ONE YEAR LESS A DAY

Yep, that was us.  We couldn't believe that it had come to this.  We know we've come along way with how we manage situations like this, because instead of our usual panic and feeling sorry for ourselves, we just rolled with it and focused on the positives, like enjoying having a radio and not having to yell at each other to hear over the noise of the truck.

We were on a mission - we had three days to get home and return the u-haul.  We absolutely hate having deadlines like this.  If it wasn't for the diff breaking, we would still be in British Columbia visiting Justins family.  (Sorry guys, we really wanted to come visit.)

corny Tim Hortons pictures, but hey, its been a year

We wondered how Canadian customs was going to treat us on our re-entry into Canada.  Usually we get grilled pretty hard, but happy to say they only asked us a few questions (and not the right ones) and welcomed us back into Canada with a smile.

There's not much more to say other than it was a very intense drive through the Rocky Mountains.  Rain, snow, black ice, deeper snow and then even deeper snow on unplowed roads and on summer tires.  It was difficult to keep both the truck and trailer on the road.  Not an experience we ever want to repeat.  We would drive through Guatemala twenty times over before ever doing that again.

But we made it.  We're home.  364 days.

One more post to come, to tie everything up.  Lots of numbers, costs, bests, worsts and a little bit of this and a little bit of that....

BACK TO THE PACIFIC

eastern California 

It didn't take long before we were able to shed layers of clothes and replace our shoes for flip flops. Needless to say, we were very happy with our decision to head back to the ocean.  What was hard, was turning north, the desire to turn south was very, very strong.

elephant seals

We basically followed the same route that we were on at the beginning of the trip, just in the opposite direction.  Can't say we did very much, we drove a lot and enjoyed the scenery.  We also ate a lot, we gorged ourselves on fresh seafood everyday.  I think we both may of put on a pound or two.

We had forgotten about the roller coaster roads with the sheer drop offs.  The only good thing was that we were on the hillside instead of the cliffside.  Still, my eyes were closed every time we came up to a sharp turn.  After all of the driving we have done on this trip, we are both in agreement that highway 101 in California is the most scenic/terrifying road we have driven.

close eyes and click picture

cat nap

By the time we arrived in Oregon, we had to start putting on the layers again.  We started accelerating through the seasons fast at this point.  Summer, than bam - fall and now, winter.

the Redwood Forest

We had a short two day stop in Seaside, Oregon.  We stayed in one of our favorite hotels of the entire trip. This is where, a year ago we really started to feel like our adventure had begun and by the time we left this cute little town we knew it was almost over.

a tiny kitchen, the last time we did dishes was August!

stormy seas

But alas, so close to home, after we made it to less than an hour to the Canadian border..........................

Washington