Final leg of the journey North

So it's only taken me a month to get around to writing this. LOL. For once James has been much better at blogging than I have.

One of the hardest things I've ever done was pull away from the OCSC parking lot and watch James fade in the side view mirror. I was very excited to be going to visit my mom, but leaving him was heart breaking. And the dogs had no idea what was happening.

The drive is a bit of a blur. I left James in Berkeley at about 7am. I made good time, got through the high traffic areas before traffic. It was July 3rd, so a lot of folks were taking 3 day weekends so the roads were pretty clear. I took I-5 to 97. I had a burner phone for emergencies. At each rest stop or gas stop I called to check in with mom or James. I learned at the first rest stop that I'd have to walk the dogs separately, which was good for me, longer to stretch my legs. I made it as far as Chemult without incident. I stopped at a truck stop there to get some food, they had a Subway. The line was ridiculously long, so I decided to skip it. I then spent the next hour trying to start the van. I had plenty of power so it wasn't the battery. It wasn't making those funny sounds that indicate a starter issue, so I assumed it was the ignition switch. I checked fuses. I called James, no answer. I didn't want to call my mom and freak her out. I called the Good Samaritan hot line for road side assistance, and while panicking that I would run out of minutes on my burner phone, I tried the van again....VROOOM. Started right up. So I hung up and was on my way again, still hungry, and a bit worried about the next gas stop, but back on the road.

I was worried about driving after dark, I have trouble with the bright headlights, as many do, so I stopped at a few inexpensive looking hotels to see if it was in my budget. Nope. I wasn't fond of the idea of trying to sleep at a rest stop alone, even with the dogs with me. And I'm stubborn. It got dark right as I hit Hwy 84, about 9pm and still at least 3 hours to go. The first part of the highway was no problem as it was a one way only, no cars coming at me. Thankfully there was very little traffic by the time I reached the regular highway, and almost none at all when I finally turned onto highway 11, the last leg of the trip to Moms. I was exhausted. The dogs were tired, but restless. I was 45 minutes away and ready to just pull over and sleep. Stubbornness won. I pulled into moms neighborhood a little after midnight. Mika was nuts. She seemed to know where we were, and by the time I pulled into moms driveway she was ecstatic. So was the 12th Van. It died in the driveway before I could put it in park. I was too tired to care. I'd made it.

I tried the van the next morning. It started right up. Good 12th Van. But I was done driving for at least 2 weeks. Mom couldn't get me in the car if the house was on fire. I rebuilt her front porch steps. I then painted the whole front porch, cleaned and organized her back patio, tore out the carpet from her living room and hallways, pruned roses, planted marigolds, fixed fences and gates, and done anything possible to keep my mind off missing James. Being with my Mom is awesome though. She's an amazing person who's been through a lot this past year. I wasn't able to be  here then, so I love that I'm getting to spend so much time with her now, helping her with the small and large projects.

Ways to live large on a extreme budget

Here Dominga uses her artistic skill to paint a mural in Matanchen Bay, Mexico. For this and some sign reprinting, the owner of Neptunos restaurant treated us to 3 gourmet meals a day ( he's a chef), for the ten days we were there. He also took us on a hike to some of the most beautiful waterfalls we have ever seen. He drove for about two hours and we hiked for a little less then a hour to get there. Not known to many, other then the locals. Not something most cruisers have a chance to see.

Also make sure you sail more than you use the motor. It's cheaper and more fun.

Trading your skills for goods can be a win/win, for everyone. Dominga made a great pair of dingy chaps in trade for a inflatable dinghy and a1982 Chevy Van (our transportation home for the summer)!

Picture of the van coming soon.

A clip of driving thru Hermosillo Mexico

We got lost, trying to find a bank to withdraw cash from so that we could put gas in the Van. Most of the streets were one way and not marked well, and of course our spanish is not good enough to stop and ask for directions......ah, adventures in Mexico. By sea or land, it's always new. 

Hermosillo is a city located centrally in the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. It is the capital and largest city as well as the main economic center for the state and region. Hermosillo is Mexico's 16th biggest city. And we had only visited smaller towns up til this point..and we were driving our "new" van. 

Driving out of Mexico

We finally received the FedEx package that contained the paperwork we needed, for the van, to depart for the states.

Nomatia was cleaned out and sealed up for the summer. We know we'll miss our home, but we will return!

 The van was packed with bedding made from the cushions Dominga made for the salon seats, clothes, sewing machine and dogs. 

We felt confident the 1982 "12th Van", could make it all the way to Washington......well, mostly confident. 

The van wasn't completely in Domingas name yet (long story) and both our visas were expired, for many months. So we were a little nervous the van wouldn't be the issue, if we didn't make all the way to Washington. 

Having been harassed, a few times, by the American border crossings in the past, we thought we'd have issues there. But all three American border crossings were easy and friendly, with little more than a wave through.

The Mexican side was a little different. Apparently driving a giant older van subjects you to more scrutiny. We drove through 3 military check points. At two of them 6 to 9 men were going through our stuff. All in full military dress with rifles. At one they X-ray'ed all our luggage. 

But the whole time all were friendly and smiled. As long as you're not carrying anything illigal, it's a piece of cake. And no one ever asked us for our visa's.
Crossing into the US took us less than 10 minutes. We crossed at Sonoyta into Lukeville Arizona at 11:30 pm. The last vehicle through. The nice border patrol officer asked us if we were american, Yes, do you have passports? Yes. Then he sent us on our way. 10 miles further, we hit another border check. Dominga was driving. She pulled up and the first thing the border patrol officer said was.."That's a serious looking van"
Dominga replied "It's been a serious road trip."
"What year is this van" The BPO asked.
"1982 and going strong"
From the other side of the van where two more BPO sat we heard a "Go Sea Hawks!" we were then wished a good night and sent along our way. We found an RV park and slept in the van a few hours before heading northwest to Welton Arizona to see our dear friend Tiffiney. 

We were given warnings, from many well meaning friends, on how it could be dangerous to drive through Mexico. On our drive from Guaymas to San Fransico, we stopped at many small and a couple large towns. We talked to and interacted with many Mexicans. The first time we felt in danger was our stop to get gas in Fresno, CA. 

We stayed 2 days in Welton, resting and playing with Tiffy. The van did great until we reached Cathedral City, near the Palm Desert area. The alternator gave out which also throw the water pump belt, so the van over heated in about one minute. Luckily we stopped about a mile away from a Pep- boys, and we were able to get all the parts we needed. The employees were also nice enough to come out to the van and give advice on how to fix it. Great people. We also had the fore thought to bring tools. About 3 hours and a couple knuckle scraps later, we were back on the road. 

The rest of the trip was uneventful. We made it to Sacramento at about 1am, too late to show up at my son's house so we slept in the van one more night, then on to see my kids and grandkids. First time meeting Viotet, me newest granddaughter, who is 10 months old. What a cutie!
We spent a few days in Sacramento, then a night with my mom in Palo Alto. Dominga then took me to Berkeley to get ready for work and get me settled in with our friend Vicky while she continued her trip North.