback for the three and a half months of perfect weather we had last winter! Well, it may be wet, but at least we're not cold and that's the most important part.

Hacienda Contreras (day 11)

Well I hate to keep going on about the weather, but it's kind of affecting our day to day activities! Normally the rainy season is over by now, but this latest hurricane has put a "damper" on things!

Hurricane Jova

Hurricane Jova is expected to hit landfall this afternoon as a category 3 hurricane. It looks like Puerto Vallarta is going to take a direct hit, but then the storm looks to be heading north from there. Because we are at 6,300 feet elevation, much of the wind should dissipate, plus we are on the eastern edge of the storm.

Rainy days

Well, we are getting what was forecast, on and off rainshowers and lots of cloud. The hurricane and tropical storm are still in the ocean and moving very slowly. Now not expected to hit landfall until Tuesday evening.

Hacienda Contreras (day 8)

We've been having some very cloudy days as this storm system makes it's way to us, so we've plugged into the electricity here. Solar panels work great, but only when there's sun!

Expecting some heavy rain

There are two large storm systems heading our way that are expected to dump a lot of rain over the next few days.

Where will we go next? We are going to let YOU decide!

We are quite happy relaxing for the month of October (and possibly a few days more!) and exploring the area around Hacienda Contreras. However we’ve been thinking about where we want to go when we’re ready to move on and we’re going to let you make the choice for us!

Starting our fifth year on the road

Other than one four month stint housesitting, yesterday marked four full years living in a motorhome. It was October 5, 2007 that our house sale closed and we moved into Sherman.

A picnic

Yesterday was a good day. Absolutely perfect weather, sunny with a few clouds and a high around 27C (81F). We did a 2 mile jog/walk in the morning and then I started washing Sherman. Got out the ladder and did the top half of one side. I'll do the lower half this morning.

Hacienda Contreras (day 3)

We had a relaxing day yesterday. Spent some time on the internet while having coffee and tea when we got up, then we went for a walk around the RV park. The perimeter of the park is a half-mile walk and we did four times around so we did two miles.

A nice hike in the hills

Woke up yesterday to clear blue skies and sunshine. The high was 26C (79F), and although we did get some clouds in the afternoon the weather was otherwise perfect. One of the things we love about this area is the temperature. Nice cool nights that are good for sleeping, and just perfect during the day.

September expenses

Well that was a costly way to end our fourth full year living in a motorhome! September was an expensive month, partly due to gasoline, but we also stocked up in the food department for an extended stay in Mexico, and we did some costly maintenance to Sherman. We spent $4,677 for the month, our most expensive single month in the last four years.

Hacienda Contreras, near Valle de Juarez

We didn't set the alarm Friday night because we knew we needed a good nights sleep. But we also wanted to do a long drive Saturday and so we wanted to get a fairly early start. Turned out we got a good sleep and we were on the road just before 9:00am. Not bad.

Zacatecas

Thanks you all so much for the outpouring of support. We are a little overwhelmed by your comments and thoughts, many from friends we have not yet met. We're so glad that some of you were able to share Whiskey's company over her last few weeks with us.