Tripometer – 7078
Gas Gauge – 552.910 gal
Location – Money Creek Campground, Skykomish, WA
Lodging – $22
Cans of OFF – 4
After Kelly completed some work at the Blue Sky RV Park we moved our rig about 2 hours North to where Paul’s nephew Chris REALLY lives. We were targeting a small campground near Skykomish, WA. Our AT&T cellular coverage map is a little sketchy when it comes to outlying areas, making this campground a gamble largely due to the fact that this is a narrow little valley where you can have 4 bars of signal at one curve of the road and zero coverage on the other side of the hill. Progressing up the valley we were not pleased to see our cell coverage falter and then disappear but about a mile from the campsite the signal blazed up to three full bars at the entrance to the little campground – Jackpot! Some of the sites were strictly first-come, first served, meaning we can stay for as long as we like in the same spot, and we found a nice one right on the river.
While setting up camp the first real break-down of the trip occurred. The electric motor that moves the slide-out in and out of the trailer broke free of the gears after pushing the slide-out about an inch away from the camper body. Our functional living space just got cut by a third until this gets fixed. When installing some electrical work before the trip began, Paul was unable to figure out how to access the area beneath the sofa where the broken motor sits. After spending a half hour or so really digging into how to get at the issue, Paul gave up and called the dealership we purchased the RV from and an RV dealer in Seattle that sells the same line of trailer. Chris joined us at the site shorty after the disaster, so Paul proceeded to ignore the break-down for the remainder of the evening.
A trip into town for beer & ice led to a visit to the local swill joint for a couple ciders. Located directly across from a very active train line and yard, the Whistling Post in Skykomish also caters to Pacific Crest Trail hikers who come in from the trail head about 5 miles away. While sipping ciders on the side porch of the Whistling Post, the gentleman above graced us with his presence. He was not just strikingly dressed, he was also strikingly drunk! We’re not sure which came first, the drinking or the decision to dress in those two prints.
Special Note: Moving every day sucks. This is the fourth day in a row that we have had to pack up the rig and move to a new location. To make this tedium easier and shave 15 to 30 minutes off of every pack-up, we tend to minimize the number of things we unpack every night. Living partially packed on top of on-the-road is a strain on both lifestyle and attitude. It’s really nice to know that we can stay here for a few days and relax.