1 April: We left Mesquite , NV or I should say the Virgin River casino parking lot and we headed north to Idaho Falls , ID. This is about an 7 or 8 hour drive if you are in a car and if you keep up to the speed limit which varies up to 75 and 80 MPH. Of course that is much too fast for me as my max speed is 65 MPH so I will stretch the drive to 10 or 11 hours depending on how often we stop to fuel up or eat or if I need a Pit stop. We always stop at Springdale , UT at the Cracker Barrel restaurant for Brunch which is the only meal we need until supper.
We have driven this route on I-15 more times than I can remember so we normal know where we can get the best deal on fuel. Also I always ask the truckers when I stop to fuel up about where I can get the cheapest fuel. A couple of years ago we stopped in Malad, ID, which is just inside the state line from UT, at a restaurant on the advise of a traveler. Luckily we noticed the fuel was cheaper there , than other places along the road so we filled up. I drummed up a conversation with a trucker and he said that the Maverick fuel stop was the cheapest in ID so I always top up there. Incidentally , UT fuel prices are always higher than MT and ID.
I wish there was a way to avoid Salt Lake City because it seems to be getting busier every time we pass thru it. They have 6 lanes and it seems that you have to be careful not to migrate to the right or you will end up in an Exit Only lane. I usually try to follow a trucker as I'm sure he will pick the best lane to get thru the quickest.
The trip was definitely uneventful after getting thru SLC and we arrived in Idaho Falls around 6 PM and decided to overnight in the Wal-Mart parking lot. We spotted a MH near the rear of the store so we drove over towards it thinking we would be out of the way from other shoppers. Holy Moly!! what a surprise, as there was about 15 other RV's already parked for the evening and most of them had AB plates and they too where heading north. It was quite cool and windy so we decided to turn on the furnace and to stay in for the night. All the other RVer's must have been thinking the same as us because nobody was outside either. cheers
2 April : We left the Wal-Mart parking lot around 7:30 AM which would put us at the Canada/USA border around 5 PM assuming no "unauthorized" stops. Our first stop would be a Dell, MT for breakfast. Dell is a very small town, located between two mountain ranges and it caterers to the local Ranchers and it seems to be a special haven for Hunters during the hunting season. The town has a Gas Station with a small store, several cabins for the hunters and an old school house that has been a restaurant for many years. The meals are "home cooking" and they specialize in fresh donuts and their famous " Sticky Cimmon Buns " . Many Truckers stop here for a good Home cooked meal and many more snowbirds stop for a breakfast and the Buns. We found out about this place 10 years ago and we always stop for a meal and the Buns. This place can hold around 30/40 Pers as it only has 6 dinner tables. We always invite other couples to sit with us as travelers always have interesting stories.
After leaving Dell our next stop was 4 hours away for a fuel stop in Boulder , MT as once again this is a regular stop for us to top up as the fuel price is cheaper than Helena or Great Falls. We did make a "shopping stop" in Helena as Carroll had to pick up a few more items for the G/Kids as there is some Birthdays in April and June. Now we are heading for the Border with a quick fuel stop in Shellby, MT to top up with fuel that is much cheaper than at home.
There were many , many cars with AB, BC and SK plates passing us since we left Idaho Falls so we assumed when we got to the Coutts border at 5:30 they would be long gone. Where we ever wrong. (We usually cross at Wildhorse, AB which is a small border crossing north of Billings and Havre , MT but this crossing is a 10 hour opening and closes at 5 PM so we could not make it today). The lineups where miles long and we waited 3 (long ) hours before we got to the Custom agent which means we cleared customs at 8:30 PM. We arrived home at 10:30 PM. We had expected to be home by 7:30 PM.
Our winter trip is now over so this is the last Blog entry until we decide to go somewhere else. We are flying home to London for a Memorial Service for Carroll's brother who died in Feb. Both our families are in the area so we will stay for a week and hopefully visit everyone. Sometime in May our life should return to normal . I hope all the readers of the Blog enjoyed the " Ride ". cheers
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