TRAVEL BLOG NO 1 ON OUR JOURNEY’S AGAIN 4TH JUNE 2008 ----- SCHEDULED 21.55PM QANTAS DEPARTURE FROM SYDNEY ------ “SORRY FAULTY ENGINE, EVERYBODY OFF”, ALL THAT = NIGHT AT HILTON (ON QANTAS, OF COURSE) AND THEN A NICE LITTLE UPGRADE TO BUSINESS CLASS ALL THE WAY TO LONDON !!!!!! YAHOOOOOOO !!!! HOW LUCKY CAN ONE GET??????? TEN ON BOARD, ------WHAT CAN ONE DO BUT PUT ON YOUR LITTLE PETER MORRISSEY PJ’S, GRAB A GLASS OF CHAMPAGNE AND DRINK A TOAST TO THE MASCOT MAINTENANCE ENGINEERS AND CURFEWS, ------ AND THAT WE DID !!!!!!! (WE ONLY DEPARTED 20 HOURS LATER THAN THE SCHEDULED TIME.) WHATS THAT OLD SAYING -------“LIE DOWN AND THINK OF ENGLAND” SO THAT WE DID -------- ALL THE WAY TO ENGLAND. A GREAT START TO OUR TRIP !!!! AS ALWAYS WE WATCHED AS MANY ... read more

CALIFORNIA HERE WE COME AND UP INTO THE ALTITUDE WITH SOME ATTITUDE As we started to climb, amongst the smog, so heavy from the recent fires through the agricultural plains we started to twist and turn with glimpses of yet another severely depleted lake with house boats - the water born version of the road RV - bobbing in a tight group due to lack of water. This lake as others we have passed is suffering from 3 plus years of drought in California and is also awaiting the snowmelt that will be 6 months away in the spring thaw from the Sierra Nevada. We then arrived at the ever-friendly greeting of the pointed hat wearing Park Ranger at the entrance to the Sequoia Park to be told that Revvy can’t go past the first campground, ... read more

VIVA LAS VEGAS, VIVA LAS VEGAS Eventually we pop through the desert ridge line and see below us the smog filled desert valley that cradles Las Vegas - do we or don’t we? - we had booked the camp ground and organised to meet Trace and Marc who will fly in from Santa Fe for the weekend, so it is connect up ‘Barb’ the GPS and lock in KOA campground Circus Circus and venture forth. Can you imagine a giant asphalt RV park with occasional trees and some grass, in the middle of a city and attached to the casino of Circus Circus - this stop had a free golf cart shuttle just to get you from your RV to the entrance of the RV park, but that was the end of the ‘freebies’ unless you ... read more

THE AMERICAN ADVENTURE SOUTHWEST AND THE ARIZONA AND UTAH CANYONS On the 28th of September we farewelled the Grand Canyon and headed south to Flagstaff - a university town popular for skiing and the train crossroad town for Arizona on Route 66, where a train goes through about every 15 minutes, some being hauling 140 double levelled containers. We spent the weekend here getting topped up on our groceries and awaiting Corrie’s dentist appointment on the Monday morning to get the cap put back on that fell off just before Tracey’s wedding. During the weekend we visited Wupatki and Walnut Canyons and the Sunset Volcano crater. We also hiked the Elden and Buffalo mountains, enjoyed some time in the old historic part of Flagstaff and bought ourselves some NZ Merino wool Icebreaker tops and a ... read more

THE AMERICAN ADVENTURE ET LE WEDDING IN SANTA FE We eventually hit Trace and Marc’s about 4pm in the midst of tears, laughter and lots of screaming. In the coming hours we of course got to know Marc and his wonderful Moma and Popa and her gorgeous son Josh - enjoyed a beautiful BBQ dinner cooked by Trace as she plied us with wine in preparation for giving us our “duties list” for the coming days - I never knew Tracey could be so organised - it was most impressive. Revy became 3037B, parked outside T&M’s front door ,in a partially opened state, so we didn’t disturb the neighbours in their Cul de sac too much. In the 3 days preceding the wedding (which by the time the wedding came seemed more like 3 weeks) we ... read more