last pictures

the last of the pictures are up on facebook. take a look. they are worth it

Final Word

Well the trip of a thousand miles has finally come to an end, the last three days since Sunday have had to be the hardest ones of all it seemed. After leaving Yuma on Monday morning, I drove to the San Luis firehall hoping to find Jorge, and Peter. I talked to the fire chief and he said he would have his secretary try and locate them on the Mexican side, she later said that they were on the way over the border. Later a police Tahoe showed up with both Jorge and a guy named Henry who delivers fire trucks and ambulances to small towns in Mexico.

Henry does it the legit way by paying the import tax and then drives accross, and the town that receives these trucks pay just the import tax, he was going to let us try and piggy back in the line with his trucks but we needed permission from the people he knew. The Assistant Administrator finally gave the OK but the U.S side for exporting was closed so we couldn't go until the morning. He said that they had a check point along the highway where they would check our papers, if we didn't have the papers they would then seize the truck. I went back accross the U.S border to where the truck was and the other guys stayed in Mexico. So that night I stayed in San Luis fire hall, and they were really good there.

Tuesday I parked the truck and met up with Henry who was already on the U.S side and eventually Jorge showed up with his son, who then went to get the import paper work done for our truck and just pay the thousand dollars. I stayed on the U.S side and waited, and finally at noon they showed up and we were good to go. U.S customs checked over my truck and said no problem,  there they cleared off my bond and we went to the Mexican side and after them searching the truck they let us go, we drove to the firehall in Mexico took some pictures and we parted ways, with Henry.

Jorge and his son stayed with me and we  went and I followed in the truck with Jorge. His son drove the car and we drove the long trip to the mission,  and finally got in at Midnight. I slept at the Kos's place, got up at 6 am and showered had a quick coffee went to Sala at 8 then took both the fire trucks out and parked them side by side and the girl from the office took pictures of me and Jorge standing by the truck. They clapped and asked me to stand up in Sala and said thank you. I then gave the Administrator the bill of Sale the legal documents and they took some pictures of that, and loaded my stuff up in Peter Kozaks car and left the mission at about 10 30. then drove to San Diego. Another secondary search later I found myself in the LaQuinta in hotel. Its cloudy and a bit cool but its such a relief to be here. the border crossing and check points on the roads with guys with machine guns is a bit unnerving.

That is the last email from dad. He made it home safely thankfully. What a journey it was. Thank you to everyone who was supporting this trip in prayer or otherwise. I don't think it would have gone as smoothly, if at all, if it weren't for people like you and of course for God watching over us. I was glad to be a part of this journey and I don't think I will ever forget it. I am thankful that the truck made it mostly in one piece (minus one good tarp) and I hope it is a blessing to those at and around the Mission. I will have some final pictures posted later tonight after work.

From Missouri and Edmonton

Pics

More facebook pics posted...follow the link

Delivery

Dad called this morning from the mission in Mexico. They made it to the mission late last night after some delays at the border and having to pay the 1000.00 fee/fine/bribe whatever it was. After a close encounter with a drunk californian driver, they made it to the Mission. Today Dad will head back to San Diego to catch a flight back home. An official final post will follow with more details and some pictures. Stay Tuned.

Update from San Luis

Well Dad is on the American side of San Luis still waiting for word on crossing over tomorrow. The bond has been stamped however the truck is still on the American side. He spent the day in Mexico trying to figure out how to get the truck through without paying what seems like a required 1000.00 dollars. Jorge is going to see if he can talk to some people in Mexicali who may let him pass through. Things are a little sketchy but please pray that things go well tomorrow. It is hard not to be on the trip in this hard part of the section, but I pray that all will go well tomorrow.

Home bittersweet home

It is a little weird to be posting on the blog from home, but i must continue the journey as it is not quite completed. Dad emailed me the update of where he is now and how things went today.

I had coffee after you left with the crew for about 20 minutues then they showed me the quickest and easiest way out. I went the I-10 east to the 162 turnoff, then to a town called Maricora, then turned there to highway 238 and followed it towards Yuma, I stopped at a rest stop to take a couple of pictures with my camera, not sure if they turned out, it was a long hot drive,  I got to Yuma about noon and fueled the truck  and had Subway eat fresh for Lunch.




I used the phone to phone around to see if I could get a hold of Jorge or Pete Kozak but no luck. , so I asked a trucker if the bond department in San luis was open on Sunday and he said NO, So i phoned this Paul Evancho from the Yuma fire department and he met me at the Loves truck stop, and took me to Firehall 6 in Yuma. WOW just beautiful, just like in Phoenix, Iam a block away from the turn off to go straight into San Luis tommorrow. The captain here his son in law works for the U.S government border crosssing there so he said how to get the bond stamped, i knew that but he said to call him if i had any problems,



So iam in Yuma for tonight and will hopefully meet up with Jorge and Pete in the morning in San Luis. I had a choice between, a really nice hall but no supper, or a lousy hall but a meal, I picked the nice hall and forget the meal, I still have a couple bottles of water and some all sort candies I can eat.

From Yuma AZ

Phoenix again

Tonight I said goodbye to Fire 505. It was a little nostalgic to sit in the truck one last time. It was of course parked in the bay here at Station 16 and not cruising down a desolate Arizona desert. I sat in the driver seat and a weeks worth of memories flooded back to me at once. The sadness and nostalgia that I felt were not for the truck itself, though there is a small sentimental tug I feel when I see the truck. It covered a lot of miles and it is sort of like saying goodbye to an old friend. The sadness doesn't come because I am sitting in the truck for the last time, it comes because of the company had in the truck. Dad and I covered a lot of miles, and shared a lot of stories. The truck was simply a context for that to be carried out. Our time spent together was invaluable. Though our goal ultimately revolves around the truck itself, the journey was one of importance as well. I think I came to realize that although the journey and destination are important, the company you share along the way can make all the difference. Keep good company and the miles will pass swiftly. Keep patience, and remember to charge the GPS at night Dad.

From Phoenix AZ

Good night Fire 505.

Phoenix

Hello from Phoenix. We arrived here in Phoenix without much ado. A lonely desert road and a little trouble with traffic and we are brought here. We were a little early to meet the people at the firehall that we decided to find something to do. Dad spotted the " Hall of Flame Firefighter Museum". What a fitting way to cap off our arrival in Phoenix than with a visit to where it all began. We entered the coordinates in the GPS and set off. Well, the GPS advised a few left turns here and there that were not available, we turned around several times and were unable to find the right road, despite the help of the GPS. We were beginning to find ourselves in a repeat of Bullhead city all over again. (See post from yesterday). The heat was getting to us, our Skor bites were melted and the water bottles were boiling, not to mention ourselves. Before it hit the fan we were able to locate the Hall of Flame. It was a short visit however as we peered inside to see a small building with a few firetrucks parked and not much else. Thte owner did however offer to put our rig up on display. Frustrated, hot, but determined to find a coolaba tree under which to park our truck, we got directions to the mall. We ended up driving right past it because the interstate exits were all closed. We still made it back to the mall and now we sit awaiting shift change so we can pull up in our rig for one final night in the firehall (at least for me. Dad will head to Yuma tomorrow)

From Phoenix AZ

New Quick Post

Just a quick post to say good morning. I hope everyone slept better than I did. Today we head to Phoenix which isn't too far from here. I am not sure when we will arrive but I will keep you all posted. New pictures on Facebook for those interested.

Vegas and more...

Today we left St. George Utah a little later than normal. We got held up at the UT-AZ border. They wanted to charge 1 dollar a mile to travel through their fine state. Needless to say that is one fee Dad would not be paying. After some deliberation and a little patience...we were able to pass without being charged 30 bucks. We enjoyed a nice drive through the Arizona/Nevada desert and came to Las Vegas. Of course we made a point to drive down the strip in our sweet ride. It drew some stares and we got some good pics. It is too bad we couldnt' stay a little longer seeing as how we had that 30 bucks. We felt lucky. The truck was too big to drive past Hoover Dam so we had to take the long boring desert route. Things got a little heated in more ways than one as we drove through Bullhead, which seemed to be a fitting name. The heat became unbearable. Finally we were able to meet up with the chief from Golden Valley who escorted us to a hall on the outskirts of town. After a good meal we came back and had just enough light left to wash the truck. Dad has been embarassed to be seen with a dirty truck and I think being able to wash it has brought the joy back to driving it.

Tomorrow we will make it to Phoenix hopefully if everything works out. Check out the new pictures on Facebook

From the Nevada desert

Rattlesnake Speedway in the Utah Desert

There are more pictures posted on facebook. Just click to the left. We made it out of Salt Lake City today unconverted although the Temple and other Mormon artifacts are quite impressive. There are some pictures that are pretty cool. We made it to St. George Utah and we got in a hotel. We ate at Texas Roadhouse tonight and are relaxing in the hotel. Another long day today. The weather is definitley warming up and we hope to be in Vegas tomorrow. We might just take a detour down the strip so look for some pictures tomorrow night from Nevada. I am getting sad that my time is almost over. I hope that dad can make it to Mexico safely. I will enjoy a swim tonight and relax in the hotel room.


From the Utah Desert

From Salt Lake City (yesterday)

Salt Lake City




Well there was no update this afternoon as I was sleeping for my usual update period. The weather has cleared and we are into warmer climates. We stopped briefly in Pocatello ID for some lunch and got tricked into buying the Burger King “Buck Double” After selling an awesome quarter pound double cheeseburger for a buck for months now, they pulled a fast one on us a la McDonalds with there new McDouble. For months the Double cheeseburger was a buck and it was a great deal. I loved getting the burger king double cheeseburger. I wouldn’t go there otherwise. So today in Pocatello I decided I could show Dad how awesome of a deal this was. Well the BK Double Cheeseburger has migrated to the 1.29 price menu and has been replaced by the skimpy, single piece of cheese, slightly bigger than a Mcdonalds patty “buck Double” which is much smaller than the double cheeseburger. RANT OVER. We coasted in to Salt Lake City around 5 or so and after getting slightly misdirected (I said stay right, the GPS lady voice said left and I said “Who’s doing this me or you?) We made it to the number one fire hall in Downtown Salt Lake. We went to eat at a very delicious Mexican restaurant. I got to ride over there in the nice new truck which was sweet. I didn’t get the camera though. I seem to feel more like a fireman everyday. Of course as soon as the guys got in line they got a call and rushed out the door only to return after we had finished eating. I rode back with the guys who are all very cool. We spent the evening touring the city in the Battalion Chiefs Tahoe. I have some great pictures of the Mormon Temple and the city itself from above.. Hopefully tomorrow morning I can get some wireless access and publish this post. Hope you all have a good night.



From the Great Salt Lake
 
PS this was written last night with no internet access. We are in St. George UT right now and i will update with pics etc in a few hours

Bonus Post

Bonus post from Dillon. We haven't left yet but i figured I would take advantage of the wireless internet availability. Today we are headed out under sunny skies finally. We had a great night at the Best Western here and we are excited to get going again, although someone (i won't say who) compared getting up and getting going to going to work every morning. I guess it is ok to say that if you are retired because you know you don't have to go to work ever again. Anyway, I have to sign off. Check out the facebook album linked on left.

Facebook Pics

There is a facebook photo album up and it is linked in the "Links" section to the left

Day 2 Evening

We made it to a hotel in Dillon Montana. We drove mostly through snow and ice as seen in the picture in the previous post. Crossing the border took only about an hour which made for good time the rest of the day other than the snow. Hopefully tommorrow we can make the same kind of time. We have a small fan club here in Dillon after we parked the truck at the hotel some "gawkers" came out to admire the truck. For a few minutes I was a fireman. If only for show. I think people smile at you more if they think you are a fireman.

Dillon Montana

Great Falls and Beyond




Well we just left Great Falls Montana after a brief but out of the way stop at Wal Mart for some biscotti and a minute phone. We had a great time with the firemen at the Lethbridge firehouse. They were very welcoming and hospitable. It was my first overnight stay in a firehall, and the experience was memorable. I woke up twice when the calls came in, but fell back asleep pretty easily. We headed for Raymond Alberta, got the bond stamped and headed for SweetGrass. We spent an hour at the border and were able to cross with little delay. Our goal today is to reach Dillon Montana. We are doing pretty good inside the cab, although outside is wet and snowy. That should clear up hopefully tomorrow. Pictures will follow later tonight



From Northern Montana

Lethrbridge

Well we made it to Lethbridge. The internet access is limited, but I will update. We did not get to Raymond, but we will on the way out of town tommorow. We are staying at a firehouse in Lethbridge that is actually being renovated so we are in Atco trailers tonight. We had a tour of the new hall tonight from the Chief and were shown a good meal and hospitality tonight. It is late, and hopefully the internet access will become more available as time goes on. Pictures will follow tommorow.

Good night from Southern Alberta

On The Road

Well we left this morning with a little fanfare and a delicious breakfast. After a fuel stop we were on our way. The weather was a little chilly but the cab of the truck is surprisingly warm. Our goal today is to get to Lethbridge Alberta and possibly even to Raymond to ge tthe bond that we will need to travel through the US. This will save some time tommorrow. Right now I am typing from the cab of the truck and this will be published later tonight when i can get internet access.

We average about 80kph but the weather is a little wet and so we are going a little slower. The countryside is just as I remember although it is colder than expected this time of year. Dad drove the first leg into Red Deer and i drove from there to Calgary. Dad is back in the saddle now and suggested I take a nap. I will try though the noise in the cab is a little distracting. I imagine i will need the rest though I will keep the updates brief.

From Southern Alberta

Good Morning

Day one. It is not technically from the cab of a firetruck yet but I figured an update is needed. I made it to Edmonton fine although the weather is a little colder than I remember this time of year. Dad needs to go to the Vehicle Registration office to get plates first thing because he was unable to on friday. Hopefully that will go off without much of a hitch. Other than that we are just waiting to eat and bid farwell. More updates will follow this evening from Lethbridge hopefully. Hope everyone is doing well back in St. Louis. Thanks again to my brother in law who is staying with my family while I am gone.

It's Here

Well the truck has finally arrived. It was officially signed over this afternoon after quite the back and forth I have only heard about. I guess it wasn't official until the taking of the picture below. It is an 1982 International S-Series Tanker. That is all I know. We will be writing to dialogue the journey from Edmonton to the Baja Mission in Mexico. We will try and post pictures and posts as the internet is available. We hope to post at least once a day. Be sure to check out the map below for our progress.