The 6 best things about Canada

I have been accused in the past of being a little bit "anti" Canadian. And while it's true that I am outspokenly critical of things that I think Canada could do better, being back in our home country for a couple of weeks has reminded me that there are some distinctly Canadian things that make me think "hey...that's pretty good"!

So, in no particular order, here's my own personal list of what I believe to be the 6 best things about Canada...

Global warmists - please do not reply

Because as we sit here in the snow and cold, your rambling sounds like complete nonsense.

We've been in Ottawa less than two weeks, and I am reminded every day why our number one goal in life is never to spend another winter in Canada.

The last time the temperature here in Ottawa was above 10C (50F) was November 24. So glad we haven't been here that long!

Upcoming flights

We were on 16 different flights in 2014. And in 17 different airports! I keep track of all of our flights on a website called Flight Diary.

It's free, and it gives you all sorts of fun statistics. Like the fact that we sat in airplanes for a total of 64 hours during the year!

Off to the sugar bush

There isn't much more that is Canadian than hockey and maple syrup. We're not big hockey fans, but we sure are big maple syrup fans!

However, going to the maple sugar bush now is not the same experience that I remember as a kid. Back then, you went for a walk in the bush and had fun checking for and tasting the sweet sap in the buckets that were hanging from the trees.

Gotta get outside!

Been spending far too much time sitting and staring at the computer. At least we're getting caught up on a few things, and it's nice to have a consistent supply of internet, instead of being limited by our expensive cellular internet when we're on the road with the motorhome.

So when Ruth's dad said that he needed to go in to the nearby town of Carleton Place for an appointment, we didn't hesitate to go along for the ride.

How to collect your Amazon packages while on the road

A lot of people buy through Amazon.com, but when you're living and traveling in your RV it's not always that easy to order and be able to list a delivery address.

Sure, a lot of campgrounds will allow you to have packages delivered...but what do you do when you don't stay at very many campgrounds?

A day at the beach? Not quite...

In fact, pretty much the opposite. Late March in the Ottawa area can be a mixed bag, so we knew we might experience pretty much anything during our two week visit. However while we were hoping for at least March or possibly even April type of weather, instead we are getting what is typically January weather.

But, we have to bear with it, so we still went out for a 5 km (3 mile) walk.

Tilley - 6 month clothing update

It was about six months ago that we received our order of Tilley clothing in the mail. We were about to embark on a one month trip to South Korea, and we like to travel light. We only take a wheeled carry on bag, and just about everything that was in our bag came from Tilley.

Hats, socks, underwear, shirts, jackets, and pants!

Family and friends

Two weeks seems to go by pretty quickly, so we're trying to make the most of it by spending as much time as possible with family and friends. After all, we didn't come here to enjoy the cold and snow, although I have to say that it's not bothering me as much as I thought it would.

It's almost a refreshing change, especially knowing that we don't have to put up with six months of it!

The Great White North

Welcome to Canada, the great white north! That title is sure living up to it's name for our visit. Snowing this morning, on the first full day of spring! Daytime temperature not bad, hovering around the freezing mark. But, still unseasonably cold at night. Supposed to go down to -17C (2F) tonight. Brrr!

Took a blog break yesterday, so here's what we've been up to...

Surprise!

We said that we were in Las Vegas for one reason, and one reason only. What was that reason?

To use the Las Vegas airport!

Ruth's great quiche recipe!

The other day when we went for a hike in Sedona, Ruth had made a quiche the the night before. And she used corn tortillas instead of a pastry pie crust...and it was delicious! Many of you were asking about the recipe she uses.

So here it is...!

A look back at Arizona

We made it to Las Vegas. And so of course now we are in the state of Nevada.

We spent almost two months touring Arizona. I think that's the longest amount of time that we've ever been in one state...and we still haven't seen it all! Our original plan was to take in parts of Southern California too, but there was too much to see in Arizona.

Oh, of course we did spend some time at Imperial Dam and Pilot Knob which are both technically in California, but right on the border.

Our new RV washing machine!

Just puttered around most of the day yesterday.

I had bought a gallon of distilled water at Walmart the other day and topped up the batteries. I check them once a month, and they were due for some water and a clean up.

Almost felt like Christmas!

Yesterday, we drove about 129 miles (206 kms) to just north of Kingman, Arizona. We've dropped back down into the desert now, and temps are warmer. It's just me, but I really do like the forest and the trees better than the desert. Even if it comes with slightly cooler temperatures.

Before we left, I had taken apart that switch that was affecting our transmission torque converter. I cleaned the contacts, and that seems to have done the trick. So our gas mileage is back to where it should be and Sherman's transmission is acting the way it was designed.

Arizona is full of fantastic boondocking spots

We left Flagstaff yesterday morning around 10:00am. Stopped to get some gas, but only a little because it's cheaper in Kingman and we're headed there today.

Can't believe the wide variance in gas prices in Flagstaff. From $2.30 to $2.70! I don't understand why anybody would pay $2.70, when it's $2.30 across the street.

It wasn't meant to be...

We tried to go for a hike yesterday, but it just didn't happen. The weather wasn't great. Overcast, and a high of about 55C, which was fine, but then it started spitting rain. Still, we drove about 8 miles (13 kms) from our great boondocking spot to the forest road that leads to the Lava Tube Cave.

But the forest road entrance is at 8,000 ft altitude, and it's closed during winter.

Heading north - Sedona to Flagstaff

Yesterday morning, we had Joe over to the motorhome for breakfast. Some of Ruth's delicious pancakes! And then it was time to say goodbye, as we were heading north on highway 89A towards Flagstaff.

Our original plan was to head up to the Grand Canyon for a few days, but when we detoured down to Mesa to avoid that storm last week, we essentially lost three days.

Hiking on the edge!

We left our boondocking spot 8 miles west of Sedona, and drove directly to the trailhead at Mund's Wagon Trail. I had seen the parking lot from Google maps satellite view, and it looked big enough to park Sherman for a few hours while we went on a hike.

We got there just after 10:00am, and had we been 10 minutes later, we wouldn't have got a spot. You'll find out further on in the story that our entire day would have turned out totally different had we not been able to park there.

So, we were very lucky!

The only problem with Sedona...

is...well...Sedona itself.

The area surrounding Sedona, Arizona is simply spectacular. I don't know the history, but you'd have to think somebody back in the 1920's or 1930's dropped the ball when this area wasn't made into a National Park.

Because it should have been!

It's not the Destination - It's the Journey!

It was only a couple of months ago that we experienced Mexico's fantastic Copper Canyon by train. And we loved it! Riding the rails while looking at gorgeous scenery under clear blue skies just can't be beat. So when we were invited to see the Verde Canyon (often called Arizona's other Grand Canyon!) the same way, we jumped at the opportunity.

Verde Canyon Railroad has been operating scenic tours of the canyon since 1990. An average of 90,000 people per year take this relaxing 4 hour trip. They can add two more this year!

The most interesting thing you'll see that day.

If you visit the Gold King Mine and Ghost Town, located only a mile up the road from Jerome, Arizona, it will be without a doubt the most interesting thing you'll see that day.

We had asked the owner, Don Robertson, if we could park overnight in their big level lot and he said that was no problem. When we woke up the next morning, we waited until the 10:00am opening dynamite blast (at least that's what it sounded like!) and then we wandered over to explore.

Overnight in Jerome, Arizona

We were told that there is nowhere to park a motorhome overnight in Jerome, Arizona. And that's pretty much true. But, we did find a nice level spot less than a mile away.

Jerome is an interesting place, and certainly worth a visit.

Not recommended for motorhomes...

When Sherman hears something like this, it's just a challenge for him!

Besides. Highway 89A from Prescott through Jerome, and up to Sedona is a scenic highway, and we wouldn't want to miss something like that! And Sherman has lots of experience with mountain roads, and we're not towing anything so we figured it would be no problem.

And we were right.

Anybody been to one of the Carefree RV Resorts?

When we were asked to write about an RV resort, I almost turned down the opportunity. Because any of our regular readers know that this type of place is simply not our style. We're much more into the great outdoors and being away from it all when we're RV'ing.

However, I know that there are many different ways to enjoy the RV lifestyle, and that staying at an RV resort is a very popular thing to do. So I was curious as to how many of our regular readers would actually be interested in this type of place.

Practice makes perfect...

Another gorgeous day yesterday. Yes, we have to put up with cooler nights, but with sunshine and daytime highs around 60F (15C) are perfect hiking weather up here at Prescott, Arizona. The desert was nice, but I'll take this anytime. I like trees and mountains and greenery.

We've been doing a decent hike nearly every second day lately, and now when we look at a trail that's 10 miles (16 kms) long, we don't even think twice.

Winter Camping!

It was a beautiful sunny morning yesterday, so before we hit the road we went for another hike. Black Canyon Trail is a great place to stop for a short or long walk because the trailhead is right beside Interstate 17 at Black Canyon City just north of Phoenix.

But the trail runs through a river bed that's normally dry at this time of year.

Enough of the big city - back on the road!

We enjoyed our time with Jeff and Star (thanks again guys!), and our first experience with Boondockers Welcome , however we had had enough of the big city. So fortunately, the cold, wet, rainy, windy, and snowy weather system to the north of us has now passed by, and we were happy to be able to head out yesterday morning.

Still, it took us hours to get out of the built up area. We had a few stops to make along the way...

Biggest Booze store ever!

Our Boondockers Welcome hosts, Jeff and Star, had to stock up their booze cupboard, so we went along with Jeff to the biggest booze store ever. Well, I don't know about that for sure, but I am pretty sure it's the biggest booze store we've ever been in.

And great prices too, so we did some stocking up of our own!

February Expenses

Well that was a little better!

Coming off the almost record high month of January's expenses where we did a lot of driving and bought a lot of RV items as well as a new laptop, just about anything would be better.

And it ended up that we spent $1,200 USD ($1,568 CAD)...a full $2,000 less than we spent in January! Let's have a look at how it all broke down...

The big Mesa flea market

Our hosts Jeff and Star were taking us to the big Mesa flea market, but Star has a bad foot and decided it would be too much walking for her. But Jeff said he still wanted to go, so off we went!

Mesa sure takes up a big area. In fact, the whole Phoenix metro area just doesn't seem to stop. There are somewhere around 4.5 million people!

Great first experience with Boondockers Welcome

Yesterday, we drove down from Payson to Mesa to escape a cold front weather system that was forecast to eliminate the sunshine from Payson for the better part of five days. We could have dealt with the colder temperatures...but our electricity supply comes from our batteries, and when there is no sun, our solar panels can't charge our batteries!

And there was definitely no sun when we woke up yesterday morning!