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By Katrina Kane, on September 30th, 2015 I finally got THE call. The one from my boss to come sit on a gate for him. YAY! It took longer than I expected but it finally came. I wasn’t too happy about the idea of driving around with a trailer in the dark at 3AM the next morning through San Antonio to meet someone at 6AM who would lead me to the gate south of there but at least it was work. I quickly started putting everything down on the floor and pulling in all the outside stuff. As soon as I finished, I would eat dinner and get to bed early. That was the plan anyway. Nope. Didn’t happen. When I pulled the slide in, it failed to come all the way in. It was only sticking out about an inch but that combined with how almost impossible it was to pull the safety bar back out after I had moved over from the other campground had me suspicious. I ran it in and out numerous times but it wouldn’t close tight. I called my boss to inform him of the problem and give up that gate.
The next morning, I called Texas Country RV nearby who did house calls to LakePointe. The fellow they sent didn’t think it was too bad but thought his boss should check it before we did anything. The boss came out and got the same suspicious vibes I got. We decided to put it in his shop for a closer look. It was so nice of him to make time in his schedule and room in his shop for me after I explained about my job and how time critical this was. In the shop, he found the hydraulics that run the slide were failing. He called in a specialist who confirmed that the seal in one arm was shot and the other had started to leak. This would have been very dangerous back out on the road to that gate. They allowed me to leave my RV in the shop and stay in it. Power was provided. They literally pulled out the entire slide which is very long at half the length of the RV and sat it next to the RV. There was no other way to get access to the arms. The manufacturer seemed to think the hydraulics would never need to be serviced. Yeah, right. They even welded them closed which made it even harder. Without the wall, I couldn’t use the AC anymore. I managed a few nights in the RV. I ended up sleeping in the office one night on the couch until a cricket drove me out and then to a motel another night to get some real sleep and a shower.
  
While staring at my wall-less RV, I realized I now had perfect access to the entire living room floor and that ugly old carpet on it. Light bulb! This was my chance to yank out the carpet and put in an Allure Ultra waterproof locking floating floor. I really needed something waterproof to handle the rain and mud I sometimes work in and I truly HATE vacuuming. Lord knows I certainly have experience after installing a house full of wood laminate. After getting permission from the shop owner, I attacked that carpet with a vengeance. Under it I found a nice vinyl floor that got my hopes up for a few minutes until I discovered it had been badly patched with non-matching vinyl on one end and damaged in a couple of places. Out it went. I zipped up to Home Depot and Lowes to find flooring. My choices were very limited to only 3 styles in stock at both. I had no time to order anything else in. Luckily, one of the choices was Red Hickory. It somewhat matches the wood floor planks in my hallway and came in wide planks for faster installation. I’m not sure it really goes with my maple orange-ish cabinets but it is so beautiful that I don’t care. TIP: Forget what they tell you about cutting it with just a knife. It will wear out your hands. I used an oscillating multifunction tool with a half moon blade to cut it. It worked very well and much easier. The RV tech suggested I lay it perpendicular to the slide to follow the light through the windows and door and make the space seem larger. Parallel might have made the room seem smaller. After it was finished, I hunted Walmarts for rugs to throw on top of the floor to soften standing at the kitchen sink and sitting on the couch with my heels on the floor. The rugs are easy to shake out and rollup out of the way. Since my heat vents are in the floor, I had to keep the rugs small so as not to cover the vents. To make up for the mess and trash I created, I swept the shop floor for them every night so they didn’t have to.
 
As I finished the floor, the hydraulics specialist brought my slide arms back. Reinstalling did not go well. Information on my RV and parts is scarce. The manufacturer went out of business. While the tech knew the arms are usually slightly different, they looked the same and took the same seals so he assumed they were the same. He spent all day and gallons of hydraulic fluid trying to get the arms to go in and out at the same time. At the end of the day, both the RV tech and I suggested that maybe his experience was right and they were in fact different. He didn’t go for it then but after playing with it a bit more the next day, changed them and got them working. With that, the side was reinstalled and tested. It closed all the way! It took some time to adjust it and that is something a good RV tech is better qualified to do. Then the wood trim inside had to be rebuilt because again the manufacturer never thought the slide would have to be pulled out so they nailed and screwed the heck out of the facing. We also discovered that the manufacturer had joined two boards right in the middle of the long slide which made it weak and they used a board with a huge knothole there that was crumbling and making it weaker. That was causing the top of the slide face to bow in the center. Now that it has new wood and a better design, the bow is gone.
I called my boss to let him know that my RV was repaired but he had no gate available for me to work and none immediately on the horizon. Dang! I had missed 3 gates while in the shop. I decided to take a chance and ask the RV techs to repair my leaking roof if they had time since it was still in the shop and now livable. They agreed to do it and sent me off for a new AC cover to replace the old cracked one and thin underlayment to put on top of the current roof while they took everything else off the roof. Sometimes it’s good to have a truck! We discussed what needed to go back on the roof. Since I have very little storage, I wanted my storage pod still. I wanted my antennas back of course for TV and cell signal boost. I did consent to removing the luggage rack permanently and the remains of the wood stove chimney. The luggage rack was leaking and I had the same problem with the rack on my last trailer. They told me manufacturers no longer add them for that reason. In two days they had the new roof on and I was ready to roll. Just as I finished hitching up and was about to pull out, my boss called with a gate for the next morning. I was going to head back to LakePointe Resort but decided to hit the road instead to drive south of San Antonio that night and avoid the morning traffic. I did go to LakePointe to dump my tanks after getting permission and to verify that the slide was staying in while moving. Once I felt it was safe, I drove to Hondo, TX to the Escapees Lonestar Corral park for the night.
By Katrina Kane, on September 24th, 2015 I arrived back in Texas late in the afternoon. I was happy to see my truck unharmed and ready to go. After paying for a month of parking (OUCH!), I drove back to the Rio Guadalupe campground in Canyon Lake, Texas to pick up my trailer from storage and spend a night or two. My trailer was also fine and I think glad to see me. It has never been in storage before so I was worried. I had forgotten the lock code to get into the storage area and had to call the owners to get in. I pulled off the tarps I had covered it with and hitched up. It was hot and sweaty work. When I pulled it over to the campground, I found I had forgotten the time difference and arrived after the office closed so I picked an open site from their map and pulled in. I also forgot to stop for food on the way there and now found myself hot and tired with no food in the fridge. After unhitching, I drove back into town to treat myself to a nice dinner at the Lonestar Steakhouse. I think I finally found something at least close to TGI Friday’s. Though not quite as good, it was very very good. If a salad truly can be wonderful, theirs was. The flat iron steak was wonderful too.
The next day, I took the opportunity to go river rafting while waiting for my company to call me out to a new gate. Rio Guadalupe campground can drive you to two different places to put in and then you float back down to their campground beach. I went for the shorter 2 hr. route this time. I made a point of reading their sign that listed how to get around or through each dam on the river though it did not seem to be entirely correct in practice. Water levels after so much flooding may have altered the course. This was a good time to try out my new river tube that I bought at the end of last season. I must say it was terrific and I am so glad I bought it. I loved having the back rest, rope around it, more space inside, and a webbed bottom to hold me up while still letting the water cool me. I also took my kayak paddle with me to help keep me out of the tulles as I call them and move through slower areas. The water was the perfect temperature. The flow was good but not too fast. I did have to portage around one dam where the opening would shove you right into a big rock. Thank goodness I had that paddle to get to the side. When I got back to the RV park, I deflated my tube and carried it back to my camper but still felt the urge for more water time so I went swimming in the pool. Again, the water temperature was perfect. Woohoo! My supreme thanks to the guys who came up with spray sunscreen which kept me from burning that day. It is wonderful to be able to apply sunscreen by myself now with no help needed to get the back.
  
Since I hadn’t gotten called back for work yet, I decided to move to a cheaper campground to wait. Unfortunately, when I hitched up I found one of my truck tires flat. I tightened the J valve extender and aired it back up again with the compressor I always carry. I stayed another night to verify it was holding air. The next day I moved only a few miles away to LakePointe Resort right on Canyon Lake. It’s an RPI park so I got to stay for only $10 a night. The park is very nice with good spacing between sites, some cement pads, and lots of trees. It has two swimming pools (adult and family) as well as a clubhouse with a TV room, library, billiards, a gym, and a BATHTUB! The office staff were very nice. The views of the lake are nice. While it was a bit of a walk, they did let me put my kayak in the lake one day for some fun. You can drive your kayak to the put in point but can’t leave your vehicle there. You have to go park and walk back. I am seriously considering getting a membership to LakePointe to use when I am not on a gate. It is a nice place to relax and they too have RV storage. The only problem I had there was getting satellite TV. They do have a lot of trees. It took me all day to get my automatic dish setup. I finally downloaded an app called SatFinder Pro for $2.99 to my phone to help me. In AR view, it uses your phone camera to show you exactly what your dish is seeing when you stoop down next to it and puts a crosshair in the window that you line up a circle to. It worked! A bigger part of the problem was that my satellite box had been in storage for a month and had dropped its settings. Every time I got the dish aligned right, I didn’t know it because it wouldn’t bring up all the satellites and programming. I finally had to call Dish Network and have them zap my box again. After years of traveling, I had learned how easily they could fix issues just by sending out a signal to my dish. One zap and it was working again.
  
 
Still no call so I spent the next few days kayaking and closing down the summer season at Schlitterbahn for two days in a row. My busted butt from the last time was still not 100% healed so I was careful. I still managed to have a blast. I got a smoked turkey leg the first day of course for lunch. I went for the unlimited drinks and souvenir cup this time and they gave me a second one free. Since I can’t drink two at a time, I gave one away to a family of 5 to make their day cheaper. The second day I got a little too casual and chose not to pay for a locker for my stuff. So many other people there weren’t getting one and what I had was not expensive or so I thought it would be okay. Sure enough, my bag disappeared while I was on the lazy river. It pissed me off so I walked all over the area looking for the bag which was distinctive. I finally ended up at the lost and found to file a report. The minute I started grumbling about it, the staff member produced it. Apparently, some idiot thought it was theirs and walked off with it without checking inside it. He/she even put some of their stuff in it. When they realized their mistake, they were kind enough to take it to the lost and found but not enough to put it back where they found it. AARGH!!!!! I left their stuff with the attendant. Other than that, I had a good time and look forward to closing Schlitterbahn down again next year. The last days are the best because there are fewer people there and everything in the gift shops go on sale. Hasta la vista, Schlitterbahn!
By Katrina Kane, on September 20th, 2015 The day before our Alaska cruise ended, I finally caught a cold too. ACHOO! Not wanting to pass that on to all my other son’s kids and some more needed work on my rental house changed my plans. Rather than go stay with my oldest son and his family then fly home from Seattle as planned, I opted to drive back with Bernie to stay with my youngest son again. I was very disappointed and will plan a another trip as soon as I can to see them. At my youngest son’s house, I was sick in bed for several days. BLECCH!
Before I left for the cruise, I had bought a bunch of parts to fix up my house to rent it out. The buyers didn’t seem to be too interested in a fixer upper. That left a renter who is very interested in getting into the house. To rent it, I would still need to fix it up since it has sat empty for several years including winters. TIP: If you are a veteran, Home Depot gives a 10% discount! I used my VA card for ID at Home Depot. That was one expensive shopping trip still! I had a notebook with all the dimensions I needed written down. Interestingly, I found some of the needed parts cheaper at the little True Value store in Wallace, ID. Who would have thought a little -tore could beat a big box on anything? I guess we shouldn’t automatically write them off when doing projects.
  
So many decisions and I hate making all those decisions for something I wasn’t even going to live in myself. My real estate agent lived nearby and was happy to come help me shop for what was needed. If you need a truly good and caring real estate agent in the North Idaho-Eastern Washington area, call Dianne Kamphaus at 208-215-9695. She’s the best!
I started installing the floors myself before the cruise using wood click lock laminate. I finished them after the cruise when I could get out of bed. I watched a bunch of Youtube videos before I started and consulted my son who had just remodeled his house. He loaned me all the tools I needed many of which were my own tools I had left behind when I hit the road. LOL. It was a rocky start. While I was away, the electric company pulled out my electric and gas meters. They refused to put them back in until I moved the main mast (which has been there since 1942) from the side of the house to the front of the house citing snow concerns and current code. That cost me more time I didn’t have and a big bundle of money. I arranged with a very nice neighbor to borrow electricity from her with an extension cord but, unfortunately, she went out of town the day I needed to start working. That forced me to go rent a generator to get started. More money out. Happily she was home when I got back from the cruise and started work on the house again. I worked on the floor as long as the daylight held out. Thank goodness I bought knee pads! Being a an orderly sort, I opted to lay the floor in a pattern though normally you don’t do that. It wasn’t as hard as you might think since it didn’t need to be exact to fool the eyes and in such a small house (around 525 sq. ft.), there are many small areas to use the pieces left over. The hard part was making it flow from room to room and under door jambs without using breaks. I did the whole house with the laminate except for the bathroom. It took some back and forth and, of course, I started in the wrong place but I did it thanks to some additional help from YouTube. Measure, cut, angle, click, and lock. It came out beautiful! I went with a light pecan since the entire inside of the house is white at the moment.
Near the end, I had to extend my stay a few more days to finish. I was on a deadline, though, to get back to Texas and work so I didn’t lose my seniority in the company I work for. When you are a single gate guard rather than a couple, you need that seniority to get assignments. I brought in lights to continue working later. My son brought me some food. I didn’t have time to fix anything else but wanted to finish the floor to be sure it was done the way I wanted. Since I didn’t know when I would finish, I couldn’t book a new plane ticket home. I just worked like a mad woman. The last day before I HAD to go home, I worked all day and late into the night to finish. Rather than go to bed, I packed up my suitcase, hopped in the van Bernie had loaned me, and headed for the airport in Spokane, WA (with her permission). I figured I could sleep on the plane. I parked in a lot outside the airport and texted Bernie the location so she could pick it up later. It would have been nice if I had remembered to toss the expensive remote key in the glove box too but I mailed that back to her as soon as I could. She had a spare.
In the airport, I found out how incredibly expensive it is to fly at the last minute. Holy cow! It cost twice as much to go one way last minute as my round-trip ticket had cost to get there! The counter lady suggested I hop online to book cheaper but when I tried that I found none of the flights available to me even though they did have open seats. I had to bite the bullet and pay up to get out of there. It was also the first time I got so thoroughly searched going through security. I felt like Bruce Willis in “The Fifth Element” with my hands in the circles and wanted to yell out “I am a meat popsicle!”. The expensive can of sunscreen that had flown up with me was confiscated. I give up. GET ME HOME! Once on the plane. I zonked out on the way to Phoenix and then San Antonio and home.
By Katrina Kane, on September 14th, 2015 Off we went to Alaska aboard the Ruby Princess. The coast line with plenty of snow on the mountains and ice in the fjords was beautiful. The air was chilly but the sun was shining. We didn’t see a lot of whales but did see one along the way. We were told several times that had we come a week earlier, there would have been no snow to see. We somehow managed to pick the one perfect week to explore Alaska at its best.
Our first stop was in Ketchikan where several cruise ships docked with us. We took a tour of Totem Bight State Park where we learned all about totem poles and their stories. We got to sit in a clan lodge while the tour guide told us about life among the Indians and plants there. The trees with their huge twisting roots were eerie. It was an excellent tour that I would definitely recommend.
  
When we returned, we went to the Lumberman Show. It was everything I had hoped for! We got to see ax throwing, tree sawing and climbing races, a log rolling competition, and more. How they manage to do so much physical work several times a day is beyond me but they seemed to be having fun. One lumberjack made a bunny stool with a power saw and gave it to a kid in the audience. They had broken us into sides to cheer for our teams and boo the other teams so don’t expect to just sit through it. It is an interactive experience not to mention loud.
  
We still had a little time left for a fish and chips lunch next door and some souvenir shopping. I think we had the most time in Ketchikan because of the excursions we had chosen. We managed to get some of the jewelry freebies in town.
Our next stop was in Juneau. Interesting story there. When they finally got a McDonald’s, the entire town showed up the first day and they were sold out before lunch. Ah, life in the boonies! There is a tram up the mountain I would like to do next time. This time, we white water rafting on Mendenhall Glacier. The company was very professional and prepared for us. They had rubber pants and life jackets for everyone. I had hoped to paddle this time since I have been working on developing some muscles in my arms but only one of the boats got to paddle. The rest of us got boats where the guide rowed and oh my god did our guide ever row! She looked like just a little bit of a thing but she managed to get us all the way to the end without hanging up on the rocks while also telling us about the area and answering questions. The rapids were mild but still fun to shoot. We got very good photos taken by the company for purchase while we were going through them. The glacier was magnificent and there was a lovely waterfall at one end of the lake where we started. Along the way, we picked up a kayaker following us. A couple times we had to stop and wait for another boat that got hung up on rocks. Our guide and the kayaker got out in the cold water to go help them. When we reached the end, they had snacks and drinks for us as well as the pictures. I enjoyed the trip but it was a little too long for my friend, Bernie. It was sooo cold out there on the water and she caught a bad cold.
  
When we got back to the ship, Bernie headed back to the stateroom to warm up while I did some quick shopping and checked out the famous Red Dog Saloon.
On to Skagway and the Yukon! We had booked the combination excursion to catch both the White Pass Train ride up the pass and to set our toes in the Yukon via tour bus. Getting good pictures from a crowded train I knew would be difficult but the bus promised better chances with more stops and how many people can really say they have been to Jack London’s Yukon? Unfortunately, poor Bernie was too sick to go. We got lucky though. I informed the ship’s excursion desk that she would not be going and despite their no cancellations policy which we were aware of, they were able to resell her ticket and credit her back her fare.
The train only tour picks up passengers right on the dock next to the ships. For our tour, I had to board a bus that took me to a different train in town. It was just as well Bernie didn’t go because the “heated” train was ice cold. Next time I am definitely bringing my long underwear no matter what time of year we go. Wearing two pairs of pants did help though.
The train ride was wonderful except for the cold. We got to see some truly beautiful scenery going up the pass along the route the gold prospectors did so many years ago. For pictures, if you aren’t by the window on the best side, you have to step out on the small platform at the rear and jockey for position or zip in and out between seats temporarily vacated by photographers that were out on the platform. On our train, the left side is the best side going up the pass. On board with us were some hitchhikers the train was dropping off. What service!
  
 
At the top of the pass, the train stopped in Fraser which is where we did a little stretching and walk about. Border patrol came on board to check our passports as we entered Canada. At some point we switched to a bus to continue on to the Yukon.
Our first stop in The Yukon was at the Yukon sign of course to nail down our bragging rights. Then it was on to Caribou Crossing for a very tasty chicken BBQ lunch at Caribou Crossing Trading Post made complete by homemade donuts. They gave us branded wooden utensils to eat with which many of us cleaned up afterward and took home. After lunch we strolled around to see the sled dogs and museum. Many took the sled dog ride. I did the gold panning though I stink at it. I got some funny sled dog post cards there for my family. “Life is like a sled dog team. If you ain’t the lead dog, the view never changes.” I got some ice cream too. On the way to the bus, I joined the Canadian Mounties with help from another tourist. From there we went into the town of Carcross (tiny as it is) where you could either wait in line to try to shop in the General Store or go get your passport stamped. I chose the stamp. My passport is no longer a virgin! I sure wished Bernie was there then.
  
 
On the way back to Skagway, some bear cubs ran out in front of the bus without looking. The bus stopped fast and we got to watch the frightened cubs climb a tree on the other side. Soon after, Momma Bear came running by and scolded them to get out of the tree and move along.
Back at the ship, there was no time for shopping because this was an all day tour and it is quite a walk back to the dock from town though they will drop you off in town if you wish.
Our last stop was in Victoria, Canada in the evening. We took a tour bus around town and up the mountain to a scenic overlook. After grabbing some pics, we went on to tour Craigdarroch Castle which was built by the wealthy Dunsmuir family who unfortunately did not get to live in it for more than a few years. It looked like it was built to be full of life and parties but sadly they had to let it go too soon.
  
That was our trip. We had a couple of sea days to relax, lots of great food and entertainment, good service, and plenty of friend time. We missed Tracy Arm which we were supposed to sail through and I had already bought a T-shirt for. It was blocked by ice when we arrived. We went through Endicott Arm instead. I guess we’ll just have to cruise Alaska again. 
For lots more pics, FINALLY, click here!
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