Another Q and A

We have just returned to our little home on wheels in Bend Oregon after being gone for almost 3 weeks. When we left our home on wheels, we were frozen solid and all of our plumbing was a block of ice. While we were gone, every thing thawed out and is now back to livable status, however we were not without some damage. As I am sure you know, when water freezes it expands, which I am sure you also know, tends to not be too good for plumbing. We had a couple of broken water lines, a split water pump housing, and a toilet valve that all needed replacing. Luckily for us, there is what may be the best RV parts store that I have ever seen in Bend Oregon. They had everything we needed to fix our problems and since we are in Oregon, there was no sales tax...woo hoo!

For the past 3 weeks that we have been gone, we have been doing things that we really aren't used to. Our normal routine of hardcore adventuring has been put on hold ever since we left Death Valley on Christmas morning. There has been a huge lack of walking in our daily lives, in the past 3 weeks we have eaten out more than we have in the last 7 months, which has in turn brought back all of my missing mid section that had been vacated because of all of our walking (my normal fat self has returned), and we have had the pleasure of visiting with family and friends. These past 3 weeks have been a sort of vacation from our vacation.

It's been strange to get up in the morning, power through some nectar of the gods (coffee), and not hit the trail in search of some natural wonders and adventure. My body had gotten used to 10 or more miles of hiking in a day while carrying a heavy pack and my mind has gotten attuned to the sights, sounds, and smells of the great outdoors. We weren't used to sleeping in real houses (thanks to those of you who shared your homes!), lazy-lounge-around-days, big cities, and having other people to talk to besides ourselves. It was tough work being lazy house guests.

The best part of the last 3 weeks has definitely been the time we have been able to spend with family and friends. It turns out that visiting with family and friends can be just as much fun as adventuring. We really had a great time and were bummed that we didn't get to visit with more people while we made a quick stop in Seattle. While we were visiting these family and friends, there was a reoccurring theme at each and every visit...lots and lots of questions and lots and lots of attempts at us giving answers. Most of the questions and answers seemed to be repeated at each place we visited so I thought that I should share some of these with you.

The first question was always the same and it was always the easiest to answer. Here it is in all it's glory and simplicity:

Q: “Well, how is it?”

A: Incredible!!! (I could really expand on that answer but I think it totally speaks for itself.)

The rest of these are in no particular order, so let's get started.

Q: What is your favorite place that you have been so far?

A: I don't think we could pick a favorite place because every place has been completely different and amazing in it's own way. I realistically have 28 or more favorite places. I could however say that our favorite activity has been exploring the slot canyons. I could also tell you that my least favorite place is anywhere where there is traffic.

Q: Are you still going to sail around the world?
A: Yes. This trip through the States in the RV is just a small phase of the around the world trip.

Q: Do you like traveling by RV?

A: Yes. It's a lot easier than the boat. There are grocery stores everywhere...no need to stock up with months worth of food. If we want to go for a walk, we can just step out of our door instead of taking the dinghy to shore. We don't really have to worry about weather, tides, rogue waves, pirates, sharks, anchoring, sinking, etc... And if we don't like where we are at, we can be in totally different scenery with just a few hours of driving...on the boat, it can take weeks of travel time to change scenery.

Q: Do you like traveling by boat?

A: Yes. It's a lot harder than the RV which makes it seem like much more of an adventure. You have to be much more self sufficient which also makes it seem like more of an adventure. You have to worry about weather, tides, rogue waves, pirates, sharks, anchoring, sinking, etc. which all make it much more of an adventure. And there are a lot less people on boats than in RV's which just makes it seem like much more of an adventure. It's just more adventurous. And sailing to distant horizons just seems a whole lot more romantic than driving a RV to distant horizons......Aaaaaarrrrrrggg!!! (that was my pirate voice)

Q: How long is this trip going to take?

A: As long as it takes. We originally thought that it would take us about 10 years to go around the world, but now that we are almost a year into this trip and haven't gotten through half of the US, I think this could realistically take the rest of our lives...or at least until we get bored...which ever comes first. It's open ended.

Q: Do you think that you will eventually settle down somewhere permanently?

A: Possibly, but I don't think that will be for a long, long, time. We are having too much fun seeing the sites to stop and I can't really picture ourselves in a house with a white picket fence. I think that if we decided to stop traveling around the world by boat, we would come back to the States and get another RV to travel in. We really love wandering.

Q: What is your current plan and where are you going next?

A: We have booked a month long stay at a RV park in Bend so we can be ski bums at Mt. Bachelor. We may extend that stay for another month if the skiing is good (that is my vote because skiing is probably my all time favorite activity). We haven't decided where we are going to go after we leave Bend, although we are starting to make a list of places that we want to see before we get back on the boat this summer. We have become pretty good at going with the flow so we'll see what happens.

Q: Are you sick of each other yet?

A: Nope. We really do like spending time together.

Q: Can I come and visit?

A: YES!!!

Well, that's the basic rundown of the more common questions.

We are both excited to be back home, wherever that home is at the moment. There is nothing like sleeping in your own bed. We are heading up to the mountain tomorrow to pick up our season passes and hit the slopes for our first day of the ski season. Should be fun!