Thursday, October 8, 2015

New Motorhome and Final Push Home

We were so excited for our 8:30a.m.  appointment at the Lazy Daze factory for settlement on our new RV.  We get there right on time … she is so pretty ! 

There is nothing simple or fast about the process.  We get a lengthy orientation on the RV, making sure everything works as well.  The instructions go very smoothly from our having been in EXACTLY the same unit (but 15 years older).   It’s not much different … just better and newer.

If we take possession of the RV in California, we must pay California sales tax, then Maryland sales tax when we return home.  That's NOT a good plan.  To avoid this, the factory has set up a driver for us, who drives the RV and Kris (Tom follows in the Budget truck with Stinky and all our 'stuff') to a town just over the Nevada Border, where there is no sales tax.  Loved the drive through Nevada desert … Kris took pictures the whole way while the driver did his thing.   
We passed a solar farm - The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System is a concentrated solar thermal plant in the California Mojave Desert, with mirrors that focus solar energy on boilers located on centralized solar power towers.


We met with a notary in Nevada in a Casino to complete the paperwork. They handed us the keys, and we were on our way.  Kris drives the RV, while Tom follows in the Budget truck , to a campground in downtown LasVegas.  


We haven’t been food shopping for weeks – there is very little food on board.  We cobble together a dinner and work until 10:30 unpacking the contents of the Budget truck into the new home until we reach the point where we feel like we've been run over by a truck.  We're getting too old for this !








After a very good nights sleep, Tom returns the Budget truck, Kris gets lost driving around downtown Las Vegas, and we eventually find each other to head East.  The next stop will be in the Denver area to spend a couple days with Tom’s brother.

The eastbound path through Nevada, Southern Utah and Western Colorado takes us through some of the most spectacular locations in our country, especially with the late afternoon sun banging on the red rocky cliffs. 






We settle in Denver for TWO nights in a row at the same place … Whoohoo !  Day hikes, meals with family, beautiful weather … perfect interlude before the last push toward home.

 



We press on through Kansas Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, West Virginia and eventually Maryland. 











It had been an extraordinary trip, May 6 - Sept 23.  Now ... back to reality, at least for a little while!

The end ... until the next trip.

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For our friends who want to see more pictures of the Mothership (Lazy Daze factory):