Well, we hit the road about noon on Tues...scenic ride up to I-90 which would take us all the way in to Missoula, MT. We stopped at Walmart in Moses Lake, WA for the night. That is when the fun began....
When we got ready to head out on Wed morning, Stu found out that we had no trailer brakes. He always tests them before heading out (thank goodness). Further investigation showed a broken brake line.
Fortunately there was an auto parts store within walking distance. Parts located, Stu spent several hours getting the brake line fixed. Finally, we had brakes! We headed out with a destination of either Spokane, WA or Post Falls, ID for the night.
We made it to Post Falls and spend another Walmart night. We headed out for the Harley dealer in town....Stu needed to get his Idaho shirt. Found a nice design that was unique and headed on towards our final destination, Jim & Mary's campground in Missoula.
Not to be....a couple of miles from a rest area an alarm sounded in the truck. We were overheating. We limped into the rest area and discovered that the belt for the water pump had broken. Oh joy....
Stu unloaded the trike and after chatting with the folks working the coffee station, headed to the NAPA store in Superior, the town we had just passed through. They didn't have what we needed but could get it by morning.
We got permission to stay parked overnight, not a problem fortunately. There was a forest campground behind the rest area but it was easier to just stay put. At bedtime we discovered our next problem. Seems as though we had no 12 volt system unless we left the inverter for the solar panel enabled. Stu suspects that something got disconnected when we was working on the brakes (in & out of the storage bay where all the wiring is located).
Morning came and after waiting for the rain to stop, Stu headed out to get the belt. With a little help from Snoopy (from the coffee station), who was a retired trucker, the belt was back on and operational. Phew! The drive just got prettier and on the way into Missoula area.
We arrived at Jim & Mary's around 3pm and spent the rest of the afternoon getting set up. We'll be here until Tuesday morning...then we drive over to Butte (short hop) for a week.
I'm still working on the photos and blog for Alaska...but it will come eventually. LOL!
Till next time - keep on rollin',
Donna & Stu
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Stu and Donna
Let's hope your troubles only come in three's! pretty minor stuff anyway and it is not like you have to be anywhere....
ReplyDeleteWell things seem to happen in 3s!! Glad you all got all fixed up and now look forward to having some good times in Montana!!
ReplyDeleteMike & Gerri (happytrails)
http://freedom2roll.blogspot.com
Donna, thank you so much for posting the ups and the downs. . .I enjoy your writings very much. . .you know, when our truck and trailer was buried up to the axles in mud in Missouri, I thought of you guys, and your stories. . .and knew there would be a brighter day ahead. . .keep up the great tales!
ReplyDeleteAmazing - you all just seem to take it all in stride. Glad you got fixed up and on your way.
ReplyDeleteWishing you better luck the rest of the trip... You are like us - just roll with the punches and make the best of them. Besides, think of the wonderful people you met along the way that you might not have! God Bless. dots.......
ReplyDeleteI agree with the concept of bad things happening in threes. Hope it's true for you and all problems are gone for at least awhile. Looking forward to seeing you in Butte. We'll be there on Wed.
ReplyDeleteDo you guys bychance have an rss feed that shows more than just the title of your post? It would be nice to have a teaser so I know whether to come read or not.
ReplyDeleteLinda, not sure what you are using to read them. In my reader you should see part of the first paragraph or two.
ReplyDeleteIn Google Reader I see. "Well, we hit the road about noon on Tues...scenic ride up to I-90 which would take us all the way in to Missoula, MT. We stopped at Walmart in Moses Lake, WA for the night. That is when the fun began....
When we got ready to head out on Wed morning, Stu found out that we had no trailer brakes. He always tests them before heading out (thank goodness). Further investigation showed a broken brake"
In RSOWL I see, "Well, we hit the road about noon on Tues...scenic ride up to I-90 which would take us all the way in to Missoula, MT. We stopped at Walmart in Moses Lake, WA for the night. That is when the fun began.... When we got ready to head out on Wed morning, Stu found out that we had no trailer brakes. He always tests them before heading out (thank goodness). Further investigation showed a broken brake"