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Jemstone

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About Jemstone

  • Birthday December 12

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  • Gender
    Male
  • Location
    Glendale, Arizona
  • Interests
    Rock hounding & lapidary.<br />
    CONTACT: jemstone4u@gmail.com

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  1. Rodeane and I arrived at Toad River today and plan to stay a week. Toad River is at mile 422, km 651 of the Alaska Highway and has 50 residents. It is in the far Northern Rockies and not far from Stone Mountain Provincial Park, home of a flock of Stone Sheep, a local bighorn subspecies. The sheep have an area of the highway where essential nutrients can be licked off the asphalt and they have become used to cars slowly passing them at a close distance. In addition to the sheep we saw three moose and two bears on our short drive between Ft. Nelson and Toad River. The black bears were grazing on the grass along the sides of the highway. Toad River is a fast flowing river and during the construction of the Alaska Highway all traffic across the river had to be towed, giving the river its name. The person who initially opened the lodge adopted the name, but spelled it Toad. A large beaver lodge was built in the lake the RV park is located and when we walked over to see it we encounterd Junior Beaver having a dinner of aspen bark. Junior had grown up next to the RV park and was most tolerant of us. We saw one of his parents leave the lodge and swim around, but Junior let us get good photos with an iPad. When we would get too close Junior would just stop chewing and look at us. A note for folks driving into far northern BC on the Alaska Highway. At some point north of Fort Nelson the road repair crews ran out of asphalt and could no longer fill in pot holes (I assume). They did have plenty of paint, so instead of filling in in the potholes the road crews simply outlined them in bright paint. From the truck I can see them in time to avoid them, but cars would not have much reaction time. John
  2. Rodeane and I pulled into Grande Prairie, Alberta yesterday and are staying at the Rotary RV Park. We'll be here for a week, waiting for a part for our Splendide washer/dryer. We will have a chance to explore a new area, for us, and see the new dinosaur museum nearby. We will also meet Rita tomorrow, as she works at the Rotary RV Park. There was a recent discussion of Alberta Highway 40 and its condition. We drove it yesterday from Hinton to Grande Prairie. It is a two lane connecter that saves a lot of time, versus going through Edmonton. We saw one moose, 4 mule deer, and one coyote that still had on its beautiful winter coat. There were relatively few potholes, most pretty shallow. No danger to good tires. For geology fans, this road runs north through the foothills of the Canadian Rockies and crosses many of the main rivers flowing out of the mountains. On a clear day it is a beautiful drive. I usually drive 62 mph, or its kilometer equivalent, unless the speed limit is slower. During this trip we have averaged 9.5 mpg while towing by holding the speed to 62, my personal best mileage. As we continue toward the Yukon I'll post anything that might be of interest to others headed way north, when we have an internet connection. For rockhounds, my native tribe, the Canadian Rockies, as beautiful as they are, are a bust. They are all sedimentary, with the exception of the Gog quartzite. The "Ammolite" gem ammonite shell is found east of the mountains. I'm not sure where the B.C. nephrite jade comes from. John
  3. It's my guess that Alaska and Canada (Yukon) have never resolved the issue of who uses that stretch of the Alaska Highway, Canadian residents or US residents traveling from Haines to the Alaska Highway at Haines Junction and then on into Alaska. The Yukon has never seemed to do much more than putting little orange ribbons next to semi swallowing pot holes. I'll follow my usual strategy of falling in behind a trucker headed my way and watch when the truck swerves or sinks out of site.
  4. Is anyone using Big Rig Best Bets for locating sites? They are asking me for $51.90 to be an on line member and possibly get a spiral bound "book". I could not find a web site for this outfit, which seems strange for a business offering on-line services. However, if they actually have better information than RV Park Reviews, a free and usually accurate service, then I'm interested. Anyone familiar with, as their ad says, "the Big Rig Best Bets family"? Thanks, John
  5. Thanks for the replies. I would not have thought of the inverter issue till it acted up and even then would not have thought of it till I tested almost everything else that could have created the problem. I'll install an upgraded inverter when I install the microwave.
  6. One of my life goals has been to cook a pot roast in a microwave while driving through the Yukon. Oh well, life is full of difficult compromises.
  7. I have a 2010 Volvo 730 and I'd like to add a microwave oven. I am hoping that a group member has recently purchased a microwave that fits well and is wiling to share the make and model. I'm looking forward to hot coffee while on the road, as I run through the thermos contents pretty quickly. Suggestions?
  8. We have the Good Sam plan and have had good service from them in three separate situations, including a 125 mile tow of the Volvo and the trailer. We have cost them near $3,000 over the last three years, all of which has been paid promptly. I don't know why they have not cancelled me yet. The problem with Good Sam was mentioned above. Good Sam actually contracts with All State for roadside assistance. One has to convince a bored woman that Joe's Tow will not do. I always try to talk with the tow company, as the tow operators understand the difference between a Ford F-150 and a Volvo truck. Our experience has been that those big Peterbuilt tow operators are most knowledgeable and are very good at their business. For many folks, impatience is a real problem. Getting a big rig tow to you is not usually quick and breakdowns are often in awkward locations. If you have a Volvo I-Shift and your engine is running you can shift to "M", Volvo's emergency 1st gear that allows one to pull to safe location. In the future I plan to break down in supermarket parking lots.
  9. We are in a beautiful site about seven miles up the Rogue River from the coastal Oregon town of Gold Beach. We are on the river with a small meadow between our site and the water. From our dining table we watched a great blue heron catch dinner. We will be here two weeks. This is the first WiFi we have had in six weeks, mostly due to the remote places where we stayed. We left our home in Glendale, AZ in mid May and have yet to see another HDT pulling a 5th wheel. However, we are happy to report that we have had no problem in locating RV parks that can accommodate us, even in remote areas like Crater Lake National Park, Oregon. Anyone near Gold Beach, Oregon?
  10. I have been reading the information on this site and have discovered that I have the wrong truck to pull our 5th wheel. I have a Freightliner FL60 built up as a crew cab 5th wheel RV hauler. The cab is so noisy that it's hard to hear the sound system. The 250hp Cat has to work hard all the time and only gets 10.5mpg bob tail and 8.5mpg towing. The only real advantage to the FL60 is better brakes than a pickup. We will be on the road till early November when we will return home to the Phoenix area and can start looking for a HDT.
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