RVing with the Bartons: The 2011 Edition: Oct. 6

Wow, 10 days! So you might be thinking we stayed in Anacortes so long because it was soooo beautiful and wonderful... It is a nice, pretty area, and we liked the town pretty well, but that would only be part of the story... A story most of you have been dragged through already, but here you'll get to hear it again (oh goody!).

We stayed at Pioneer Trails RV Park, which was a very nice campground. It was packed for the first weekend we were there (a combination of Columbus Day and Canada's Thanksgiving) but cleared out and was nearly vacant the rest of the time (except for an area down below that appeared to have seasonals or full-timers).

And here's the real reason we stayed in Anacortes for so long! Remember the bit about our truck wobbling along on its last legs, through Canada, Montana, Idaho, and Washington? Well, this area was on our route and looked like a good place to hang out for an extended time so we targeted the Ford dealership there (technically in Burlington). We were hoping for good news but instead were told that the engine did indeed need replacing. Drat!!!! So we bedded down for a long winter's nap and prepared to shell out the big bucks. And drove this little orange pumpkin in the meantime (yeah, more bucks, but it was about HALF the cost of the Canada car rentals!!!!).

And this is where we ate - a lot (we alternated between here and Popeye's fried chicken!)! They really should rename it Bill's Chowder Bar & BBQ Salmon (even though we never tried the salmon). Their chowder was super rich and creamy, and their lemon salad dressing was so good I had to buy a bunch (never know if we'll be back there or not!)! And Bill loved their fried oysters (eew!).

And Tractor ate here - or hoped to! This guy is never far from us or where the action is! And mealtime definitely qualifies as action!!!

Killer?! Yeah right! Scratty could've taken him down, no problem! But lucky for him, he was nice, and she didn't need to...

OK, and while we're at it, take a look at Scratty. Take a good look. Is she pink or what?! And no, I didn't play with the color controls! But something about the dirt/clay/mud there made her look pink (maybe because it was sort of greenish-bluish?)!

Father and son stroll through the forested campground.

This is why we love RVers - pets are almost always family members! (one sad exception was a puppy who I saw tied up outside someone's trailer ALL the time, no matter how brutally cold it was. I think the people lived there full-time, and maybe there was good reason for him to be out so much. He seemed to be doing OK, but I had my doubts about how much he was enjoying that often frigid air and/or rain! I felt sorry for him and reminded our kids just how good they have it!)

And yes, during that one busy holiday weekend, our cats were discovered! Cats and kids just go together - at least that's what Scratty thinks! She LOVES kids!! The more, the merrier, and she never seems to feel overwhelmed or over-molested! (only by us, her parents who pet, hold, hug and kiss her way too much!)

But if you're a stranger, giggly, and under 48" tall, you'll do nicely!

Tractor gets in on the action.

Tractor gets a little too much action perhaps. He looks a bit demonic here, doesn't he?! A slightly desperate look? "Help Mommy! I'm being swallowed whole!!"

Umm, disregard that sign. We did! And these kids seem really happy because of it!! I think they'd much prefer cats and dogs in their playground to just boring, cold metal equipment!

These shelties were pretty gung-ho about meeting the kitties at first, which sort of startled Tractor. But when the kitties didn't run away and actually started heading for them (Scratty in particular, of course - she's usually the first to interact with kids and dogs), the dogs, as usual, backed off and backed up! "Yikes! I thought those were just cats, but now I'm not so sure - they don't ACT like cats!?! Spooky!!"

Tractor getting handshake lessons. Not sure he's had any since that episode, so I doubt he remembers it too much. Hmm, maybe time to re-instigate...!