LESSONS LEARNED: PERHAPS PLANNING IS POINTLESS

I love to plan trips; even trips I don’t take.  I make a schedule, plot a route, research things to see along the way, and find suitable places to stay. 

Gary is not a planner.  He prefers to make decisions on the fly.  To me this is not only disappointing but also impractical, perhaps even disastrous.  What about all the things you might miss out on, including a place to spend the night? 

Undeterred, I plan anyway.  I ask him the maximum number of hours he is prepared to drive in a day, and on that basis determine the distance we are likely to travel and places where we can spend the night. However, I have learned not to reserve any accommodations before we leave home other than at our ultimate destination.

Our first night on this trip did not go well.  We were delayed at the border while agents checked every inch of our motorhome, resulting in us arriving at Thousand Trails Mount Vernon Campground just before nightfall. Unhooking the SUV we are towing proved to be problematic on uneven ground, and it was cold outside.  Maneuvering the motorhome into place and hooking up to electricity and water in the darkness was also challenging.

After much frustration we got things into place and drove to nearby Skagit Casino for dinner.  The place was very busy that Saturday night.  The parking lot was almost full, DJs were playing music, people were dressed in Halloween costumes, and there did not appear to be an empty seat at the 900 slot machines. 

We were there just to eat.  As we stood in line at the larger of two restaurants, a passerby told us it would be an hour and a half before we would eat. We asked the cashier if that was true and were told it was, unless we ordered the prime rib, in which case we could eat immediately.  That settled it.

I personally enjoyed the meal.  Prime rib is a favorite of ours.  A woman passing our table asked us if it was worth $20 a plate.  For Gary the answer was definitely no.  Having owned a restaurant for several years he knows the profit margin on a wide variety of restaurant menu items and found the meat portions we were served to be unusually small.  All things considered that place is a license to print money, as is every casino. 

Gary was still hungry (he has an unbelievable appetite), so we tried to order him something at the other restaurant, Tacos & Tequila.  We were told we would not be served for 90 minutes there either!

The overnight temperature was below freezing, so there was a risk of the water lines freezing.  Fortunately, they did not but when we went to the dump station the next morning it appeared the black tank was frozen. Gary hates not being in control of his environment (which makes you wonder why he chose to marry me), but we managed to overcome the problem and continued on our way.  At least gas was reasonably priced at the Skagit gas station just off Interstate 5.

After we had travelled the maximum number of hours Gary had told me he was willing to drive, he wanted to keep going!  That totally threw my plans out of whack, including the date we are scheduled to arrive at Mission Bay RV Park.  So, I just listed all the Rest Areas on Interstate 5 southbound, and the distances between them.  As we reach each one Gary can decide whether he wants to stop or press on.  The parking stalls for transport trucks and motorhomes are long enough that we don’t have to unhook the SUV, and there is almost always room for us to put out the kitchen and bedroom slides so I can make dinner and we can spend the night.  At some point we’re going to need to replenish our water supply and empty the grey and black tanks again, but until then Gary has full rein.

The route we are taking remains unchanged, as does the list of things we can do when we reach San Diego.   Several friends have expressed interest in joining us there at some point this winter, so even if Gary is not interested in seeing everything the area has to offer, there might be someone else available who is.  I hope the following list whets their appetite!

• Air & Space Museum
• Balboa Park
• Birch Aquarium at Scripps
• Bird Rock Waterfront
• Coronado Ferry
• Coronado Island
• Imperial Beach Pier
• La Jola Tide Pools
• Little Italy
• Mission Beach – Pacific Boardwalk (Also known as Oceanfront Boardwalk)
• Mission San Luis Rey (in Oceanside)
• Oceanside Municipal Fishing Pier (along the Pacific Coast Highway)
• Old Town
• Point Loma
• Safari Park (animals from mostly arid environments, such as Africa and Asian Savannas.  Free for seniors the entire month of February.)
• San Diego Zoo (animals from all over the world)
• Sea World
• Sunset Cliffs
• The Flower Fields (Open annually from March to Mothers Day)
• Tijuana, Baja Mexico
• Torry Pines State National Reserve
• USS Midway Museum
• Waterfront Embarcadero