Oregon Coast and Woodrat

11-15 August

Paula, C.J.'s best friend since kindergarten, invited us to stop by while she and her family were gathering in Yachats for a week. Accepting that invitation made it possible to also continue on to Woodrat to fly and visit with Barbara Summerhawk, home from Japan for summer break.

11 Aug, Tues. - We took the Trooper so we could carry all of our toys, well, at least the paragliders and inflatable kayak, as well as our camping gear. The route we decided on was down I-5 to Corvallis, then west to the coast where the temperature was considerably cooler. C.J. got to spend time with Paula and I went out for a walk on the rocky shore with Stephen, Courtney, Heather and her boy, Sylvan. After a great organic meal by Heather, we hung out for a while and C.J. got to show a couple of her scrapbooks to Paula. There were lots of beds in "Angels' Rest" (?) and we got to use a futon on the front porch, very comfortable after the hot weather we had been having in North Bend.

12 Aug, Wed - It was foggy and raining in the morning and we did not rush right out the door but when we did head down the road, the skies gradually cleared and we had a pleasant lunch on the jetty at Bandon. At Gold Beach we crossed the mouth of the Rogue and stopped for gas and a DQ Blizzard before heading inland. The route here took us off the beaten track and on to mostly paved Forest Service roads following the Rogue River up and over Bear Camp Summit. We came back out of the forest near Gallice where we had started our float on the Rogue last year. We got to Barbara's cabin and yurt too late to go flying but had a nice visit with her and her neighbors, Teri and Megan.

13 Aug, Thu.- Strangely for August in southern Oregon, it was pretty cold at night and we had piled on the quilt, down comforter and a fleece blanket. Weather looked sort of good for flying so we drove to the top of Woodrat with Barbara and a couple other locals. A group of Californians from the Bay Area were launching and flying but not getting high. C.J. and Barbara launched and flew but I decided it din't look that good so I drove down thus saving us a retrieve. We had lunch along the Applegate at Cantrell Buckley county park then drove out to the boat launch on Applegate reservoir. The inflatable kayak went together pretty quickly and we paddled it across the lake (with the usual difficulty in keeping it going on a straight course), along the far shore, then back to the boat launch. We met Barbara back at the yurt and took her for dinner at the River Ranch Restaurant in Applegate (get the red oak smoked mushrooms for an appetizer, but don't expect fast service). Afterward we drove back into Ruch to attend the Rogue Valley Hang and Para Assoc. meeting at the Fiasco Winery. There was a good turnout and business was efficiently conducted by Paul.

14 Aug Fri - Even though the forecast was for east winds we went back to Woodrat launch. People were taking off from the north launch but it was still pretty east. We stuck around quite a while but eventually gave it up and drove down. Barbara took us to lunch at Eve's Garden, a cafe in Applegate where Teri was working and waited on our table. After a delicious lunch Barbara suggested a hike so we drove to a trailhead on Slagle Creek and climbed steadily to a ridgetop on the Enchanted Forest trail. The slow pace on the return downhill probably accounted for the lack of pain in my knee. We cooked up an omettata to share with Barbara for dinner, then got partly packed up.

15 Aug, Sat.- Headed home via Medford where we stopped for gas at Costco (considerably cheaper than the local stations but quite a bit out of the way). Otherwise, we just slogged along I-5 all the way to the turnoff in south Tacoma. Arriving home we knew it wouldn't be long before we were gone again as we had to catch the flight to Florida late on the 19th.

16 Aug, Sun - Laundry and other clean-up

17 Aug, Mon - More work around the house and garden.

18 Aug, Tues - Took a break and flew Tiger Mtn.

19 Aug, Wed - I had an appointment to have a mechanic look at the trailer electric brake controller in the Outback at Apache Camping, the Everett dealer for Aliner.

Idaho Panhandle

4 Aug-8 Aug 2009

Rick "Doc" Shallman has been inviting us for years to join him in northern Idaho to camp and explore new flying sites. This year our calendar coincided with his invitation and we spent most of a week in Camp Buffalo Bluff and traveling around Idaho and Montana.

(Photo, left: Doc flying Keeler with Terri watching)

4 Aug - As usual, we got a not-so-early start. We made a couple of stops along I-90 including downtown Ritzville, then turned north just beyond Post Falls, ID, in order to avoid traffic in Coeur D' Alene. Specific directions, maps and our faithful GPS, Sheila, got us to Doc's property via Samuels and dirt roads. Val was there but the rest of the gang were out chasing elusive airtime and didn't return until after dark with tales of a 25 km flight from a) a terrible launch or b) a place with no LZ's (Seems like it's always either one or the other).

5 Aug, Wed. - We left camp around 1100 in two trucks to accommodate the smokers (Richard, Doc, K, Val, Chris) and non-smokers (Preacher, Maggie, and us). The route took us north through Bonners Ferry and up US 95 to a USFS road which led up Hall Mountain to the site of a former lookout tower and hang glider launch. Great launch but the weather was not cooperating with over-the-back wind and then rain. We hung out and spent some time picking huckleberries until eventually the sky cleared and the wind came around from the west. Early launchers had mostly extended flydowns while C.J. and I managed to scratch out soaring flights and I got to fly north almost to the Canadian border, not very far. There were huge LZ's all along the highway in the Kootenai River valley and retrieve was simple. We got back to camp in time for Richard to grill lamb for dinner.

6 Aug, Thurs - Steve T joined us last night and in the non-smokers rig Thursday. The route was the same today except that we continued north to the border and attempted to cross into Canada. Unfortunately, the smokers' vehicle must have looked suspicious because they were detained and the whole vehicle searched. After the ordeal was over we headed for the road to Mt. Thompson but it apparently had been misplaced and it was only when we had retraced our route that we found it. It was a long, rocky, 4WD road to the antenna farm on top (7000+ ft)
(photo, left: Dr. K, Steve T, Richard, Preacher, Maggie&Doc)
and the excellent hang/para launch. The sky surrounding the peak was filled with towering cu's and virga so only Preacher felt launching was an option. Surprisingly, after surviving an impact with a tree on launch, he found no lift on the way to the LZ owned by a pilot-friendly family. The rest of us waited with varying degrees of patience until it was clear that there would be no flying. Doc's truck was making expensive transfer case (or differential) noises so we were surprised when he loaded onboard several very heavy rocks to add to his fireplace. We were back early enough to clean up and drive into Sandpoint for dinner at Ivano's, a good Italian restaurant. It was probably more memorable for the eclectic dress of Doc, Richard (utilikilts) and Preacher (clerical collar).



7 Aug, Fri.- Doc decided on an exploratory trip into Montana to Kootenai Mtn near Troy. It was a little more difficult to find the route on the ground than on Google Earth but we got some directions from locals and drove to where the launch ought to be (but not before losing Doc's truck when it was discovered that he had a quarter-sized hole in his differential case - sent down to Troy with the non-flyers to try to get a local mechanic to patch it). Kootenai launch turned out to be "no-go" - it faced east into the wind but there were no LZ's below and the wind was coming out of a gorge or over nearby ridges. Returning to Troy we picked up the now jury-rigged truck and headed off to visit Terri, a lookout on Keeler Mtn south of Troy. She met us at the locked gate and gave some of us a ride to where she thought a launch might be. It was doable, as Doc proved later after doing some minor clearing. But the east-facing launch looked out on to a wide, north-south valley with strong winds from the south. Doc managed to make it all the way across the valley to a little mining town with a bar where Richard and the rest were hanging out. No one else thought it was worth the possibility that they might land in the mine tailings or trees. After getting back down we all gathered at Little Joes for a beer and then started the long drive home which ended long after dark.

8 Aug, Sat.- C.J. and I got started home around 1000 after taking down our big "condo tent" and packing up the unused inflatable kayak and related gear. This time we drove all the way down US 95 to Coeur D'Alene where we gassed up at Costco, had luch at a rest area on I-90 near Sprague Lake and decided on a scenic detour. There is a scenic byway which traverses the channeled scablands but we could not find it on any map so we made our own by driving south from Potholes reservoir through the Columbia NWR. We stopped to look at a campground and then took a short hike along upper Crab Creek. Leaving CNWR we headed back north to Potholes State Park and a fruit stand on a road that connected to SR 26 where we bought some of the last of this year's bumper crop of cherries. Just before the bridge at Vantage we were drawn in by sign advertising "SWEET corn". The price was a bit high but it was the end of the day so the entrepreneur dropped the price for us. Back at home we found the corn worth every bit of the original price and we were glad to have bought a whole dozen.

Aliner Sport

I've been looking at and learning about this pop-up trailer with solid sides made by Columbia Northwest since early spring. C.J. and I visited three Washington dealers and found out that even the smallest one, the Sport, which is only 12.5 ft long costs more than $12,000 new. That's definitely not in the budget! But we really liked the concept and thought it might be perfect for extending our travel and camping season, and especially for doing a late summer trip up the Alaska Highway.
(photo, above left: Nancy's Sport in Penn.)

Someone suggested a link that showed Craigslist postings for Aliners all across the U.S. (http://www.jaxed.com/cgi-bin/mash.cgi?cat=cprv&itm=a-liner&loc=&fil=&ys=&ye=2009&submit=++++go++++) and I started watching for a not-too-old used Sport. The 2005 seemed about right (it didn't have the flooring problems of the earlier ones, but still has the aluminum shell) however, the ones that were listed were all around $7000 (or more!). That clearly wasn't going to fly. Then, around the beginning of August, someone ran an ad for a 2005 Sport for $4000. Sounded too good to be true, but the good news was that it was located in Indianapolis. My brother Wayne and his wife Betty/Jeannie were good enough to do the inspection and check out the seller. Despite the low price, the trailer seemed to be in good condition and Wayne closed the deal for us.

The seller delivered the Sport to Wayne's house on the 8th and it's waiting there now for us to come pick it up when we get back from this trip to Florida. In preparation, I've installed a hitch and the necessary wiring on the Outback, installed a brake controller (thanks to Bob Hannah), and added a transmission oil cooler. We've been stacking up information about the Alaska Highway, but we'll have to survive the shakedown cruise from Indy to North Bend first.

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See the post about our journey to Indianapolis to pick up the Sportliner and the trip back through Yellowstone.

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Here is a list of additions, mods and work done on the Sportliner since we bought it.

1. New deep-cycle 12 V battery, battery vent (Costco)($70)
   
2. Replaced trailer wiring/converter for Outback (Danny's) (The Hitch Store.com sent a replacement)
   
3. Installed propane furnace (Danny's Campers)($500)
4. Installed Fantastic Fan vent (Danny's Campers)($400?)
5. Folding table leg to support A-wall when folded in (Danny's Campers)($10)
   
6. Replacement weatherstripping package from CNW ($90)
7. Reconnected brake wires with butt splices (3x)
8. Replaced electric brake magnets (eTrailer.com) ($50)
   
9. Replaced twisted hitch ballmount for Outback (U-Haul) ($20)
   
10. Replaced front-right corner molding and repainted front of trailer ($25)
    
11. Replaced all three tires with TowMax from Les Schwab ($211)