Mohr or Less

The Journey

2011-02-14T09:20:00.000-08:00

It is good to be home after 31 days of travel: 12 plane rides; 20 car, bus, train rides (not including those under 1 1/2 hours in duration); and 15 different beds and pillows.
Ecuador and Peru are beautiful countries with a dramatically visible history and spectacular scenery. We had a great time visiting Inca ruins, going to local markets, and traveling around the two countries by car, bus, plane, train, bike, dugout canoe, river raft, and on foot. As with most trips, the people we met from Peru, Ecuador and the rest of the world were a highlight.
We hit the beginning of the rainy season in Peru so we had some very very rainy intervals but oddly enough the Amazon jungle was having a drought which presented its own challenges. We were above 9,000 feet for most of our visit in both countries so the weather was quite cool despite Ecuador's location right on the equator.

Jude and I have been traveling in Mexico, Central America and South America for 40 years and although the Internet, improved transportation, and more English speakers has made travel there easier than ever, some of the same challenges remain for the budget traveler:
Clean water is still only found in bottles. The public toilets have improved beyond belief but these countries still have the nasty habit of putting the used toilet paper in a wastebasket instead of the toilet. The buses in Ecuador had no toilets and would only stop to let passengers onto the side of the road for a pee break if the trip was over 4 hours. Peru's buses were luxurious in comparison and did have toilets but as one bus driver announced at the beginning of our 7 hour bus trip from Cusco to Puno, they are for "Pee Pee; no Po Po, NO PO PO!!" We discovered why no Po Po on a subsequent trip with a less conscientious driver (we will save you the details). Heaven help anyone that had tourista!

Cheap accommodation is still available in Ecuador and costs only slightly more in Peru but the level of comfort is usually in proportion to the amount paid. Paying more for better accommodation is usually not an option in small towns and out of reach in the large cities so mostly the beds were rock hard and/or lumpy as were the pillows (as Jude would say, like sleeping on a bushel of corn). The sheets often were smaller than the mattress.
Fortunately, we found some great rooms with small balconies for the requisite happy hour and magnificent views. One of our best was in Banos, Ecuador where our room was only 16 US$ including breakfast and we overlooked a beautiful garden, the town and the towering mountains --the bedbugs were free. Another great spot was in Ollantaytambo, Peru where we stayed for a bit more with a magnificent view of the local ruins and thankfully, no bedbugs.

Ecuador

Quito
Quito is the capital of Ecuador and just another big city. Our objective was to spend as little time here as possible but ultimately, geography, airports and travel plans forced us to return here four more times for a total of 6 days over the next month.
Banos
A perfect little tourist town squeezed on to a small ledge above a deep river gorge and in the shadow of a still active volcano. This is the town that had a ice cream song (with chiming bells) on the garbage truck, and 5 mineral hot springs that we were interested in until we viewed them from above and noticed the slime green colors of the pools. The clincher was when one local told us that you could wear your cloths in to save having to wash them. We stayed here five nights and enjoyed hiking and biking on the hillsides overlooking the city.

We went on a river rafting ride here too. Pretty exciting with class 3+ rapids and only a strap over your foot holding you into the raft.

I came close to falling out of the raft in one set of rapids and was hanging on by the tip of my toe stretched flat out over the water. I watched as everyone seemed frozen as they watched me reaching for them. There seemed to be some hesitation but finally the “good wife” reached over from the other side of the raft and grabbed my hand as I struggled to pull myself back into the raft.
Lesson learned: carry no life insurance and keep the credit cards in your pocket.

Otovalo
A great little bustling town nestled in lovely green rolling hills covered with corn fields and featuring a vibrant market filled with crafts sold by locals still in traditional dress.

Once again, we hiked in the hills with one memorable walk to a condor refuge where we saw all sorts of birds of prey that had been rescued and were rehabilitating. A wild condor was flying overhead most of the time we were there. Just as we were going to leave it flew down and landed on the cage. For the next 20 minutes, it appeared to be trying to chew through the wire of the cage and free the two condors inside

PERU and Machu Pichu

2011-02-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

Cusco

After two weeks, we flew to Cusco to start the Peruvian portion of our trip. Cusco is where everyone starts their trip to Machu Pichu and the afternoon we arrived, the centre of town was inundated with tourists and crowded with cars, trucks and buses belching diesel fumes. The next day, the crowds had miraculously disappeared but we decided to make a quick exit anyway.
This is usually where you catch the train to MP but the first portion of the track was under repair so the train ride started at the half way point in a town called Ollantaytambo.

The three banana rule:
Traveling in countries where English is the exception, we are often left with more questions than answers. How did the Incas, with no written language or higher math, build all of those amazing structures in just over a 100 years? How did they transport those massive rocks? How did they cut the stone so precisely an produce such flat smooth surfaces with such primitive tools? Why are they planting their crops that way? Why do they wear those strange hats? Why don't their sewers work?
The answer to all of these questions and more is found in what we have come to know as the 3 banana rule. We discovered it while buying fruit in the local market.
We wanted four bananas for the trip on the train. In my lousy Spanish, I told the tiny old lady in the stall I wanted 4 bananas. She broke off three banana and handed them to me. I said, "Non, quatro por favor". She said "Tres". Thinking she did not understand my Spanish, I said again, "Quatro" and held up four fingers. She said, "Tres!" and held up three fingers. You can't argue with a 75 year old woman with a big smile and no teeth so we left with 3 bananas. Thus, the Three banana rule. Some things you just can't explain.

Ollantaytambo
Despite the fact that the train was not running the first half of the track (from Cusco to Ollantay') due to repairs, the company that ran the train continued to sell tickets that included the full fare (substituting a $2 bus ride for the first stage of the train while still charging the $30 for that portion of the fare). We wanted to stay in Ollantaytambo overnight before catching the train at 6:00 AM but we were told that we had to pay for the full ticket whether we used it or not! After many questions, we were told there was in fact one scheduled train that did not include the bus ride so we bought that ticket and hired a car to take us to Ollantaytambo which saved us over $50. There is always a way around the 3 banana rule-- the trick is to figure it out.

Machu Pichu
Machu Pichu was amazing but this is the main tourist destination in South America and naturally, they take every opportunity to gouge the tourist. Over priced trains, buses, entrance fees, and food and accommodation wore us down after a while.
We caught the train at 6:00 in the morning. The two hour trip into Agua Caliente and then the half hour bus ride up to the site itself is spectacular and we were fortunate to pick a day when the number of tourists was below average. When we arrived, the site was shrouded in mist and drizzle but the it eventually lifted and gave us some of the classic views of the ruins that we all know from photos. After a couple of hours it closed in again. Then the rains began in earnest. It poured, and poured, and poured. We wore waterproof ponchos but even those eventually gave out and we were soaked through. By the time we finally left, the water was pouring off the site in small creeks and impressive waterfalls formed down the sides of the ruins. The wind came up and we finally abandoned the site to take the bus down to the town of Agua Caliente, where we stopped for dinner before catching the 7:30 train to Ollantay'.

The train ride back was 6 hours of comedy, parties, beautiful women, and free massages (for some).
As the train rolled along, we enjoyed the company of two young guys from England and their female side kick from Denmark. Across the aisle from us were four good looking young women from Argentina. Each of these seven young travelers could have been models and they were an amazing mix of nationalities. The only one that we might have guessed her country of origin correctly was the girl from Denmark. It only took the two male stewards in our car about 30 seconds to start flirting with the young women. Can't say I blame them.

About an hour into the trip, the train stopped. It was pitch dark outside and we could just see that the raging river was right next to the train. The two Brits kept us in stitches for the first hour but everyone in our car was tired from trekking around and to Machu Pichu so we eventually fell asleep with the rest in our car. After an hour of restless sleep, we awoke to movement and thought the train was moving again but it turned out that the last of the three cars in our train was having a party. A large tour group in that car had arrived at the station drunk and from all appearance never stopped drinking. They were all up in the aisles dancing and singing. Still no word on why we were stopped but

The Argentinians spoke Spanish and some English and they told us that the stewards had said that it was either an overturned train or a landslide. There were now three trains dead on the tracks.

After another hour of fitful sleep, a lady came through the train and informed us that indeed there had been a slide because of all the rain but it was now cleared and we would be moving in about an hour. By this time, the stewards were giving the Argentinian ladies massages and our comedy team had resumed their entertainment. After about an hour, the train began to move, the party in the last car wound down, the stewards resumed their "regular" duties, and our comedy duo fell asleep.

We loved this part of our trip but if we were asked to give advice on where to go to see spectacular ruins, we would likely send you to Tikal in Guatamala rather than Peru. Buried deep in the jungle, the setting is not as spectacular as Machu Pichu but that is compensated for by the absence of throngs of tourists, spectacular ruins, and the mystical feel of the place. The low cost and the proliferation of monkeys, toucans, and other wildlife is an added bonuses.

Pisco
We shared the two hour taxi to Pisco with an Australian couple we met and stayed there for two nights. This is a strangely deserted town except for the 2 blocks around the central square where there is a lively and perennial market for the tourists coming to visit the local ruins.

On Sunday morning it really comes alive when the local farmers bring in their potatoes, beans, flowers and other produce.

Puno
Back to Cusco to catch the 7 hour bus to Puno. Here we experienced our first minor rip off in the bus depot where one company sold us tickets to another companies bus at a 70% mark up (the down side to limited Spanish). We were given a magic shuffle 5 minutes before the bus left and by the time we discovered the scam, we were on the bus. At least we fared better than the two behind us --they were sold tickets in the same manner but the tickets were dated for the wrong day and had someone else's name on them.

Puno is another large dirty city. Its only redeeming feature is its location on huge Lake Titicaca so we only stayed 2 nights but enjoyed a nice sunny boat trip to the island of Uros which is world renown because the islands are floating. The indigenous people have lived for centuries on these islands that they created from reeds cut from the lake. Every day they add reeds to the top of the islands to compensate for the rotting reeds below. Unfortunately, the islands are somewhat equivalent to visiting an "authentic Indian village" in Canada. Yes, you will see how they used to build there homes and boats but essentially it is a tourist trap where visitors feel obligated to purchase mass produced trinkets at exorbitant prices.

The Amazon Jungle

2011-02-14T07:26:00.000-08:00

We flew back to Ecuador for the grand finale. We had originally planned to go the the Galapagos but after talking to many that had been there and comparing their experiences to our other previous travels and then considering the $400 per day cost, we decided on a jungle tour instead.

We had put off the jungle until the end of our trip because of the drought in the Amazon basin. Unlike the highlands, they had not had rain for 30 days and the lagoon where the jungle lodge was located had dried up. When last in Ecuador, we were advised that within 2 weeks, the rains would return and fill it up. In fact, another two weeks without rain resulted in the lagoon drying to the point that we would need to make a 20 minute trek across it to the lodge (part of the "adventure" the tour operator informed us).

We took a 30 minute flight to Lago Agrio and then a 2 hour van ride to the bridge over the Cuyabeno river where we began our three hour river ride into the Cuyabeno Reserve in a 30 foot dugout canoe equipped with a 40 hp Yamaha.

It soon became apparent that due to the water shortage, navigation of the river had become questionable. It is normal for large trees to fall across the river but with the low water, every minute or two of the three hour trip, our driver had to lift and lower the engine to go over logs, branches and dead heads in the water. Before each lift, he had to goose the motor to ensure we made it over the log in question. This usually worked but resulted in a wild ride as we bumped, tipped, and banged into the mud banks. Disneyland could learn some tricks from these guys.

Once we arrived at the large dry lagoon, we were greeted by our English speaking guide, Lewis. Lewis was born in a small Indian village deeper in the jungle. He was extremely personable and had endless knowledge of the local flora and fauna. As we stood in the mud, he began to try and find us gum boots to wear across the mud flats. These were supposed to be included in the tour but it soon became clear that there was a shortage of boots at the lodge as the cook took off his boots and gave them to me (one size too small) and Lewis took off his and gave them to Jude (2 inches too long). Lewis continued his work with a family he was taking to find crocodiles (he walked into camp that night after dark; still with bare feet) and we followed behind the cook.

The 20 minute walk turned out to be an obstacle course with bamboo bridges, slippery planks and long sections of mud up to our boot tops. At one point, the combination of sucking mud and boots 3 sizes too large caused Jude to land on her ass in the muck. The cook seemed surprised when she started laughing and promptly got up and carried on. We had to do that muck trip about 8 times during our stay but since they never could find boots for Jude, they gave her a special dispensation and she only had to put the boots on to cover the flats--the rest of the time she was allowed to wear her runners. A real bonus in the heat and humidity -- until Lewis mentioned that there were over 100 species of snakes, many of them poisonous, that we should watch for on our jungle walks.

It turned out we were the only guests in the lodge so we had the lodge to ourselves and Lewis as our personal guide. Over the next three days we went on jungle walks, Cayman spotting, and piranha fishing. We also took another 6 hour return trip down the river where we visited an Indian village and we learned how to make cassava bread from manioc root, were accosted by a mischievous pet monkey, and visited a shaman. We had been grounded in the river several times by the time we returned to the camp but our fearless guide and driver managed to free us each time.

The beds and food were the best we had experienced in Ecuador and we fell into bed exhausted each night.

The last morning we went on an sunrise bird watching walk and then crossed the mud flats for the final time. We celebrated as we left our gum boots on the bank of the river and put on our thongs and climbed into the canoe for the trip home. Just us, the 18 year old driver, and a mystery woman (never did figure out who she was or why she was there). Within minutes it became apparent that the river level had fallen another foot and was near the critical level where it would be impossible to navigate the waters.

After much bumping and grinding, we eventually found ourselves firmly stuck on top of a huge log in the middle of the river. The driver got off and tried to push us off--no chance. Then we all got off onto the log and worked at getting the dugout back in the water. Then the driver got back in the boat and tried revving the motor. Then he got back on the log and promptly fell in the water. Fifteen minutes later, we were heading back up stream but after a couple of hours, it was clear the water level was lower and lower.
It was at this point I noticed that the engine only had about 60% of its propeller left. Big jagged parts were missing from all of the logs and rocks it had hit. The need for a balanced prop is clearly western propaganda proliferated by those that sell and repair props because I am sure the prop had been like that for months and the old Yamaha just kept on going.

Eventually, the inevitable happened and we ran aground on a gravel bar. Too shallow for the motor so the mystery lady picked up the long pole in the boat and started pushing. Within a minute it was clear we were going no where so I grabbed the pole and started pushing. Things deteriorated from there and soon we were all in the water pushing the canoe through the water. The other two in their long pants and gum boots and us in our shorts and bare feet--- think piranha, anaconda, crocodiles, poisonous snakes and ???? were on our minds? At times we were up to our waist before there was enough water for the motor to operate and we could climb back into the boat. This continued off and on for the next 2 hours (the return trip took 4 hours). Eventually we arrived back at the bridge with all our fingers and toes and soaking wet for the rest of the trip. We caught the van and then the plane back to Quito and a day later were on the plane to Texas.

As you can see from the photos, this pet of the Indian family we visited was the highlight of our Amazon tour. We saw nine species of wild monkey in the jungle but mostly we saw their ass ends as they disappeared through the jungle. It seems that though this area is a reserve, the indigenous folks still have hunting rights. This cute little guy was already quite a handful and no doubt is destined to become monkey stew in another year.

Catching Up On 2010

2010-11-28T18:36:00.000-08:00

There has been a long dry spell on our blog site so decided to do a quick update and let you see some pictures of our new kite-mobile.

You can double click on any of the photos to enlarge. then hit the back button to return to the blog.


Coyote Taking a Break on Our Dock

Most of you will know that we spent the summer back in Canada mostly hanging around home with a few trips on the side. Just like this coyote we caught sleeping on our dock this Fall. There was a pair of them hanging around most of the summer.

The Mohr Clan--Inlaws and Outlaws

We made it over to the see my family in the Kootenays three times this summer. Once for the wedding of my niece which was a rare opportunity to get the whole family together. Back home, Jude and I enjoyed the lake, did some hiking, and generally enjoyed what BC has to offer. Our kiteboarding friends from Texas joined us for a week in June. I managed to make

Ira & Ron at the Top of Mt. Fosthall

Sunset at Roch Lake

my annual trips to fish at Whitetail Lake in the Kootenays with my brother inlaw in May and into the alpine of Monashee Provincial Park for a week of hiking in August not to mention innumerable fishing trips with my friend Ira.

Mary, Terry, Jude and Ron

Our friends Terry and Mary came all the way from Texas to visit us in June. We had a great visit while they got a small taste of the Okanagan and we visited the zip line park near Revelstoke.

Zip Line Obstacle Course

Ron, Jude, Graham and Natalie

We had lots of other friends and family that visited and helped us enjoy the summer.

Beth and Jude In Edmonton

Jude made it out to Edmonton to see my sister Beth. They enjoyed exploring her new city and then drove back to Vernon.

My brother Glenn and I


Some would say kiting is for the birds

made two kiteboarding trips--one to Hood River, Oregon and the other to Nicola Lake near Merritt in BC. Both

were great trips with fine wind. We had one day when our smallest kites were too big.
The trip to Hood was rudely interrupted when I had a bungie cord whap me in the left eye while we were boon-docking under the freeway in Hood River. I lost site in my left eye and Glenn drove me to emergency and a scary couple of hours while the doctors examined it and my sight slowly returned to near normal. I still have a few flashes in the corner of my eye but they are becoming less common and the ophthalmologist says other than a minor change in the prescription for that eye, it should all return to normal.

During the summer, I put a box on the back of a Ford Ranger flat deck in preparation for the winter kite season.

The Kitemobile

We are going to leave the truck and fly home so the trip down this November will be our last drive for the forseeable future. So far, it has worked great for the intended purpose. It was a bit of a gas hog on the way down as we had to pretty much keep the pedal to the metal all the way to maintain 100 kph. Milage was just slightly worse than our Dodge Ram 1 ton with the trailer on the back. Any way, arrived back safely at our condo on Nov. 15 after 5 eleven hour days of driving.

We have had excellent weather and wind ever since but today at 3:00 AM, the North wind blew in (from Canada) and presently around 50 degrees F with wind gusting over 40 MPH as compared to yesterday at 84 F. OK by us as after 2 weeks with only one day off, even I am ready for a break. Tough job but someone has to do it.

We went to the local grocery store this morning and saw a guy come out with a full cart of groceries. As he came out the entrance, his baseball cap flew off. He left his cart to chase his hat and his cart followed him halfway across the parking lot--now that is one fine wind.

Bad Habits- Ron & Jude Halloween

Slum Landlords

2009-12-14T15:19:00.000-08:00

We finally bought a condo on the island. The prices here finally started to show the pressure of the recession and we wore out two realtors and numerous assistants before finding the deal that we wanted.

It is a 2 year old, 2 bedroom unit on the second floor of a complex with 4 units. We had hoped for a garage but they come at a $40,000 premium on the island that we just could not justify. The complex has a small pool and a small balcony at the entrance and one of the master bedroom.

The deal closes on Dec 18 and Jude has already planned for Christmas dinner on the 25th with 14 friends. We will likely only stay in the units for the last 2 weeks we are here in April since it is rented for Jan. and Feb. and we already have the trailer down here. We will then rent it all of next summer and start using it ourselves in November next year.

You can double click the photos to enlarge. They are not great but we will try to get some better ones at Christmas.

Where the Hey are Jude and Ron

2009-12-14T07:59:00.000-08:00

Every once and a while we get a shocking reminder of how fast the world is passing us by. Like when I looked at our blog page and realized that it was last February that I last posted or when I sent a mass email to our friends and received responses like: "where the hey are you?" or even more depressing "who are you?" .

Anyway, our life has not changed much since our last blog. We have been doing exactly what we please---kiting, fishing, hiking, swimming--- enjoying our winter in the southern most part of Texas and our summers on Okanagan Lake. We pinch ourselves each morning to ensure we're not dreaming and hit ourselves over the head with a 2 x 4 each night to be sure we do not take this good life for granted.

We were away from home a fair bit this summer but we only had one short trip out of BC in our trailer. After visiting Vancouver for my Uncle's 90th birthday, we took a short detour to the coast of Washington before returning to Vernon. I did my annual pilgrimage fishing with Howie my brother in law in the East Kootenays and also managed a day of fishing with Mike in Invermere (a fellow kiteboarder we met in Texas).

The okanagan summer was warm but plagued by forest fires.

I fit in a 4 day hiking trip into Spectrum Lake and the high alpine beyond with my fishing buddy Ira.

This year our trip back south was the quickest ever. By the time we got out of Vernon and visited my parents in Cranbrook, October was done and there was snow on the ground. We made a quick work of the miles to Utah where the weather improved briefly so we stayed 2 days in Moab to explore arches National Park. From there it was a bee line to our destination.

We are now back on South Padre Island, Texas. As you know, we are both addicted to this kite boarding sport so we have chosen to spend our winters on this island. My brother Glenn and his wife Sue have joined us on Padre Island this year. Glenn is also a member of Kiteaholics anonomous. His wife Sue kites but she and Jude have slightly larger brains than the Mohr boys so they are not quite so taken by the sport. Nonetheless, we have enjoyed kiting as a group and several of our happy hours have expanded beyond the requisite hour.

Glenn and Sue usually winter in San Carlos Mexico but they arrived here shortly after us and I believe they have taken to referring to the island as this god forsaken place. Since we arrived this year we have "enjoyed" what old timers here are calling the worst winter in there memory.

It started with the red tide. Unlike our experience with redtide in the Pacific, this red tide not only poisons the shellfish but also kills masses of fish. For the humans on the island, it made it difficult to go outside without a mask because of an airborne component that made breathing next to impossible. Fortunately, the worst had passed when we arrived so we only had to put up with a constant catch in our throats whenever we were outside. Walking on the ocean side of the island was not pleasant and kiting there was often impossible. That lasted a month and gradually diminished---it has been gone for almost two weeks now.

Then there was the Hurricane Ida---she never came near the island but they blamed the unusually high tides and the poor winds on her. Ida passed onto the US coast line five hundred miles to the east the first week in November but the poor winds and high tides remain. The high tides have made the normally sandy dry kite boarding beaches and their access roads a slippery mass of stinking mud and water. Often, we are driving our truck through 6 inches of salt water and setting up our kites on small humps of vegetation. The poor winds have meant fewer days of kiting and instead of the normal balmy prevailing winds from the South East, we have had 9 out of 10 days blowing from the North. Often with cold temperatures and rain.

Enough of bitching about the weather already! what kind of sympathy can we expect with our cloudy and 24 degrees Centigrade when the wind chill in Edmonton is -52!!

What Happened to the Blog?

2009-02-28T09:50:00.000-08:00

We have been so busy having fun that we have not even taken any pictures but a friend lent me her video back pack a few days ago and despite gusty winds and a pitiful kiting effort on my part, we managed to put together a video taken from the riders perspective. I combined it with some video Jude took on our little digital camera so you can see what is actually happening from the beach perspective. Unfortunately, we still have no video of Jude this season.

Before you watch the video, some folks have been giving us the gears about keeping up the blog so I decided to update it.

In November we got back into kiteboarding. Jude made huge progress in her first four sessions out. December, the kiteboarding was great. January the wind was iffy but we had great weather for kiteboarding. February winds have been extremely gusty but the kiteboarding has been fun.

Well that's about it excluding some fun with friends, fishing stories, Jude beating up the poor stingray, and drunken margarita trips to Mexican border towns--now you know why we have neglected the blog.

You can watch the video by clicking HERE but be sure to click on the "watch in HD" in the bottom right of the video when the window opens or you will not get the best resolution.

2008-12-29T18:48:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Where There Ain't No Rules

2008-03-01T17:54:00.000-08:00

One of the things that we loved about Belize was the lack of rules, or if there were rules they could be easily changed to fit the occasion. We experienced this first hand when we went to the zoo.

Ron and I have never been thrilled with zoo's; we have always found large animals in small overcrowded cages a little depressing. Since our arrival in Belize everyone we met told us we shouldn't miss a trip to the zoo. We were told that the visitors were the ones that felt as if they were in cages. That along with the possibility of going on a night visit when they fed the big cats changed our minds.

We arrived at the ticket office and were a little worried when we saw no mention of camping . At the office they said, yes we could camp, no problem, just go across the road where the research station is located. Here we met John, the manager of the research area who was all smiles and told us to pick a spot anywhere. Can we camp under the palapa where the picnic tables are? Sure, let me help you move the tables. He later told us he was sponsored to bike race professionally. On our way to the Zoo we had pulled over to let a race go by and he told us this was an international competition he had skipped to give his body a rest from the grueling training he had to maintain. He told us that there was a group going into the zoo at 8:30 that night and we could tag along with them.

Great!! Dinner and happy hour over, bug uniforms on in case of mosquitos , camera in hand we were ready. Along comes John to tell us that the group had changed their minds but the guide was waiting to give us the tour. Just us and our guide Hilario. I felt a little like Donald Trump asking for the zoo to be closed down so I could have the place to myself. Ah yes the life of the rich and famous. Hilario had a bucket of chicken feet and a pail of fruit and veggies and explained that all of the animals in the zoo had either been injured, had been pets and then became unmanageable, or were confiscated from poachers. They did not buy animals or take them from the wild to increase the numbers and only animals native to Belize were kept in the zoo. The zoo exists totally on grants and donations.

As our eyes became accustomed to the darkness, we heard all sorts of scurrying about , growls, roars and high pitched squeals from the dark zoo. The cages were large, actually they were big sections of jungle with fences around them, palms towering above and creeks and pools running through them. As Hilario called their names, animals would suddenly appear at the fence out of to see what he had for them. Tapir's (cross between elephant and rino) munched carrots, Kinkajou's (think teddy bear and monkey) gobbled bananas, and the neotropical otters slid in and out of the water.

As we approached the Jaguar's cage Hilario told me I should feed him so Ron could get a nice picture. Two jaguar's waited , one as black as night sitting demurely with paws crossed and the other with beautiful spots pacing up and down and growling. ME FEED HIM?? Yikes, isn't there some sort of rule about tourists feeding the animals? What about all those signs you see in other zoo's warning you not to get to close, keep your fingers out of the cages, stand back ,stand back and DEFINITELY NO FEEDING THE ANIMALS. No rules here, so holding a chicken foot up to the fence (which reminded me of a chicken foot I found in my tamale once, but that's another story!!) I fed the big black cat who daintily but powerfully plucked it out of my hand, and with a crunch of those powerful jaws decimated the foot in seconds. Yep, still got all my fingers after I quickly count them in the dark!

Next we saw Carmel colored Puma with sleepy green eyes, and sleek slinky Ocelots weaving in and out of the jungle. The Margays we were told, climbed down trees head first, and as we watched the four of them climb and tumble on top of each other we were reminded of curious kittens (the size of small dogs) with beautiful black and tawny brown markings. When Hilario asked Ron if he was getting good pictures, Ron said the mesh was in the way but they might turn out. Follow me he said, and before we knew it we were INSIDE the cage. Oh boy, here we go again with the no rule thing...I am sure this is an absolute NO NO but what the hell, when in Rome. As Ron knelt down to photograph one of these beautiful cat's inches from his camera, Hilario used a short stick to keep the other 3 from a sneak attack at the rear. I was standing there thinking, hmmm I just fed a jaguar with a chicken foot, so I might have what you would call "chicken fingers"....literally !!!!!! Personally I would have chosen a bigger and thicker stick but I was too busy keeping my hands out of sight in case any of those cute buggers got any ideas. Actually, they just seemed curious but we also got a close look at their claws and teeth and kept that in mind as we backed out of the cage.

All too soon our tour was over, and with a grateful thank-you and final glance behind us we headed back to our campsite. We were afraid the gates might be closed as it was close to 11:00 pm but then realized there were no rules about closing time either.

Guatemala -- Unfinished Business

2008-02-14T18:22:00.000-08:00

Invariably we have found that countries we enjoyed so much in the past no longer resembles our memories when we revisit decades later. Recently, we have tried to avoid returning to places from our past for that reason but when we were in Guatemala almost 30 years ago, we were unable to get to the ruins in Tikal because the road was terrible and the only reasonable way to get there was by plane. At the time we could not afford the trip so last week, we found ourselves crossing the boarder into Guatemala for a 3 day excursion to Tikal and Flores just over 100 km from the Belize boarder.

It is difficult to judge the changes in a country in such a short trip but the country has definitely changed immensely or at least the way of life has changed. When we were last time, with the exception of the large cities, the only form of transportation was by bus or on foot and most could not afford the bus. Junk food did not exist and the indigenous people wore traditional clothing; each area with their own intricate and brightly coloured embroidery. Now, cars are everywhere and the children are beginning to show the results of consuming the contents of the junk food containers that line the roadsides. We heard from travelers that had seen more of Guatemala than us that their was still some sign of traditional dress in other remote parts of Guatemala but not common. They also reported that Guatemala City has a huge drug and gang problem with an average of 14 murders per day since January. So it is true, you can never go back. Nonetheless, the people are still friendly and Tikal was a treat!

When we arrived in Tikal, we camped in front of the Jaguar Inn, one of three accommodations at the Tikal site. You can see from the picture that it was a great spot and right at the gate to Tikal. They allowed us to plug in our cooler in the restaurant and use a small covered area to cook and relax in the evening--very accommodating.

As soon as we arrived, we met a traveler whose parents live in Vernon. He was a recently divorced computer tech searching for the meaning of life. While we were talking with him about his morning in the ruins, another guy he was traveling with came along and said that they needed to catch the bus in 10 minutes or they would have to wait another day. Oddly enough the second traveler was one of the 8 people we had met on the ATM tour we had been on several days earlier. Small world! Anyway, they had no further need for their entrance tickets to Tikal so we bought them from them at 1/2 price.

Tikal was beautiful. We were prepared for the ruins from photos we had seen but the surrounding park was more beautiful than expected with spider monkeys, howler monkeys, parrots, toucans and hundreds of other birds. Because we entered the park in the afternoon, most of the large tour buses had left. We stayed in the park till dusk and on our way out saw a large snake cross our path. Fortunately, it was too dark to determine if it was one of the country's 9 poisonous varieties.
The next day we once again had breakfast with the frootloop birds and we met a couple from Hungary that had driven their landrover from Hungary to Singapore, around Australia, and then from Los Angeles to Tikal with plans to continue to the southern parts of South America. This is the third couple we have met that have shipped their vehicle from Europe. They made us feel like travel wimps and reminded me of a couple of lines in the Jimmy Buffet novel I am reading:
"...but I would point out that adventures don't come calling like unexpected cousins visiting from out of town. You have to go looking for them...."
but they got us thinking about possible future travel options for us.

The second day, we drove to Flores, a small city that completely covers an island of less than one square mile on a huge lake. As we approached the bridge to the island, we were stopped and searched by military with machine guns. We thought they were after money--our large one ton truck makes us a visible target-- but no, we found later that they were security for the island to ensure that the tourists were safe and if anything happened, they could stop exit from the island. Somewhat reassuring to know that Guatemala at least recognizes the value of tourism and the negative impact of poor press.

The following day, we headed back to Belize. Based on information we got from a couple of backpackers we met along the way, we made a detour to Yaxja, a more remote and less visited ruins. We took the turn off the main highway onto a narrow dusty dirt road and proceeded to drive off into the jungle. As the road became rougher and narrower we thought of all the stories we had heard of tourists getting into trouble because they did not stay on the well traveled roads. 11 km later we arrived safely in the park and found a party of about 20 tourism folks on a familiarization tour as they finished up their bag lunches in the parking lot. After they left, we sat in the empty parking lot and had our own lunch then headed into the deserted park. We saw 4 other Spanish speaking tourists during the next two hours that we strolled through the ruins. The highlight was when we heard two troops of howler monkeys doing their roaring thing. As Jude said, it sounds like a cross between lions, dinosaurs (think Jurassic Park) and aliens. As we drove out of the park, we passed right under the trees where they were hollering at each other so got a great look at them.
Later that day we passed back into Belize after the necessary sprays, fees, stamps and confusion that seems to come with each border crossing.

INDIANA JONES.....mohrorless

2008-02-12T19:16:00.000-08:00

We are not the organized tour type, but we finally broke down after hearing so much about the Actun Tunichil Muknal Cave tour or "ATM" for short. We were picked up by an old school bus and with 10 other tourists we bounced down a rough dirt road that I am sure was the same one that Indiana Jones traveled to get to his cave. The dust billowed up through holes in the floor of the bus as we bounced along for another hour.

At the end of the road, we were split into two groups-- we joined a couple of young Canadians that gave the term crazy Canuck new meaning. You know you have arrived in the the jungle when that ordinary house plant you recognize has a single leaf that could cover your body from head to toe. We started off crossing the first creek, got the shoes wet right off, crossed again-- this time water just below the knees and then the last crossing and finally arrived at the mouth of the cave 45 minutes later.

First off, lunch was served which consisted of 2 baloney sandwiches on white bread. While munching away I was trying to remember how old I was when I had my last baloney sandwhich. I didn't realize they still made the stuff! To finish off this taste delight we had cookies that I am sure were manufactured in the same era as my last baloney sandwich. Amazing how even a baloney sandwhich can taste good under the right conditions.

Helmets buckled on, head lamps switched to bright and in we plunged! Swimming into a black cave through crystal clear water with only the light of headlamps was probably one of our most memorable experiences. For the next couple of hours?? who knows, we lost track of time in the cave, we were in total darkness except for our headlamps. Within minutes we are up and out of the water and scrambling over huge rocks that at some point in the formation of the cave had fallen from the ceiling (hopefully none would fall today). On either side of us were stalactites almost to the ground and with the minerals within catching our headlamps it seemed as if someone had stuck a thousand diamonds on the walls. Stalagmites rose up from the cave floor and resembled huge iridescent candles. Into the water again, for a short swim and out to walk gingerly among Maya pots that dated back to 600 AD. It looked as if they had just left them there last week. I had visions of tripping over one of them and being the tourist that got left behind in the cave. We climbed between rocks and along ledges. Some of the tighter passages required a bit of yoga to get to the other side while other "rooms" could have held a semi truck and 500 people.

Our guide was so knowledgeable and had a real passion for the Mayan history. He informed us that the Mayans believed the caves to be the access to the underworld and they were the most sacred places. The signs of these ceremonies were everywhere and in addition to the many pots, included several skeletons of children, young women, and adults that had been sacrificed. They did not live in the caves and only entered them for ceremonial purposes.

The formations were absolutely breath taking and at times Ron and I along with the 2 guys from Calgary were literally speechless. At one portion of the cave we all turned off our lights and were plunged into total blackness. Eyes, open or closed, made no difference and as our ears took over for our eyes, the sound of the faint drops of water in the background as well as the odd bat flying began to dominate our senses. I felt as if I could have just laid down on the cave floor and stayed forever it was so peaceful. We climbed a 25 foot ladder tied to the wall of the cave (forget workers comp here!!) and arrived at the top chamber where we viewed the perfectly intact remains of a young girl who had been taken there for sacrifice. Every joint and bone were in perfect condition, even though she had been there for over a thousand years. Down we went back to the bottom of the cave and reversed the trek we had made into the cave. We had so much fun with our tour guide and the Calgarians on the way out, I think we were all a little over-cave stimulated. Apparently, we were in almost a kilometre before retracing our stepsto the cave entrance. The feeling of swimming from the black cave through the opening and into the sunlight filtered through the canopy of the jungle was an experience to remember forever.

Soggy, tired but happy we discovered that we had lucked out getting into the right group as we found out later the other tour had one of those constant complainers that can find something wrong with anything. I suggested maybe they should have sacrificed the dumb ass and left him behind in one of the caverns. With one of the baloney sandwiches of course!!! We've come a long ways since the sacrifices in that cave--or have we.

UNBELIZEABLE !!!!!!!!!

2008-02-12T17:53:00.000-08:00

When the customs official welcomed us to Belize in ENGLISH, I almost threw myself around his neck. After struggling through Mexico with our limited Spanish we felt as if we had died and gone to heaven. We have been asked along the way, so you like Belize? We love Belize!!!!!. Cheap rum, ready made smiles,cheap rum, wildlife at every turn, oh did I mention the cheap rum? and a country with a ever changing geography and climate within easy reach, what's not to love?

Once across the border we still had that damn rain over our shoulder so after a brief stop in Belize City to say hi to new friends, Paula and Keith that we met in South Padre , we continued on until we reached a jungle lodge called Cave Branch. A fellow Canuck started this lodge 18 years ago and what was once a place to pitch a tent and use the outhouse has now transitioned into a full scale Eco lodge. For the paltry sum of $10.00 a night, we camped along the river and fell asleep to the sound of a thousand birds and god knows what else was out there. In the lobby of the lodge we had our first glimpse of the Fer De Lance, one of the most deady snakes in this region. It is very aggressive, and has been known to mirror your every foot step until it attacks. Thank god it was dead at the time we saw it.

We met people from all over the world that had come to tackle the adventure of their dreams. Climbing waterfalls in caves, tubing down rivers and into caves, swimming into caves, rappeling into caves, etc. We crossed the road and did a jungle hike of about 5 hours in one of Belize's national parks and ended it by plunging into a turquoise blue pool of water, The Blue Hole, to soothe our mosquito bitten bodies, tired feet and bones. We were the only 2 in the pool at the time.

On our way again, we missed a turn in the road and followed the road from hell (2 hours for 29 miles) and ended up in paradise-- Placencia. Who could argue with the setting of this campground? Right on the ocean, white sand beach, hot showers and bathrooms for 10.00 US a nite. Here was cheap One Barrel rum, blue water, ganja for those interested, an eclectic mix of food a deserted campsite, and an atmosphere so laid back I am sure it could drop the blood pressure of even the most hyper. A house fire happened while we were there and everyone in the volunteer fire department arrived by bicycle.

We finally got the dinghy out and headed off to the nearby cays where we speared lobster, red snapper, and Cravalle jack to cook on the "barbie". The coral gardens we saw while snorkeling were all shades of purple, yellow, red, and blue. Although we have had better snorkeling in the Bahamas we still managed to see a few fish we have never seen before. I am absolutely positive the same big barracuda that I out swam in the Bahamas was there to greet me. AJ, Barb and Suzie, who were from Portland, shared the beach with us and we all laughed as we picked up free internet access from from the $350.00 US a nite resort around the corner and really felt smug when we found out that rum drinks sold for 11.00 US and we had cocktails on the beach with a bottle of the same rum that cost us $9.00. To top it off, right off of the hotel bar is where we found most of our lobster. Ron would sneak it over the side of the dinghy while the tourists sat in the bar and we heard they were paying over $45.00 for a meal with a single dried out mini lobster tail. Sitting on the beach we could buy trinkets, a to die for dessert called sweet potato pone (think pecan pie filling with pineapple) and fresh made pizzas. The pizza was made and sold by "Alex". She was a 20 something transplant from Italy, educated in Jamaica, had a baby in Guatemala and moved to Belize. She could not understand how the Italians complained about having no parmesan on the island. "There is no Parmesan that is true,but when you can get the freshest, ripest, juiciest sweetest pineapple",why would you want Parmesan?" she said. Hmmm good point!!! After 2 weeks we decided that if we wanted to explore the rest of Belize we had better wrap up our dingy and head off.

In San Ignacio we camped in a place called "Caesars". Our first morning we had coffee with the birds off the fruit loop box or I should say we had coffee with 2 different kinds of Toucans. My spoon almost missed my mouth as I looked up and realized they were the real thing and parrots of all shapes and sizes added to the atmosphere of this place. Lingering over coffee suddenly had a new meaning.

We had a fresh water stream to cool down in and friendly staff with a great restaurant. Julian, who owned the place, was a story on his own. He was born in the states on a hippy commune and his parents moved to Belize when he was 6 months old. As the reality of being parents hit them, they gradually became entrepreneurs and with their son Julian and a daughter, carved two resorts out of the jungle. they had a thriving wood carving business at the back of Ceasars where we were camping and Ron was drooling at the sight of exotic hardwoods everywhere he looked.

After weeks on the beach, we decided it was time for some excitement.

Chetumal- Where We Feel Safe in the Strangest Place

2008-01-28T20:03:00.000-08:00

Our pillows, sheets, cots and tent were all packed into the car soaking wet and the weather showed no sign of improving as we arrived in Chetumal, on the boarder of Belize, so we decided to drive into the city and find our first hotel. It was Sunday and so traffic was light and we were driving slowly down the main road into town. I saw a scooter behind me and pulled over to the right to let him by. As he pulled up beside me, I realized it was a policeman. He flagged me over to the side of the road to inform me I was going 40 in a 20 kph zone. He spoke no English and our Spanish is minimal but it was not too difficult to figure out that he wanted my drivers license. When I passed it over, he put it in his pocket and informed me that I would have to report to the police station in the morning and pay a fine before I could get my license back.

As you can imagine, there was a fair bit of back and forth--we both figured by this time that he was after some money since we knew I had not been speeding. About the same time, he pulled out a card with various infractions listed on it and the line for speeding indicated the fine was 1,600 pesos (about $150) so I started to ask where the police station was located. He asked when we were leaving in the morning and when I said 8:00, he said the station would not be open but we could pay the fine now! When I told him we did not have that much money, he said it would be cheaper if we paid now.

I said “How much” and he said “500 pesos”. I said, “I don’t have that much money so I will go to the station in the morning.” He said, How much do you have?” I said, “200 pesos”. It appeared we had reached agreement but there was one small problem. We never carry much money in our wallet while traveling but a few hours earlier, we had stopped at an ATM machine and taken out 2,000 pesos and stuffed them in my wallet so when I took out my wallet to pay, the first bill I pulled out was a 500. The second was a 500 and finally I found a 200. He was clearly not impressed but sent us on our way.

We were both ticked off and decided we didn’t want to leave our truck in the street outside a hotel in this scum bag city so we decided to leave town and stay in a hotel Jude had spotted on the way in. So I made a left at the first intersection and then another left and low and behold, 2 cops in a pickup pull out behind us and pull us over. Jude quickly grabbed my wallet and emptied all the money except 100 pesos and when I was asked for my license, I held it up to him but did not relinquish it despite his gestures. Our very little Spanish suddenly became no Spanish. The violation this time was an illegal left hand turn. He seemed to realize this was not going to go smooth and let us go with no further hassle. Two violations in 3 blocks is a new record even for me--obviously something going on here so we b-lined her out of town.

We were quite pleased with the hotel we found. They had a passage way that the cars passed through and payment was made at a window similar to a drive in bank with one way glass. When we got inside, we asked if we could see a room and found them to be very secure and clean. Each room had its own garage with a curtain that pulled across to hide your car. The sun came out and things were looking good so we set up a our tent, screen room, cots, and chairs on the lawn and put our sheets on the hotels cloths line. With the nice breeze blowing, they were dry in an hour and we were able to pack them away just as the rains started again.

We discovered that there was only one window in the hotel and since we were the only guests in the hotel we decided to mix a drink and set up our chairs in the garage of the adjacent room so we could look out at the garden and the birds. By this time it was just about getting dark and while we were sitting there, two other cars arrived, both with middle aged men and young women. We smiled and waved but they either ignored us or gave us an odd look. Finally it was getting dark and we packed up and went into the room.

While Jude had a shower, I took a closer look at the room and checked out the only “window”. When I pulled back the curtain, I found a 5 gallon drum with on side cut out --it revolved and was clearly intended to allow someone on the outside pass things into the guests without being able to see who the guest was or what they were doing. It finally dawned on both Jude and I at about the same time that we had checked into a hooker hotel that provided their guests a with a secure and anonymous environment to bring their lady friends.

The mattress was covered with plastic- not great but consider the alternative and the sheets were clean, the truck was secure, our the tent was dry and we slept like babies.

Drowned Rats in Palenque

2008-01-28T20:02:00.000-08:00

We stopped to see the ruins in Palenque, close to the Guatemalan border. We have had overcast and rain all the way through Mexico but the morning we arrived in Palenque the sun shone and continued till the next day. With the sun, the campsite, and the surrounding area was so beautiful and peaceful that we stayed an extra day to chill out and stretch our legs. We had two beautiful days walking through the ruins and walking on the path that follows the road and runs 9 miles from the city of Palenque to the ruins. There are not too many places except beaches where you can walk in a peaceful setting and not walk in fear of being run over. We enjoyed great camping and meals at the Maya Bella campsite, where we saw Howler monkeys in the trees near the campsite. We heard their howls the first night and would never have guessed they were monkeys if we had not been forewarned. They sound more like lions roaring but amplified with an echo thrown in for good measure and in the dark jungle night it is quite an eerie sound. About four in the afternoon of our last day there, it started to rain--then it started to pour and we took cover in our tent. Rain like you have never seen it. In two hours, the water tumblers we had outside the tent had over 4 inches of rain in them and the tent began to leak. Jude remembered the cover for our dingy just about the time we were considering the possibility of sleeping in the truck all night. I put on my bathing suit and spent the next 15 minutes rigging the cover as a second fly on the tent. It was a bit small so we sprung a few leaks around our head and feet but for the most part remained dry. The rain slowed slightly but during the night, that same glass filled 2 more times and when we finally packed up at 8 the next morning--both in our bathing suits, it was still pouring down. It continued to rain as we drove off to Chetumal on the coast.

Belize or Bust

2008-01-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

We had a great time learning to kiteboard, riding our bikes, walking on the beach and making new friends in South Padre Island but there were a few too many cold fronts and dreary days and too little wind so we decided to move forward with plan # 473 v2.1.We bought a tent, cots, mattresses, put the trailer in storage and headed across the Mexican boarder on January 14th with out crew cab loaded to the top and our dingy and motor in the back. Blasted through to the Yucatan Peninsula, 1000 miles and one flat tire, in 3 days and then stayed 2 days in Palenque. For those of you that don’t know Mexican roads, 1000 miles in 3 days requires both driver and passenger to be constantly vigilant for topes, maniac drivers, holes in the road, and donkeys etc. on the highway (topes are large bumps intended to slow everyone down to a reasonable speed as they pass through towns. They cause untold damage to the vehicles using the highways but do NOT slow the drivers down.). Fortunately about 30% of our route to the Yucatan was on toll highways so we were able to make some good time. The remaining highways are pretty poor and about 25% of them are highways with lanes that are about 3 feet wider than our vehicle, if that, and absolutely no shoulder. I mean 1 1/2 feet on either side of the vehicle!! And yes, I mean NO shoulder --often with a drop off of 1 to 5 feet or steep slopes into ditches. As a friend of ours said, “ I have driven in a lot of countries with poor roads and where people pass on double lines, on hills, with pedestrians and animals on the road, and on blind corners but never all at the same time. We praised ourselves time and again for being so wise as to leave the trailer in Texas.

On the positive side, we found the country to have less garbage in towns and along the highway, cleaner washrooms and generally much easier to get around than when we traveled here 30 years ago; even with our extremely stale Spanish. We were also pleased to see that the Mexican’s, at least on the roads we traveled seemed to have a better standard of living. We were disappointed to find that they seldom have pigs running free through there small towns and that most restaurants were no longer cheap. This may be simply the route we drove and not indicative of the remainder of Mexico.

A MESSAGE IN THE WIND

2008-01-10T11:28:00.000-08:00

Have you ever had a moment where you ended up at the right place at the right time whether by chance, luck, coincidence , karma , serendipity, or whatever? It happened to Ron and I on Tues. We had a 1001 little chores to do for our trip, but the wind was blowing , the sun was shining and we said, nope....laundry can wait, the day is beautiful, let's hit the beach with our kites. It was supposed to be a no wind day but by chance we had wind. At the beach there were the regulars, Denise and John (excellent kiters) Jim, Ron and I who are the rookies on the beach and a late arrival Rob who is an excellent kiter as well. Everyone was in the water but Jim who was packing up to head home and Gloria and Claus who while waiting for a lesson were sitting in their truck watching us. As Ron stood behind me giving me pointer #101 yet again Denise yelled at Ron "John needs help". She had already kited to the beach, got Claus to phone 911 and was on her way out to John when she saw the both kites down, released and floating away. She again ran to the beach, relaunched her kite and headed off to try and capture them. If you have ever run thru thigh deep water you will find it exhausting. We looked just ahead of us and saw John, kite down with another kite almost on top of his floating down wind.Our first thoughts were he and Rob had collided and they were both down. I headed to the beach and dumped our kite while Ron ran through thigh deep water to John. When he got there John was struggling to keep Rob above the water, trying to drag him closer to shore. Understandably he was exhausted trying to keep from dragging down wind, hold onto Rob, and at the same time trying to drag him to shore. He told Ron he had just found him floating face down in the water and unable because of the depth of the water to do CPR . No idea how long he had been there. He had given him two Heimlich maneuvers and when Ron arrived Rob was throwing up huge amounts of sea water, gasping for air. By the time I arrived he was having trouble breathing and still throwing up seawater. Seeing emergency vehicles on the beach Ron figured he would meet them before they headed out ,to let them know we need oxygen and a floater board to get him ashore. Once again running through thigh deep water a good 1/4 mile to shore Ron met up with the two coast guard personnel who just arrived. He yelled at them as to what we needed but they totally ignored him and arrived to John and I with, if you can believe it nothing more than a pair of flippers and a life sling . Incredible....what were we going to do with that !!!!!! More emergency personnel on the beach, Ron yelling the same instructions that we need oxygen and a floating board. By now we have 4 or 5 emergency vehicles parked on the beach and at least a dozen emergency personnel daintily picking their way through the sand and water, but not a one is making any effort to get the show on the road. Gloria had to dial 911 twice as she heard the sirens down the road but they stopped at the wrong place !! The emerg guys were asking Ron asinine questions as to how deep the water was and I guess they should take their shoes off but making no effort in this fashion dilemma to get to us. Frustrated Ron finally grabbed the floating board they had finally discovered and would have had the oxygen as well if the guy had not had such a tight grip on the bag, and took off running. I guess a little leadership by a civilian was all that was needed, because they all hastily rolled up their pants, took off their shoes and followed Ron. Meanwhile with 2 useless coastguard personnel who told us they thought they had to swim out to us (Reason for flippers) I wondered why, after being stationed on an island for some time and constantly doing training maneuvers, they would not have known one side is open ocean and one side is bay with 6 inches of water! I had been asking Rob simple questions as to whether he was taking any medication (yes) high blood pressure and he was diabetic, if he had had breakfast (yes) etc. So, the gang is finally all here (thank god) and we get Rob onto the floating board, oxygen applied and head for shore. As I looked behind me I noticed Ron, John and I were somehow doing all the pulling with the fatty emerg guys slogging behind us. On the beach things finally began to move a little faster and Rob was transferred to a helicopter waiting on the beach.
Now were are keeping our fingers crossed for a happy ending to this story. We went to the hospital yesterday and met Rob's brother who told us he had had a brain aneurysm. This explained the mystery of how a good kiter was found face down in the water. As you can imagine it was a very emotional meeting as he had arrived with Rob in a coma not knowing what had happened to put him there. Surgery last night for Rob and now it is a wait and see game .
Yes, our superwoman Denise did get the kites back . After kiting at least 2 miles down, and handing the retrieved kites to Jim on shore, she somehow managed in dying wind to get back upwind to us. As Ron landed her kite you could tell it was all she could do to get to the beach. Her partner John turns out to be a retired doctor and is the real hero in this story with Ron and I being the background characters. Without Claus and his cell phone and Jim helping to retrieve kites I am sure there would have been a different ending to this gong show. So, time is precious, life is short....savor every moment while you can. That's the message...... AGAIN!!!

2007 In Pictures

2007-12-21T20:43:00.000-08:00

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

Plan, What Plan?

2007-12-15T10:28:00.000-08:00

As I learned in my last years at Okanagan College, Napolean was right when he said, "planning is everything, the plan is nothing." or something like that. What little planning we do is around wine time and it is usually big picture stuff with no details (like "we should drive to Belize" or "lets learn to kiteboard this year") Anyway, we have a new plan: we are staying here till January and then flying to Belize. It occurred to us, over a glass of wine, that neither one of us was looking forward to the drive from Texas to the Belize border. Almost 3,000 miles on Mexican roads with a 30 foot fifth wheel had lost its appeal for some reason. We have driven most of this route 30 years ago and were not that impressed by it then and everything we have heard is that it has not improved. Two things put the nail in the coffin: First, they now have a Walmart in Playa Del Carmen (a sleepy village when we last visited) and Second, we could not get comprehensive insurance for our truck and trailer in Belize.

Been a while since we posted as we have been beating ourselves up as often as possible on the kiteboard circuit. The winds have been a bit sporadic since our lessons so it has meant a lot of frustrating days with not enough wind and just as many with too much wind. Nonetheless, we are both making progress. Jude has got her confidence back after a mini launch session where she discovered just how much wind it takes to lift you a couple of feet off the water and throw you face first in the water. She is now flying the kite like a pro. She is fighting with step 3 which is putting the board on your feet while you fly the kite with one hand. Generally, neither the kite or the board care to cooperate but i know that if I stop hogging the kites and board she will be up on the board in no time--Step 4 then that leaves the Step 5 which is about where I am. Getting up regularly, staying up regularly, staying up wind mostly, and occasionally making the turn and tacking back without being catapulted, dragged, crashing the kite into the water or all three simultaneously. We are having a ball.

Yesterday, on a low wind day we crossed the boarder into Mexico. Had a great Mexican meal and enjoyed the typical border town scene with tons of pharmacies, dentists, and stores selling the same junk we bought in our travels in Mexico 30 years ago. Going back into those border towns always seems like you have entered a time warp. As far as we can tell, the only new product they have to sell is Viagra.

Iceman

2007-11-26T12:02:00.000-08:00

Since I had already had my first kite board experience in the Columbia River, I was not anticipating a first experience like Jude's. Of course, I was not expecting the air temperature to plummet to 47 degrees and the water temperature to drop to 60 degrees either. I almost canceled the lesson but I have been waiting for months for this so figured, how cold can it be?

Well, definitely not T-shirt weather for my lesson! The instructor suggested putting on two wet suits in addition to the coat of armor that Jude wore and we climbed into the boat to get to the kiteboard beach. As we raced through the wind and spray, I realized I had not accounted for the wind chill factor of the 20 plus mile an hour wind. By the time I got the kite up, these ol' hands had turned into claws of ice and I had to ask the instructor to tighten my harness straps because I couldn't get a grip on them. He must have thought I was a real wimp.

Suffice it to say, I froze my butt off for 3 hours. When I finally got out of the water, I realized that my legs were lumps of frozen lead, my hands were numb, knuckles bleeding and my throat was raw from coughing up copious amounts of seawater. I was thankful for the two layers of wetsuit--not only did it keep me from hypothermia, it also ensured at least one orifice in my body didn't have water forced up it.

But I did have fun!! I didn't get as far along as I had hoped but what a rush when you actually get on the board. It has got to be an addictive sport for sure if you want more after 3 hours of torture. I finally warmed up after 2 hours later and 30 minutes in a scalding shower. Now, 24 hours later, I have feeling back in all my fingers except one. Even that one, which is still numb on the finger tip is slowly returning to normal. Wounds are healing and I can almost breath normally again.

Both Jude and I have decided this is a sport worth pursuing.

Over night the weather has warmed again and the wind has dropped to about 12 mph. We will spend the rest of our time here working at our own pace. I don't think these 12 year old instructors quite remember what it was like to learn the sport and I know they don't know what it is like to be using a 50+ year old body. My goal is to be able to get up regularly and stay up wind and Judes is to get comfortable with the kite and maybe some board work before we leave here. We may stop here on our return trip as well, that way when we have to work on our skills in the deep waters of the Okanagan or the Columbia, we can concentrate on improving our skills and not on survival.

Kite Runner 2 akaThe Crazy Canuck

2007-11-22T16:41:00.001-08:00

As Ron mentioned in the last post, I had my first kiteboard lesson yesterday. Hmmm my idea of flying a kite is the image we all have left over from when we were kids, you know, the kite tied to your big toe as you lay on your back watching the fluffy white mashed potatoe clouds up in that big blue sky. Well kids, as they say "we ain't in Kansas anymore"
Laid on my back alright, as well as being dragged on my stomach thru the sand (supposed to, but still didn't feel right) lifted off my feet, got dragged sideway's and basically lost all the spit I had in my mouth for 3 hours. All this with a helmet that crunched the front of my head, a harness that pinched in all the wrong places and a impact vest (don't like that word at all!!) that made all movement seem as if I was totally encased in a rubber suit which is what I should have been wearing in a small little white room when I realized what I had let myself in for. My instructor was so young I don't think he shaved and was so laid back I thought he was dead, but he got me thru the basics with very little injury. We stopped before we got to body dragging (no explanation needed) after I told him the kite was ruling me not the other way around. Funnily enough the kite board model I was using was called "Dominatrix" but I have a ways to go before I feel I have that much control. At the end of the lesson my instructor asked me if I had fun and I almost said FUN...geez buddy what are you thinking??? I have been tossed, turned, lifted, dragged and felt like a rotissaire chicken 3 hours later!! But,all in all it was great and I have a lot of "homework" to do before I go onto body dragging and tada...riding the kite board. luckily it's just my kind of homework!!

South Padre

2007-11-22T14:55:00.001-08:00

After San Antonio we stopped at Lake Corpus Christi for a night. Pretty spot with lots of birds and our first look at Javelinas (small wild pig). The first indication that they were around was the sound of them vacuuming the acorns from around our trailer. By the time I thought to take a picture they were beyond the flash but you can see their eyes and outline in the photo.

We arrived at South Padre Island in Texas on November 13th and decided to stay for a month. This is one of two points in our trip that we had planned --the other is Belize so we have reached destination one. It has been a joy to just wander through the states and stop only when and where we want with no real plan.
The attraction in Padre is that it is on the ocean, 30 miles from the Mexican border and we are told, one of the best spots in the world to learn to kiteboard. We have discovered that it has the added bonus of being a great place to stay with miles and miles of hard sand beach to ride our bikes on, still warm waters to swim in and a bit of surf to boogie board. We are using it as an opportunity to get the ready to cross the boarder as well: new shocks on the trailer, oil change for the truck, replace tow of the 6 volt batteries, get insurance for Mexico and Belize, and a few other odds and ends.

We bought a trainer kite the first day here and she and I have both been practicing with that while we waited for our kites and board to arrive (we ordered them on line from a company in Florida and they arrived yesterday). Wouldn't you know, we awoke in the middle of the night to the sound and feel of the trailer shaking, the lawn chairs blowing over and the rain pelting the side of the trailer. The wind blows pretty steady here from the SE but twice today is the second time we have had the switch to a NE wind. the daily high dropped 25 degrees. Sweeping down from Canada don't you know. Getting up in the morning to straighten out the lawn chairs sure beats getting up in the pitch dark and moving anchor and trying to put down a second anchor as we did several times last winter.

Jude had her first kite lesson yesterday. She did very well but I will let her fill you in on that. She went first and I sat in as I already had learned the basics from Glenn, my brother--known in the family as Mr. Excess. I was supposed to have my lesson today but as the boarders say, the wind was nuking. The 40 mile an hour wind gusts put a stop to all lessons- it clearly would be unsafe to learn but the instructors are all out kiteboarding anyway. Only the experienced die hards were out there today and man they fly; some of them are popping thirty feet off the water. Just think, another couple of days and a Jude and I could be doing that. The wind is supposed to die down tomorrow but the cold (59 degrees) is supposed to last for a few more days.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

2007-11-10T19:17:00.000-08:00

Y'all probably figured out we are in Texas now. We passed quickly through the southern tip of New Mexico with a few day stop in Las Cruces where we took in their annual Renaissance Arts and Craft fair. We then relaxed for five days of walking and biking in South Llano River State Park. Anyone planning on a trip through Texas should plan on spending a few days here--a beautiful campground with grassy oak forests full of birds, deer, raccoons and turkeys. Today we enjoyed a day on the river walk in downtown San Antonio before moving towards the gulf.
You can click on the pictures to get larger versions.

Tail Wags the Dog

2007-10-30T21:10:00.000-07:00

Family members that know my driving first hand are probably wondering how we are making out pulling a 30' fifth wheel. Natalie may recall the day I dropped her and Harry off at Toys R Us in Kelowna and drove away from the curb while Harry still had one foot firmly planted in the back seat. Then there was the time I drove Joanne down to Tim Hortons for donuts. If I recall correctly, she vowed she would never drive with me again. And of course, Kathryn will likely never forget vomiting through the front vent window of my VW bug as we drove through Grandforks.

All that aside, do you ever wake up and know that things are not going to go quite right for the rest of the day; nothing catastrophic but enough to let you know the planets are not lining up for you. Today was one of those. It started out with our slide eating up the plastic strip that the slide is supposed to role on. Nothing a drill and a few screws couldn't fix but it carried on from there.

After leaving the park, we decided that it was time to wash our RV and truck. I know it sounds like we were shamed into it by the RV folk in the last park we visited but don't shoot me yet. The RV wash was just outside the park and it was actually getting difficult for us to get in and out of either vehicle without getting dirty.

The exit from this wash was lined with brick and just wide enough to fit the truck mirrors through. Once out, I had to make a 90 degree turn. One thing I have had difficulty getting used to with the 5th wheel is the way the trailer always cuts a tighter corner than the truck so as I was turning to the left, I was concentrating on the left side of the trailer so that the trailer wheels did not start to turn before they were clear of the brick wall. Once the wheels were clear, I concentrated on making sure the front of the truck turned sharp enough to miss the obstacles directly in front of me. What I neglected to consider was the fact that as soon as I turned, the right rear corner of the trailer, which hangs out 7' behind the wheels, was swinging out quickly to the right. CRUNCH!Jude and I got out to inspect the damage and discovered the last 18 inches of the trailer had shaved off the corner of several of the bricks on the exit door. Surprisingly little damage to our trailer--scrapes in the fibreglass siding, rear driving light popped off (bulb unbroken), 2 feet of protective aluminum corner strip ripped off, and rear bumper bent. We had stopped just in time to avoid mangling the bikes hanging off the back. A couple of hours with a ball peen hammer, 2x6, pliers, and some caulking and she's---well not as good as new but it will do till we get home.

The Tail Tagging the Wall would probably be a better title for this post.

Somewhere Along the Way We Missed the Turnoff to Heaven

2007-10-30T20:30:00.000-07:00

We are now South of Tucson. After being told not to camp in some of the best Walmart parking lots in Phoenix and sleeping in a third which had to be the noisiest in North America, we spent a quiet night in Picacho Peak State park.
Since we left the state park and passed Tucson, I would have to say we entered the scab on Arizona. Long flat stretches of dry land and scrub. Last night, we spent our first night in a real RV park in Benson, Arizona-- just on the edge of the scab. Not one with transient RV types but the real thing with pot lucks, square dances, and organized activities every day and night. Within an hour of our arrival I swear everyone of the 500 residents knew we had arrived and by 10:00 the next morning our voices were hoarse and our arms cramped from greeting everyone that walked by the site. Apparently walking around the perimeter of the park each morning is a ritual observed by at least 1/4 of the park. The remainder have their asses glued to their golf carts so walking is difficult.
We wondered what these people do in this place since we couldn't see any sign of golf courses despite the proliferation of golf carts. I think we found the answer---Every vehicle is so clean and shiny, they are impossible to look at in the full sun without a welding helmet. We saw one guy sitting in front of one of the wheels of his truck. He had his hubcap apart, rag in one hand and car wax in the other, as he polished every nook and cranny to a mirror finish. His wife was doing something similar to the outside of their trailer.
Don't get me wrong, we are loving this life and I am sure these are all wonderful people "salt of the earth" and they have probably discovered something that we have missed and will spend the rest of our life trying to find but we will be moving on. If you even see me looking at my hubcap in a strange way, you have permission to shoot me.

What a Difference a Day Makes

2007-10-27T21:02:00.000-07:00

What a difference a day makes. We have gone from 49 degrees in the day and freezing temperatures at night to 80 degrees in the day and pleasantly cool at night.

We literally slid into Sedona dropping from 7,000 feet to 4,500 feet within about 10 miles of highway. What a beautiful trip from the cold upper elevations to the sunny red rocks of Sedona. We thought the Grand Canyon was amazing but Sedona is a natural and man made wonder. Not only does the landscape take your breath away but the people of Sedona had the good sense many years ago to put in place building codes that ensured that the building design, colour and materials matched the natural setting so that every building looks like it belongs exactly where it was placed.

We carried on to Cottonwood, about 16 miles South of Sedona and below 4,000 feet elevation where we stayed 5 days in Dead Horse Ranch State Park so that we could explore the area. We have had a campfire each night at sundown and enjoyed cool nights and warm days up to as high as 83 degrees. We had a day in Sedona visiting the incredible array of art galaries where they have more bronze sculptures on the streets of Sedona than I have seen in my lifetime.
A visit to the local library where they just happen to have their annual book sale with all of their used books 50% off. Jude was in her element as we picked out and purchased over 70 books (hardcover & paperback novels as well as assorted nonfiction).
Then a day of hiking in Cocochina National Forest--hot and dusty but quite spectacular.
Cylcing to Tutzsinoot National Monument (a restored Indian settlement) and then up to the old mining town of Jerome --- back up over 5,000 feet; a tourist town scabbed onto the side of a mountain with some more great galleries.
Today we went on a morning bike ride around the park and then hitched up and headed south to Phoenix.

Worken Hard for that Pay Cheque

2007-10-26T07:13:00.000-07:00

Today we celebrated my retirement (for the fifth and last time). Although my last day of real work was December 1, 2006; October 26th was my last official day of work. Through some ancient clause in the Administrative agreement, I was eligible for 6 months of pay plus 60 days of unused sick leave.

I only mention it here for those of you at OC and perhaps some of you tax payers that may be concerned that I slacked off on this, my last day at OC. I assure you that I worked equally hard for the organization on Friday October 26th, 2007 as I have every day since December 2, 2006

Grand Canyon- Much More Than Grand

2007-10-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we were hit by a cold front and the temperature plummeted and the winds were gusting to 40 miles an our. Glad we were not on our boat and even more so that we did not go through South Dakota and Colorado. They had up to 6 inches of snow there. Last night our water hose froze but we were warm and cozy in our trailer.

Headed off for the canyon this morning. Bundled up and went on a 7 mile walk around the rim of the canyon. The wind was still blowing but it was quite pleasant by noon and the actually took off our coats by 2:00. Back on again for the sunset though. Words and pictures cannot describe the splendor of this natural wonder. Would like to do one of the hikes into the canyon but will need to save that for next visit. One day does not do it justice. We will come again when it is not so damn cold here.

Nevada to the Grand Canyon

2007-10-20T18:21:00.000-07:00

We made a fast run through Nevada spending one night at a pull off 100 miles north of Las Vegas and a night in a casino parking lot in Las Vegas where we went to Cirque de Soleil at Treasure Island Casino. Not something we would normally do but what an amazing show it was. Well worth the money and a night in Vegas. We woke in the morning with a note from casino security threatening to tow us away if we stayed in the lot over night--whoops. Jude and I had visions of opening the door to the trailer in the morning and finding ourselves in an impound yard.

Today we find ourselves back at 6,800 feet in Williams, Arizona, "Gateway to Grand Canyon". Last night a long hike in the hills behind the RV park and today caught up on chores; including the aforementioned bike tires. Tomorrow, off to the Canyon.

God's Gotta Have Some Fun Too

2007-10-17T21:37:00.000-07:00

We have been spending some days staying Walmarts when we arrive at our destination late in the day. When we arrived in Boise, we were due for some shopping so decided it was a parking lot night. We had the location and exit # but something went astray and we spent 60 minutes and drove 40 miles without finding even a supermarket let alone the Walmart parking lot. Finally we decided to call it a night and just pull off in any spot that looked flat and suddenly, a Walmart appeared before us. If there is a God, he was playing with us that night.

Speaking of the big guy's fun and games: after our ride on the rail bed, we decided we should buy a bike pump and repair kit with us. We have been riding the bikes for 2 years with no flats but while we were out there miles from who knows where it seemed like a good idea. When we got to Malba gorge, 100 miles East of Boise, we found an RV park and got the bikes down and discovered one near flat tire. Obviously a slow leak since we had not ridden for 2 days. I got out the new pump and pumped up the tire and off we went for a tour of the park. After an hour, the tire was low on air but we made it back to the trailer. As I hung up the bikes, on the rack, I noticed we now had 2 tires low on air. When I checked in the morning, all 3 tires were flat. I pumped up two tires and by the time I pumped up the third, the first two were flat--what the heh!!
When I repaired them, I found a total of 13, half inch cactus spines in the 3 tires.

Route Change

2007-10-16T18:20:00.000-07:00

Almost every night we settle in with a glass of wine and think of the trip we took last year in the tent trailer and several years prior in the penalty box. Both of us our still in awe of the space, heat, and ammenities of our 5th wheel-- 29.5 feet of luxury and best of all, a bed that doesn't roll us both into middle of the bed.

We made a sudden change of route plans in Couer d'Aleine. Faced with dropping temperatures and a route through Montana, South Dakota, and Colorado at elevations of 5,500 feet plus, we decided the best option was to follow the old standby route but because we had traveled so far West, we turned south through Idaho instead of Washington and then continued Nevada and Arizona. We slowed our pace at this point and our plan is to average about 100 miles a day so we can enjoy hiking or biking at the stops we make.

The trip through Idaho included a lot of climbs and steep decents but we saw some beautiful fall scenery and we camped beside the Salmon river at Whitebird and as we climbed through the mountains the following day, we could see the fishermen in their riverboats as they tried their luck at catching steelhead. The were tons of hunters and fisherman but still the road was almost empty. True to our plans to stop along the way, we took a 2 hour bike ride along the abandoned railroad line running up into the Paiyette Forest North of Boise. One hour up and 35 minutes back down. Ideal biking conditions and the Fall colours were in their prime with the trees aflame. We saw a fox cross our path on the way down. He/she was in beautiful shape with a long bushy tale and a thick coat of red that even I could see.

Wine Heaven

2007-10-12T18:14:00.000-07:00

Late escaping from Vernon so we only made it to Omak the first night. Serendipity perhaps since we discovered the local WalMart had Mattie's Perch Shiraz (Australian) on for $2.57 per bottle; thats cheaper than the home made and the same bottle we thought we got such a deal on in Calgary for $9.99. For those of you that refuse to shop at WalMart, forgive us. I know cheap wine is not the only route to happiness but it gets better--we bought a bottle, several actually, of California wine for a $1.97. OK OK enough about the wine already.

The next day, our anniversary, we stopped in a nice campsite in Couer d'Aleine and after a great walk along the river and just happened upon a new pub and decide to celebrate our 33 years of bliss. Had a night to remember.

The Beginning

2007-10-11T11:04:00.000-07:00

Jude and I are just wrapping up loose ends and plan to leave this afternoon. Here is a picture of our new fifth wheel taken later in the trip. We're packed and ready to go.