What we got today you'd probably consider a dusting.
Haha! No, eight+ inches is still a decent amount. We don't tend to get huge dumps (other than this past September, where we actually did). Rather, it just accumulates little by little over the months. I only scoffed because winter set in a good month ago now, so what's the big deal if you get some snow here and there?
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
What we got today you'd probably consider a dusting.
Haha! No, eight+ inches is still a decent amount. We don't tend to get huge dumps (other than this past September, where we actually did). Rather, it just accumulates little by little over the months. I only scoffed because winter set in a good month ago now, so what's the big deal if you get some snow here and there?
Fortunately, the snow melts pretty quickly around here. Was sunny this afternoon and a plow finally came down our street around 8 tonight. I got out and ran a few errands - once I got out of my neighborhood, the roads were in pretty decent shape for my FWD hatchback.
Fintail, You were probably better being where you were than in the PNW yesterday, although maybe the really bad stuff was east of where you usually are.
2024 Ford F-150 STX, 2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
Fintail, You were probably better being where you were than in the PNW yesterday, although maybe the really bad stuff was east of where you usually are.
Yeah, my daughter in law called last night from Spokane. She and my son and grandson were hunkered in the basement of their home while 80-90 mph winds roared outside.
Today is a beautiful blue-sky day with just light winds.
Daughter in law texted that they were 2mph shy of hurricane...
Fintail, You were probably better being where you were than in the PNW yesterday, although maybe the really bad stuff was east of where you usually are.
Yeah, my daughter in law called last night from Spokane. She and my son and grandson were hunkered in the basement of their home while 80-90 mph winds roared outside.
Today is a beautiful blue-sky day with just light winds.
Daughter in law texted that they were 2mph shy of hurricane...
I have a HS friend who also lives in Spokane ... amazing the wind speeds that went through yesterday.
In the Columbia Basin area, 45-50 mph winds really aren't uncommon. But, I never experienced anything on the order of 90mph in the fifteen years I spent there!
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
Whoa...two friends of Mrs.iluvmysephia1 and I are temporarily homeless in Coeur d'Alene, ID, after 70 mph winds knocked trees on to their apt. and mobile home.
This sums up my day - rain, traffic, little cars, GPS that once again took me into a city center when I wasn't going to that city center.
It may not be the highlight of your trip, but you're sure bringing the rest of us some enjoyment via your frequent updates! Make the most of the time you have left over there!
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
It is a unique experience to see all the cars from brands never seen in the USA like Peugeot, Renault, Citroen, Vauxhall, Skoda, Seat, VW:) , Opel, Fiat , Dacia , Alfa Romeo ........
The tie-ins are interesting. PSA Peugeot Citroen is still pretty unique though I guess they have (or had) a relationship with Mitsubishi and Dongfeng. You could say that all the rest are "just" VWs, GMs, "Renault-Nissans" or FCAs.
The tie-ins are interesting. PSA Peugeot Citroen is still pretty unique though I guess they have (or had) a relationship with Mitsubishi and Dongfeng. You could say that all the rest are "just" VWs, GMs, "Renault-Nissans" or FCAs.
Agreed but the all the different flavors are fun even if made by just three major automakers )
You'd think with all the globalization of platforms and parts bin sharing, we would get some of the more fun ones. I'd loved to have had the chance to test drive an Espace back in the late 90s.
When I was working in UK, Renault Clio was the hottest cult car among young lovers because of its very famous 'Papa & Nicole' adverts staring a young guy coming in Clio to elope with his girlfriend and the girls father catches them sneaking but forgives him when he sees that he has a Clio
I remember some decent windstorms in Moses Lake, one that came with snowfall and made some pretty cool big drifts.
No driving today, but some things seen via using a road:
The Synchrocyclotron from 1957 at CERN:
And a nice day on the lake - clouds streaming in from the apparent direction of the Jura hint at changes to come:
G'day
Geneva is a gorgeous city, isn't it. I had some work there years ago and spent a couple of weeks staying in a very flash hotel, right by the lake. To say the rooms were large would be doing it a dis-service - the bathroom was larger than my living room at home and total floor area, probably the same as my home in England!
As a break, I took a lake tour on that steamer in your photo and admired the fountain. Absolutely exquisite. Inevitably, brought home far too many bags of chocolates for the kids, leading to Angus's first two word phrase, "More Choc!". One way to teach your kids to speak!
When I was working in UK, Renault Clio was the hottest cult car among young lovers because of its very famous 'Papa & Nicole' adverts staring a young guy coming in Clio to elope with his girlfriend and the girls father catches them sneaking but forgives him when he sees that he has a Clio
Likewise, we spent the 1990s in Britain and I had two inherited Renaults in that time. The Clio ads were very cheeky and as you say, tempted young lovers. Judy still does a very good imitation of "Papa?"... "Nicole?" for my entertainment.
I was pleasantly surprised by it. Not as cold and dull as Zurich. I am generally not a Francophile, and I wondered how I would like Geneva as it is ground zero for all of the sketchy NGO and crooked diplomatic corps stuff - but it had a vibrancy to it I had not seen in prior trips to Switzerland. Breathtakingly expensive, but I got a decent hotel deal and lucked out in the weather, so it was cool.
I raided the Lindt outlet store at the factory in Kilchberg on my trip north
Geneva is a gorgeous city, isn't it. I had some work there years ago and spent a couple of weeks staying in a very flash hotel, right by the lake. To say the rooms were large would be doing it a dis-service - the bathroom was larger than my living room at home and total floor area, probably the same as my home in England!
As a break, I took a lake tour on that steamer in your photo and admired the fountain. Absolutely exquisite. Inevitably, brought home far too many bags of chocolates for the kids, leading to Angus's first two word phrase, "More Choc!". One way to teach your kids to speak!
I thought you'd like all the vanlets/high roof wagons here. The French have a bunch of them, and VW and Opel have a ton too. They always seem to be the ones merging onto an unrestricted Autobahn at 70 kmh
You'd think with all the globalization of platforms and parts bin sharing, we would get some of the more fun ones. I'd loved to have had the chance to test drive an Espace back in the late 90s.
Somehow cars in UK and Europe have fun and personality and character. Smaller car lend themselves to more individual personality then the Camcorders and SUVs in USA.
And I'm back - on my first drive I made it a good 15 minutes before I honked
It really does flow slower here, even with the wider roads and more "safe" (sarcastic quotes) traffic controls. I'll be on the highway a little over the long weekend, hopefully will be better as I'll avoid peak times.
Took a drive on some local highways yesterday - I forgot what a lowest common denominator driving environment we have here. More than a couple LLCs, plenty of weirdo MLCs too. Beautiful weather didn't seem to make an impact one way or another.
Took a drive on some local highways yesterday - I forgot what a lowest common denominator driving environment we have here. More than a couple LLCs, plenty of weirdo MLCs too. Beautiful weather didn't seem to make an impact one way or another.
Welcome back! I bet you're thrilled to be home!
2018 Subaru Crosstrek, 2014 Audi Q7 TDI, 2013 Subaru Forester, 2013 Ford F250 Lariat D, 1976 Ford F250, 1969 Chevrolet C20, 1969 Ford Econoline 100
My experiences at least, and they may be wrong; but the Seattle area seems to be a bit lacking in restaurant variety, particularly with popularly priced places. I'm sure you got spoiled across the Pond! But at least you're on the west coast, so you should have cheap fares to relieve that issue in SoCal, Vegas or Phoenix
You're not far off. There are good places here, but they aren't always easy to find. Some diners here and there are good, but Red Robin is a popular go-to choice. Good pizza can be tough, I really got spoiled in Italy.
Another day in the sun. Typical scenery ~5 minutes ago a little west of Wilcox AZ. Nice rest area in this spot, although every one we've passed in AZ so far has been closed for remodeling. Stopping in Phoenix tonight, LA tomorrow.
stever - this is close ta where the Mrs. and I are planning ta retire at. Love the Dragoon Mountains there in your picture. Some look like hands folded in prayer, others look like faces, etc. Our son lives in Phoenix - Arizona would be a welcome place ta see for us.
We decided to skip Phoenix and are aiming for Yuma. Want to crash before dark. We already had plans to stay in Phoenix a couple of days on the return leg.
And yeah, nice country. We did Interstate 8 and it's pretty lonely until you get to Gila Bend. Enjoyed a lot of real western scenery going through Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
We decided to skip Phoenix and are aiming for Yuma. Want to crash before dark. We already had plans to stay in Phoenix a couple of days on the return leg.
And yeah, nice country. We did Interstate 8 and it's pretty lonely until you get to Gila Bend. Enjoyed a lot of real western scenery going through Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
I went to college in Phoenix and had family living in Yuma .. would drive there a few times a year for weekend visits. Man, is that some lonely road.
(and this was before I-10 was complete all the way into Phoenix from the west).
The Prius was a free upgrade versus the standard car we had reserved, which was to be a VW Jetta or similar. The only thing available was the Prius or a Jeep Cherokee unless we downsized to a subcompact Spark.
Since the Prius is on our shortlist to buy, we told the agent at Enterprise we'd "settle" for the regular Prius.
The rental bill was $314 for 11 days. Could have saved a little more but the Costco card expired. That's another story.
Just cruised by a section of the Salton Sea and the next waypoint is the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park entrance.
The Prius was a free upgrade versus the standard car we had reserved, which was to be a VW Jetta or similar. The only thing available was the Prius or a Jeep Cherokee unless we downsized to a subcompact Spark.
Since the Prius is on our shortlist to buy, we told the agent at Enterprise we'd "settle" for the regular Prius.
The rental bill was $314 for 11 days. Could have saved a little more but the Costco card expired. That's another story.
Just cruised by a section of the Salton Sea and the next waypoint is the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park entrance.
That is an awesome deal. I never get that cheap rates as I always rent at airports where Costco does not offer any deals. I am in Denver next march and best I can get for full size car is $186 for for 4 days .
$186 for 4 days, that's like 10% less than I paid for the loaded X5 I had in Germany (before the full insurance, which I bought as I spent time in Italy).
Seattle rentals can be off the charts too.
I hope Steve's Prius has better seats than the Prius C a friend once had - he drove it from Atlanta to Seattle and says it made him visit the chiropractor for the next year.
Highways 78 and 79 from the Salton Sea to Temecula was a great drive today. RVs prohibited or not recommended, lots of dips and curves. Even got a taste of fall colors.
I had read awhile ago that the drought has done some weird things to the Salton Sea area, including some less than pleasant stench in parts of it. Don't know if you ran into any of that.
We just cruised by a small part of the southern half before we cut west. Have a good friend up in Salem who RVs down there in the winter and he's still making his annual trip there. He could be hanging out in a different area though. Coming out the way we did, you do hit a lot of aromatic CAFOs going through the Imperial Valley.
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Alps shining in all their glory:
Mont Blanc Tunnel, most expensive toll road I have experienced:
You were probably better being where you were than in the PNW yesterday, although maybe the really bad stuff was east of where you usually are.
Today is a beautiful blue-sky day with just light winds.
Daughter in law texted that they were 2mph shy of hurricane...
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No driving today, but some things seen via using a road:
The Synchrocyclotron from 1957 at CERN:
And a nice day on the lake - clouds streaming in from the apparent direction of the Jura hint at changes to come:
Only a little time left, back home beginning of the week. Right in time for a long weekend
https://youtube.com/watch?v=jDe9rvQRHEI&list=PL0KIzbnLyQv_LqKHja3HOe44327AtfY5K
Geneva is a gorgeous city, isn't it. I had some work there years ago and spent a couple of weeks staying in a very flash hotel, right by the lake. To say the rooms were large would be doing it a dis-service - the bathroom was larger than my living room at home and total floor area, probably the same as my home in England!
As a break, I took a lake tour on that steamer in your photo and admired the fountain. Absolutely exquisite. Inevitably, brought home far too many bags of chocolates for the kids, leading to Angus's first two word phrase, "More Choc!". One way to teach your kids to speak!
Cheers
Graham
Likewise, we spent the 1990s in Britain and I had two inherited Renaults in that time. The Clio ads were very cheeky and as you say, tempted young lovers. Judy still does a very good imitation of "Papa?"... "Nicole?" for my entertainment.
Cheers
Graham
I raided the Lindt outlet store at the factory in Kilchberg on my trip north
A very German street scene:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=Fzb6z6f0cbY
https://youtube.com/watch?v=DwqEpwO-5PE&index=6&list=PL0KIzbnLyQv_LqKHja3HOe44327AtfY5K
https://youtube.com/watch?v=mLD1plXHmLY
https://youtube.com/watch?v=X5TZafDynIY
https://youtube.com/watch?v=w5eT3gIl97o
Of course the huge Interstate highway system is not conducive to small cars like in Europe. And the huge suburban houses are absent in Europe.
It really does flow slower here, even with the wider roads and more "safe" (sarcastic quotes) traffic controls. I'll be on the highway a little over the long weekend, hopefully will be better as I'll avoid peak times.
I don't know what is better here, being a driver or pedestrian. I need to re-accustom myself to how things work here.
The mpg readout at 76mph is saying 51.0 mpg.
stever - this is close ta where the Mrs. and I are planning ta retire at. Love the Dragoon Mountains there in your picture. Some look like hands folded in prayer, others look like faces, etc. Our son lives in Phoenix - Arizona would be a welcome place ta see for us.
You're probably in Cali by now.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
And yeah, nice country. We did Interstate 8 and it's pretty lonely until you get to Gila Bend. Enjoyed a lot of real western scenery going through Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument.
2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick
(and this was before I-10 was complete all the way into Phoenix from the west).
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You're a wealthy man!
Life is short!
Since the Prius is on our shortlist to buy, we told the agent at Enterprise we'd "settle" for the regular Prius.
The rental bill was $314 for 11 days. Could have saved a little more but the Costco card expired. That's another story.
Just cruised by a section of the Salton Sea and the next waypoint is the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park entrance.
Seattle rentals can be off the charts too.
I hope Steve's Prius has better seats than the Prius C a friend once had - he drove it from Atlanta to Seattle and says it made him visit the chiropractor for the next year.