Happy New Year from Gold Canyon, AZ

Happy New Year everyone!  We're basking in the sunshine here at Gold Canyon, AZ.  Wish you were here!

Odessa, NY ?? or Odessa, TX ??

Well, here we sit in a campground in Odessa, TX,  just west of Abilene.... with snow coming down!  There's a storm moving through, so we'll stay here til morning.

After much craziness last night we found a Walmart to stay overnite in.  They told us to park right along an access road with cars going (loudly!) by all night long -- it was a 24-hr. Walmart!  Beggers can't be choosers though, but we'll never go back there again.  We got up at 5am and headed west and ran smack dab into this storm..... I think the only two places it's snowing much right now is New York and southern NM/west Texas!

We just made a reservation in Deming, NM for tomorrow (Wednesday) night, then we'll arrive at Gold Canyon on New Years Eve day about mid-afternoon.  We called to see if we could come in a day early -- no problem.

What's That Strange Light in the Sky?

We're nearing Nashville about now .....  and the sun is shining!
   
It's hard to believe we are actually on our way for 4 months.  Aat this rate we'll have a day or 2 to spare before we can check into Gold Canyon.  So we may hang around Tucson a bit.

Westward Ho!

We didn't get on the road until about 10am the day after Christmas.  We decided to wait awhile to make sure the weather was clear all the way down to Virginia.  We had drizzly rain a good portion on the trip, but it finally cleared up with a spectacular sunset near Winchester.  It's about 7:58pm, and we've stopped at a Walmart near Staunton, VA.  This corner of the lot is filled with RVs probably on their way south, or back home from the holidays.  Anyway it seems to be a perfect overnight stop.  You should see the snowbanks here!  But the roads are clear, and the temps are in the mid 40s.

Larry and I both agree we had the nicest Christmas ever this year.  We had time with all the kids, plus squeezed in close friends (!) too.  Jim, Jody and Tammy came over on Saturday before Christmas.  We had a nice dinner out at Little Venice in Tburg, then returned to our little apartment for dessert and coffee, and to exchange gifts.  Tammy brought her architecture portfolio for us to see -- we were amazed at what she is learning!  

Thursday evening our best buds -- Carol and Jack -- invited us for a tasty spaghetti and meatball dinner, and after we exchanged our scratch-off gift tickets -- an annual tradition with these guys!  I think Jack was the only one who won anything, but it's always fun.  And we topped it off with a hot game of dominoes.  We're certainly going to miss these guys this winter -- and we're hoping they decide to come west for awhile.  We'll see....

On Christmas Eve Ray and Lori invited us to their apartment for sloppy joes (Lori is a great cook!), and to exchange gifts.  When we were done, we all went over the join in Rita and Bob's annual Christmas Eve party.  This year it was extra special, because her daughter Kathy and her family surprised them with a holiday visit (orchestrated by their other daughter Tammy, and her husband, Barth). 

 On Christmas Day we had a nice long visit with Eric and Bernice, and Kristen and Kelsey, along with Ray and Lori.  The tree is in the basement in their new space, and it was nice to have the extra room.  Eric and Bernice made the best standing rib roast ever!  Boy was it lucious!  I brought cheesy scalloped potatoes, and Lori brought a nice salad.  We had one of those cannoli cakes from The Cannoli Connection in Watkins Glen for dessert.  Those two granddaughters of ours just entertain us to no end, and it was a sweet day.

That's about it for tonight -- we're going to sack out early, and get a good start in the morning.  My new WiFi gadget is working nicely.  I just download all my messages and read and respond to them off line -- at least until I get a handle on how my minutes will last.

We're on our way!

Shake Down Trip to Myrtle Beach

All our RVing friends have always told us that a shake-down cruise is wise before driving a motorhome long distances away from the selling dealer.

Another Change for Us!

We decided to store our Titanium Fifth Wheel at a nearby RV dealer's lot for November and part of December.  We made a trip to the RV to get some things out of it, and lo and behold, there sat a 2003 Discovery Diesel Class A Motorhome looking for new owners!  The Discovery had only 1,600 miles on the diesel engine (yes, you read that right!) ... the previous owner had the motorhome delivered to a campsite each season by the dealership, so the only miles driven were back and forth to that nearby campsite.  Well, once again the dealer made us a deal we couldn't refuse for both our tow vehicle and the fiver. 

We've always thought a motorhome would be the ideal way for us to travel with our pooch, Brody.  Well, once that log home sold we decided to make the move.  So just before Thanksgiving we took delivery of our new motorhome.

The Discovery's first stop was on in Schuyler County, NY, to serve as a hunting camp for a couple of days for Larry and Neil Fogerty.  Neil and Larry have made a tradition of spending opening day of deer season together for over 20 years now.  So this year with the log cabin sold, they made the motorhome their home base.

SOLD!

On October 19th, 2009 we closed on the sale of our beautiful log home. A wonderful young couple from SanFrancisco, CA purchased it as a second home.  We've spent 7 happy years there after building it as a retirement home in 2002.  Now our plans and dreams have changed, and we want to travel, travel, travel.

As luck would have it, one of the apartments in a small house we own in Trumansburg, NY became available, so we drastically downsized, and moved into that apartment around the first of October.

Everything is falling into place here.... we've remodeled the apartment and are enjoying living in a village setting after all these years of living in the country! Everything is so close by -- grocery store, post office, several restaurants, even a Farmer's Market one block away in the summer months.

Plus many of our family members also live in the Tburg area. So it's a great location for us. This is where Lynne grew up, and it feels really good to be back in my hometown!

We've already made plans to head to Arizona for January and February 2010 -- so we're making all the necessary plans and arrangements to accomplish that.

We Found Our Fifth Wheel!

We've finally located our fifth wheel camper ..... Lord knows we've searched long enough! We just purchased a gently used 2008 Titanium 34E39RE. We came across a deal we could not refuse, and we'll bring it home in about a week. Our original plan was not to purchase an RV until the house is sold, but we just couldn't pass this deal up. It certainly will be a comfy home for us once the house is gone. But meanwhile, we'll enjoy it whenever we can, and learn all the nuances of camping in luxury!

Inner Harbor of Baltimore, MD

Our last stop with the "Marlene and Friends" bus tour was the Inner Harbor of Baltimore, MD.

This area has been turned into a tourist paradise complete with all kinds of shops, malls, restaurants, boat rides and promenades that follow the waterfront!



We took a nice, informative boat ride around the harbor, then wandered back over to Five Guys Burgers and Fries for lunch. This is our new fast food favorite whenever we can find this restaurant -- they have over 300 locations in 25 states, so they are relatively easy to find. Best hand-packed burgers and home-made fries around!

Then we topped the visit off with ice cream from Ben and Jerry's and hopped back on the bus for the long ride home.

It was a nice 4-day getaway -- and we left the driving to them!

Washington, DC and Arlington National Cemetary

On June 12th we boarded a tour bus with "Marlene and Friends", hosted by Marlene Reitz. Marlene worked for many years at Cornell University, and helped plan the employee association trips. Now that she is retired, she has a little business of her own planning bus trips to popular spots. We've previously traveled with her to Savannah, GA, and Hilton Head, NC. We like to travel with our good friends, Carol and Jack Pyhtila on these sojourns. Jackie and Tom Ferretti also help make up our traveling group on the bus tours.

It's been many years since we've toured Washington, DC, and there are a couple of memorials to honor our brave men and women who fought for this country that were erected in recent years. Many brave souls have paid the ultimate price, and our patriotism is always piqued when we are in the presence of these magnificent memorials.

The Korean War Veterans Memorial -- Wall Mural in background ...


is especially poignant to me.... my Dad, Bill Bonsall, was in Korea during that war. I remember seeing pictures of a bunch of jovial soldiers in a foreign country that seemed so desolate and barren to me. Of course, the happiness depicted in those photographs belied their purpose for being there. Even as a child I sensed that somehow.

This unique memorial consists of a group of 19 soldiers representing all parts of the U.S. Armed Forces. Here is a link to a wonderful description of the planned representation at the Korean War Veterans Memorial. Every inch of this memorial has meaning, the Pool of Remembrance, the Hibiscus plants (the national flower of South Korea), the Mural Wall made from granite with etchings of photographs of the Korean War from the National Archives.

An inscription at the Korean Memorial reads "Freedom is Not Free" -- a reminder there are those who are protecting us always, even at the expense of giving their lives to keep us safe.

We also visited many other memorials, including the newer World War II Memorial ...



The Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial complex .... note that his cape hides his wheelchair -- this depicts the period he didn't want the Nation to know he could not stand.



The old standbys, the Lincoln Memorial...


The Vietnam Wall...Jackie and Tom are tracing the name of a soldier honored here.


The Washington Monument ...


Each of these memorials tells a tale of gallant heroism as leaders of our country, and as those who seek to protect it.

Before leaving the DC area we stopped at Arlington National Cemetery. We all hopped on board a "tourmobile" for a ride through and past the highlights there. Once again, we felt the emotion of witnessing thousands of simple white headstones marking the lives lost during wartime.



We were fortunate to be able to witness the "Changing of the Guard" ceremony while we were at Arlington. Did you know that these young men dedicate their lives to the honor of performing this ceremony -- here is a link to the requirements to become sentinels at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.



I'm so glad we made another visit to DC ... it's a surprisingly inviting city with all it's greenery. The beautiful lawns at the Capitol Building and others are used regularly by locals for sports events, and family picnics. We certainly enjoyed our time in our nation's capitol.

Old Friends

Our friends for many, many years -- Reenie and Harf Overton -- came by last night for drinks and dinner on Ennis Mountain. Harf and Reenie just returned to Elmira last week for three months. They have been full-timing in their motorhome for about 2-1/2 years now.

Larry, Reenie and Harf spent their working careers with New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG). He and Larry spent many years as linemen, then they each branched out into areas of management in the late 90s. Reenie became one of the team doing all the brainstorming for NYSEG in Portland, ME during her final years with the company. Harf was also Larry's best man at our wedding 27 years ago.

We had a great night talking about the RVing lifestyle, with them giving us lots of pointers for when we take off in our fifth wheel. They regaled us with stories about places they've been, and things they've seen this year. They told us about the good, the bad, and the ugly as far as campgrounds go -- and weather conditions. They say that the hardest part is that you just can't physically see everything you want to see across this country.

They still haven't found that one special place that speaks to them about settling down there -- they suspect when they do stop full-timing they'll spend summers here in central New York State, then winters wherever their hearts take them.

Sounds like a good plan to me!

Cranberry Lake

On the way back from Plattsburgh we checked out the Cranberry Lake Campground -- part of the Adirondack Forest Preserve Camping network in northeastern New York State. Our son, Eric, and his family camped there a couple of years ago, and thought it was really nice.

What a beautiful place! There are no hookups, but the sites are large, level and easy to get into. Plus you can park even a 40-ft. fifth wheel right next to the shoreline! It's such a pristine lake -- clear as a bell! We can't wait to try it. We've already picked out a couple of sites that we'll try to reserve. Of course, 2-3 days will be long enough to be in the middle of the Adirondack wilderness without hookups -- I don't think there is even cell phone service. But as anyone will tell you who has experienced camping in the Adirondacks, it's worth it! The aroma of balsam fir is unmistakable. Now, if we can just figure out how to get our canoe on top of the camper!

NY's Adirondacks and Plattsburgh

Larry was doing safety inspections for NYSEG in Plattsburgh last week, so I decided to tag along. I did some shopping while he was working, then we met for dinner each night.

Plattsburgh lies along the shores of Lake Champlain (French: lac Champlain) which is a natural, freshwater lake located mainly within the borders of the United States (between the Adirondack Mtns. of New York, and the Green Mtns. of Vermont) but partially situated across the Canada – United States border in the Canadian province of Quebec. There is a photo of one of the ferries that crosses from New York into Vermont. There are also several photos looking toward the Green Mtns. in the distance.

Our plan was to tour down through NY's Adirondacks on the way back and scope out some campgrounds. The Adirondacks have long been a favorite of both of ours, but Larry has a special place in his heart for them. So we hope to spend some time there during Northeast summers.

Larry plans 2 fishing trips to Long Lake every spring. He and Jim (our middle son) always go on Father's Day weekend, and then he plans another trip with his cousin, Howard Nichols. Howard and Larry used to hike back in to Rock Lake and camp and canoe (>5 miles), but in recent years they've stayed in a local motel. Last year Jimmy and Larry camped as well. But he says his old bones can't handle sleeping on the ground these days -- so I guess they'll stay in the motel this year.

Sadly, we discovered one of their favorite eating places in Long Lake burned to the ground recently. The Cobblestone Inn was being renovated, and had an electrical fire during the night. They couldn't save it. It will be missed in that little town.

Best Laid Plans....... Can Change!

Welcome to our trip journal! As our plan to become "snowbirds" or "full-timers" evolves, we'll be traveling throughout the U.S. checking out our options.

We began retirement in 2002 with a move back to our roots -- near our family and friends -- in Cayuta, N.Y. We built a cozy log home next to the pond on a portion of the 74+ acres we've owned since Larry bought his grandfather's farm back in the late-1960s.

Since 2002 we've enjoyed our log home immensely, but it has become secondary to our love of travel -- so we've decided to "sell the farm" and travel across this fantastic country of ours. We've got lots of decisions to make about how we'll do that traveling, but meanwhile -- while we're waiting for our home to sell -- we'll make several road trips checking out our options.

We've pretty much determined that we want to spend our winters in Arizona -- and our summers in Trumansburg, N.Y. As the new owners of the "Bonsall Homestead" in Trumansburg, we'll have a summertime home base. We love that little village -- it's much like a retirement village found in warmer climates -- with all kinds of activities and services nearby. It's close to the kids and grand-kids -- and other extended family. Friends too! Our current plan is to hang onto some acreage near Cayuta as well for a hunting camp. Larry's gotta have a hunting camp!

So, check back with us from time-to-time for updates on the "Master Plan". Click on the "Request Updates" link at the top of the page if you'd like to be notified automatically when we've posted a new update.

One thing nice about being retirees is that you can always change your minds, and take a different direction for enjoying life. We're taking that option while we still can!