Hello to everyone, family and friends.
I am now back on the road and will resume my ramblings from time to time, if you do not wish to receive this amazing piece of literature please let me know and I will delete you from my blog list! But not however from my life.
J came to pick me up Monday morning by which time I was fully recovered from the 28 hours of travel. J and Laura live on the outskirts of Reno in what I guess is desert. Their house is very cool even in the high temperatures of the desert; I stayed in their house whilst sorting the truck out! For those of you who know me well that is quite something, to sleep in a house when my truck is around. I am very pleased to say the truck started on the first turn of the key, the whole truck was in very good order if a little dusty, well a lot really. J is working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday so I amuse myself getting the truck sorted and some work done, I had to have it dewinterized, having had it winterized before I left, that is all the water cleaned out filter dismantled and then a mild antifreeze pulled through all the pumps and pipes so back at J’s I had to run copious amounts of water through the system to ensure I do not get poisoned! I did this over a couple of days as outside in the afternoons was very hot. By Thursday all the jobs apart from new tyres were done.
J was off work Thursday, Friday, Saturday and this week Sunday as well. In that time he did some amazing work on the truck, several little jobs, but 2 jobs that I considered very big. I have a wooden panel above the windscreen (shield) behind which is a mass of electric wiring. The panel holds lots of clocks and radio’s, the few times I have had to get some work done behind this it has been a nightmare. J has now put some very easy fasteners and a strap to hold the wood when working behind it, I bet you cannot make head nor tail of all that but it was a big job and is an improvement. BUT the best of all is the littleJ work he did in the boot/trunk or as Les calls it the shed. This houses 2 very large and heavy spare wheels, many spare parts, some parts waiting to be returned to Gerard Mann in the UK and all the dross a girl just cannot live, without along with mounds of dust most of the time all of which has to be removed if one is unlucky enough to get a “P” when changing the wheel becomes the easy part. Because the wheels were stored at the very rear of boot/trunk/shed everything had to be taken out before you could get the wheels out and then of course put back again, this may have to be done in very high temperatures, of course you never break down in the shade, the very thought makes me sweat!
Well “J” has fastened the wheels to the side of the truck (with the help of a sketch from my friend Clive) so that now only 1 box and a couple of small bits of dross need be removed, I also have a cargo net across the back which stops all the above from moving around!
As you can see BIG space, note the nice cool beer on the left, some things never change! You can see where the wheels were fixed and tied in with the straps! Which was hard to do? I have to tell you I am ecstatic, so excited. I can now use the shed for everyday things its great!! J did suggest making a ramp but I thought that was a job to far!!!!
This is one of J’s toys he has a lot!! He builds them from scratch and is an amazing and very clever guy!
On Saturday night we picked Laura up from the airport and went for an awesome Thai meal in a lovely restaurant, Laura’ choice of wine was delightful, Laura takes her wine very seriously and makes some very good choices, good wine is always guaranteed at their house!
Sunday we all went to a Baseball game (my first) we had very good seat just to the right of the catcher, the first 15/20 minutes for me were just very confusing, but I was with very good teachers and soon really got into the game, I really enjoyed it. Had an all American hot dog, well, at an All American Game you have to don’t you, however it tasted the same as an English hot dog with the same rubbish bread bun!!. But to be there in this all American place eating the hot dog was real good fun, I had a wonderful time. Thanks to my wonderful friends.
Monday I had new tyres fitted, very, very painful for my wallet! I am now getting ready to leave Reno and join my friends Carol and Diana form California. Then Tuesday morning, horror of horrors, the bolt in the housing on left hand shock absorber has sheared off!!!! Panic. I ring Gerard Mann in England trying to get new housing sent out. J is adamant I am not travelling with it as it is, he says he will do a temporary repair so that I can journey with D & C but must come back to his house for the repair. He goes off to work around noon, but returns in the afternoon, removes all the housing, takes it to work saying I can repair this!!! His boss has said go fix Maureen’s truck. These people are so amazing they are all so generous, kind and friendly I have only met his boss for like 10mins. The long and short of all that is J repaired left hand shock also replaced rubbers in the right hand shock and had me on the road by noon Wednesday to meet my friends. How brilliant is that I am so very grateful, I am very sad to leave J and Laura but hopefully we will meet up in Seattle along with Les and Margaret to go see a Baseball Game.
Wednesday 15th July
I met up with Carol and Diana in the car park of a supermarket around lunch time as arranged, we went into a Jack in the Box for a burger and to decide where we would be going, also to enjoy their air con, whilst we chatted. We are going to head for Virginia City of Bonanza fame, this is an old mining town between 1860 and the end of the 1890’s it was one of the largest and most sophisticated cities in the west, now it is the liveliest ghost town of them all. Some of the buildings are amazing, the light fittings and shades are just beautiful. The town is a little touristy, we had a nice walk around and I enjoyed it. The ride up through the mountains was very beautiful we were able to go back a different way thereby making a loop, I love a round trip, we then drove towards Lake Tahoe were we found an overnight stop in a car park not very salubrious but ok for me, I had my evening meal with Carol and Diana.
Late start for me- 10am we are now heading for Bodie, another ghost town, Diana is riding with me we are chatting all the way when horror of horrors I run out of diesel!!!! The spare tank is full, we are able to pull off the road a little; there is no shade and its 95!!! Luckily Carol and Diana are in the AAA, we had our lunch and waited for the guy over an hour, he came in a very small truck, he changed the fuel filter and tried very hard to get me going but failed (this took another hour) whilst he was in the engine I noticed a broken plug. We do not know what it is but nothing to do with the fuel, it’s oily, he phones for a bigger truck and we wait playing eye spy and other silly games to pass the time we are waiting 4 hours in total!! A much larger truck arrives with an exceedingly nice guy to help; we had to return to Gardnerville NV. The first garage he stopped at could not fit us in- too busy until a week next Friday! I also now have a flat tyre- the fact that the running out of diesel was my own silly fault it is proving to be a blessing in disguise. At this garage I will have everything fixed including an oil change and grease (lube) which cannot be done until tomorrow, the garage stayed open to receive us. Once again the American kindness and hospitality is overwhelming I cannot imagine a garage at home staying open to receive a stranger (maybe a regular customer). Diana will not hear of me staying in the garage in the truck so we go to a Motel
Friday 17th July
Whilst there, until noon today, I have had 2 baths and 2 showers. I am now very clean. Diana went swimming and Carol went to the casino, I dog sat and read my book, I cannot open the door because we have the dog “Tring” the hotel says no pets, housekeeping is outside I will play English dumb (not difficult) if anyone comes to the door but I have put the “do not disturb” on the door! The truck will be ready around 3pm, they cannot repair the broken plug I noticed but they think it’s a coolant sensor I will need to get one from home! We go out for lunch and then on a shopping trip, I need a deck chair I must have left mine somewhere last year on a camp site or something. We get back to the garage just after 3pm, all is repaired and ready to go.
Once again we set off in search of the ghost town of “Brody” we have a lovely drive through the forest along a rivers edge lots of fishermen very pretty, we park up in a campsite very close to the river surrounded by trees lovely evening
We continue our journey tomorrow and finally find the ghost town of Brody......................................
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