Back to Mexico – decided to take advantage of the cheap
dental services offered by over 350 dentists in the Mexican border town of
Algodones. Robin needed a crown, plus check-up and cleaning –cost $185 US and I
got a check-up and cleaning for $25 US. We won’t be back to our Canadian
dentist anytime soon! Of course we enjoyed tacos and beer a couple more times
as well. The vendors were quite happy to lower their prices as the “busy season”
for them was coming to a close.
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| Shopping in Algodones |
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| a few of the 350 dental offices! |
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| part of The Wall |
We had a mobile RV repair guy check out our ailing fridge –
has been working on propane, lucky for us. We paid him over $300 which helped
but it still needs some TLC back home.
We did some shopping at the Arizona Marketplace in Yuma for new windsock flags and a few other items
for the RV. I also picked up 2 big ziplock bags of new but ”broken” jewelry for
$10 – should give me a lot of material for crafting.
We left Yuma March 24, still warm – high of 24C, paid
$2.409/gallon for diesel and headed north. I spent a couple hours in Gemworld
in Quartzite – more jewelry making supplies then onward to Vegas. We found out
that there is no dry camping in any Walmart or casino allowed in Vegas and area
so we headed to Las Vegas RV Resort for a few days.
We used public transit in Vegas - $2.50 each (senior rate)
for a 24 hour pass on the buses. We spent an entire day walking up & down “The
Strip”, took the bus to Freemont Street and did the entire loop on the bus,
along The Strip & to downtown. Got really sore feet but it was enjoyable –
lots of strange sights to see! Some changes since our last visit – you can no
longer cross the street at street level on the Strip – there are elevated
walkways to cross side streets & the Strip, so lots of stairs! Freemont
street has also expanded east to provide more access to “entertainment”. There
are also lots of drugstores right on the Strip selling all manner of drinks
& food to go, as well as souvenirs. We took in a buffet and did a bit of
gambling,( not any richer). All told we put on over 23,000 steps that day!
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| beautiful flower displays at the Bellagio |
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| a buffet, of course |
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| Freemont Street light show |
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| cute shirt! |
The weather was getting cooler, low of 12C and windy when we
headed out, up Hiway 93 – had to actually put on socks and turn on the heater!
We could see snow on the mountains in Vegas but then we found ourselves
actually above snow level in higher elevations, not ready for that! We spent a
night in Jackpot, Nevada and woke to -5C, porridge for breakfast & furnace
on.
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| Ely, Nevada |
Thru Twin Falls, Idaho, a lot more green seen then a stop in
Idaho Falls for a walkabout. The water in the river & falls was really
high, too fast even for geese. We did see ducks, geese, cranes and antelope
along the way.
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| Idaho Falls |
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| Twin Falls |
We crossed into Alberta March 30, a 45 min. line-up but no
secondary inspection & no duty required, despite claiming 3x1.75 L booze
and 24 beer. It almost took longer at the mandatory boat inspection – of our
kayak – the girl used a mirror to check it inch by inch! We prefer heading up
Hiway 36, less traffic, then a stop in Vegreville for a final dump of our tanks
and we decided to spend the night so we would arrive home early in the day.
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| antelope |
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| Canada geese with cold feet! |
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| snowy owl |
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| heading into Edmonton, thankfully no snow! |
So we have now emptied the RV and are settling into our “summer routine”. Luckily we got to visit with all of our kids and grandkids within a few days of returning home!
We continue to Live the Dream – until our next adventure!
