Amends

In December I wrote a blog post entitled, "Moving: The Saga," in which I told of my experience making a cross-country move with the help of a reputable moving company. You can read the original post by clicking here.

As we had experienced a certain amount of frustration during the moving process, I admit that my post is, to some degree, a rant. If you're reading this, you likely read the original post, and you probably noticed me complaining about dealing with the moving company, complaining about the bills we were receiving, and complaining about when our stuff arrived.

The average person reading that post would probably say, "Ugh, that would've been frustrating." However, if you are the moving company you would've been offended to read my words, which were at times aggressive.

It just so happens that someone from the moving company stumbled across my blog and read my post about them. She responded rather energetically in kind by setting up her own blog in response to my mine. And her comments have certainly given me much on which to ponder. Soon, you will be able to read her response by clicking here. (I will activate this link as soon as the author grants me a request, seen below, regarding confidentiality.)

In the response she is clarifying, from her perspective, some of the events I griped about. Isn't that just it, perspective? I wrote about my experience from my perspective, and she wrote from her own. My words were fueled by frustration, and even though I was harsh, I still hold that I was writing from my experience with this moving company. That should give them something to think about.

(*Note: My above use of italics is not to make those italicized words louder but rather to emphasize the point I am trying to make, which is this: my blog post was the result of my experience with this company. All good businesses will welcome input from their customers as a means to better serve customers in the future and prosper as a company. No doubt this moving company is a good business and will use well this input. Hence, they have something to think about.)

In all frankness, I slung mud at them. Yes, me. (Shocked? Me too, because I'm the least confrontational person out there.) In return, mud was lobbed back my way (some directed at my integrity as a minister, which hurt a little). But also, reading her response, it's evident there's lots of emotion and feelings of being wronged. And as I did not want to "wrong" anyone, that certainly gives me something to think about.

Now, I suppose we could go back and forth slinging mud and arguing details till we're blue in the keyboard. She read my blog and perceived errors which she wanted to correct. There are also errors in her response, which I'm tempted to re-correct. However, this cycle would likely never end. And, where would it get us? Only more disconnected, more angry, more feelings of betrayal, hatred, judgement and of being judged. That is not a road I want to travel. We've all been there at some point or another, we know its a place of pain. I would just as soon not start down it. So, for now I will temper my urge to re-correct certain details addressed in her response.

In the response, she wrote that she tries her best to conduct business and live by the Golden Rule. And I can tell you, as I dealt with her during our move I can affirm that statement. N was the bright spot in my experience, the "ray of warm sunshine," as I originally wrote.

So, readers, where do we go from here? How do we best resolve conflict? I will tarry on the mud-slinging option in hopes that the other side will do the same. I would like to search for a place of reconciliation, a place to make amends, in hopes that the other side will do the same. However, I'll confess, it's not always easy to know how to do that. I suppose I could fold, admit outright that I was off my rocker, take back everything, delete the blog post, apologize profusely and request forgiveness for my words, all the while completely denying and discrediting my own feelings which produced the original comments. That approach would be inauthentic.

I could demand that they see things my way, make a list of all the facts as I see them, insist my list is inerrant, and wait firm fisted until they either ignore me or give in. But, I don't see that working either. Both of these approaches creates a winner and a loser, which I perceive to be a loss for both parties.

A month or more removed from "The Saga," I can think a bit more objectively about the situation. I called this moving company a "scammer" company. Here in January, I am willing to take that strong accusation back; however, I cannot take back the fact that we felt as if we were being scammed.

The truth is, I believe if I had been told some of the things that N has revealed about my move in her response, it may have considerably changed and positively inclined my feelings toward the whole thing. Yet, often times I felt left in the dark by the company, and this generated feelings of angst which grew into hostility. So, communication between us needed to be clearer.

Let me ask you this: What have you done in the past to respond and resolve conflict? What is your advice to me now? What is your advice to the other party?

While I still do not see clearly the road to take for how best to make amends, here is a start:

N,

During my move I had a considerable amount of frustration and negative emotion toward your company. Please accept my apology for posting these feelings on the internet instead of coming to you directly. The result could also be named as slander, and for that I apologize.

I yearn for reconciliation as I believe it to be the most life giving resolution to conflict.

What's done is done, and I cannot take back what people have already read on my original post. However, as a step toward making amends I have removed all names of people and companies from my original post. Please accept this as a step toward reconciliation. I would ask in return that you remove specific invoice amounts from your response blog as they are closely related to my own personal finances and something I prefer to be kept private. I trust you will graciously and promptly honor this request for confidentiality.

I realize that reading my blog has put you on the defensive. For me, reading your response has done the same. My wish is to lower my own defensiveness making myself vulnerable in hopes that you may be able to do the same, so that we might talk to one another openly and genuinely to find resolution.

Sincerely,

Nathan

Readers, I invite your input. Is this a step in the right direction?

Comments?

Moving: The Saga

Prepare yourself, this is a long entry. I recently posted on my Facebook status that I hated moving companies and if anyone is preparing to use one for a large move s/he should seek my counsel on how not to get screwed. Here's the story behind it all.

(Note: All names have been concealed to avoid slander.)

Heather's employer generously offered us a moving allowance: a dollar amount we could use to pay for anything related to moving to Alaska (moving Co., travel costs, gas, food, hotels and even first month's rent in a place to live if the money would stretch that far).

During my initial discussion with N, the chief saleslady for Moving Company, I explained our plan to drive cross-country. She said it would take approximately 25 days to ship our things. The plan: we could have our stuff picked up (10/2) a week prior to our departure date (10/10) so that we and our stuff arrive in Anchorage at about the same time. Sounds good.

Also, part of the initial discussion was how much stuff we had. She asked how many pounds of household goods we had. Now let me stop here and ask: Does anybody, I mean anybody, have any earthly idea how much your combined household goods weigh? Answer: no. However, as moving companies bill by the pound they insist on procuring a rough estimate from the shipper (me). Somehow, I'm not really sure though, we landed on about 2,000 lbs of stuff. I was given a price rate based on about 2k pounds. Each additional 100 lbs would cost "x" amount of dollars. Okay, this is how moving companies do it, fine by me. The estimated cost would be about 1/3 of our total moving allowance giving us plenty to travel on.

Standard procedure for a move such as this is for the company to send someone out a week or so before the move to inventory our items and get a better idea of furniture, number of boxes and a more accurate estimate of the weight. However, this company had no one to send so they went with their second option, an over the phone inventory. Fine. I talked with L, chief N's assistant. L asked about all of our furniture, calculating cubic feet and weight. I walked through the house telling her about any items that wouldn't fit in a box. She then inquired as to how many boxes we'd be shipping. Again, having not yet packed, who the *#&% knows!?

I guessed, "Maybe around 45 or 5o boxes."

"Hmmm," she said, "probably not that many just for a 2-bedroom apartment. Usually it's more like 20-25."

Okay, she was the expert, so I deferred to her good judgment. We estimated about 25 boxes. Again, she confirmed that it sounded like it would be 2k pounds or just over. "Good, everything is still looking good," I thought to myself.

Moving Day: The truck driver calls that morning for directions. Upon arriving at our apartment he judges that he can't fit an 18-wheeler into our complex. He informs me he'll have to run and get a smaller truck to transfer our goods from our house out to his big-rig across the street in the grocery store parking lot. Not a problem, they must do this all the time. After all, I don't know many places like this you can actually fit a transfer truck. I'm informed that once our stuff is properly stowed he will hit up a weigh station and find out our exact weight.

The movers begin carrying boxes and wrapping up furniture. They finish up and our stuff begins it's journey to Alaska: the last frontier. For the next week, Heather and I sleep on the floor and say goodbye to our Asheville peeps. Oct. 10th we set out on the road. Day three of our journey, while standing underneath Mount Rushmore, I get a call from R, my contact who monitors our stuff while in transit. He informs me that our stuff has reached High Falls, Montana, where it will be transferred to another truck.

"Great," I replied, "hey, what was the official weight of our shipment?"

He pauses, and spits out, "Right at 5,000 pounds."

Holding back the freak out, I inquire, "So, how much does that change our projected invoice for this shipment?"

Doing some quick math he tells me the new price, which will be just over 9/10 of our entire moving allowance! Queue the freak out.

After a few days of freaking and wonderful traveling I drafted and sent an email to chief N requesting that our rate be adjusted to a rate more suitable for a 5k lb shipment. It seems the gods smiled on my email that day (or at least N did), and I was contacted by N who said she could reduce our invoice to about 7/10 our moving allotment. This was acceptable, but it drastically changed some of our financial plans. It would seem that we would be footing a significant portion of the moving costs.

After arriving in Anchorage I contacted R (transit monitor) letting him know we're here and asking how soon our things will arrive. He doesn't know, but reminds me that it typically takes 4-5 weeks for this kind of move. Funny, how I was initially told 25 days (3.5 weeks) and now suddenly the norm is 4-5 weeks. Grrr. Okay, no matter, because we didn't yet have apartment for our stuff to go into.

In the mean time, Moving Company had sent the primary invoice to me and to the hospital who was paying for the move. However, days later, I received a call from the hospital to inform me that they had received a second bill from Moving Co. for an additional $1200. This was news to me, because it was made clear that everything regarding billing would be sent to me and the hospital. This second invoice was itemized as follows:

1) Small truck for small apartment street: $700.00

2) Packing of 15 boxes $500.00

There are so many problems with this, I don't even know where to start. But here goes. First, we agreed that we would do all the packing, which we did. The movers didn't have to pack a single box of stuff. What they did pack were things like mattresses, box springs, large mirrors and a painting. However, packing of those such items is already included in our primary fee to Moving Co. Second, even if they did pack 15 of our boxes of stuff, where do you get off charging 500 friggin' dollars to pack 15 boxes!?! Next: yes they had to acquire a smaller truck for our apt., but I can go down the road to U-Haul and rent a truck for the day for only $50 bucks. Where do you get $700?

I told the hospital not to pay anything till this was resolved. I called Moving and couldn't get a hold of N. Left a message. No returned phone call. I called the next day. I sent an email: nothing. I called the next day and got R who sometimes helps with matters of billing when N is busy. Now, Moving Company subcontracted our move out to Second Moving Company. They are the actual company that picked up our stuff, because Moving Co. didn't have people in our area. Whatever. R informed me that they had received a second invoice from 2nd Moving Co. for the small truck and that they have to pass this bill along to us. That's where the second bill came from.

In this conversation I also mentioned that the $500 packing fee was bogus, that we'd already paid for that service. R's response was, "well we've got the movers saying they packed some boxes and you saying they didn't. It's your word against theirs. How do we know who to believe?" This infuriated me. However, after that conversation, a 3rd adjusted invoice was mysteriously sent. It was only for the $700 small truck fee. The $500 packing fee had magically disappeared, and no one on their side said a peep about it again.

I wanted to know how this $700 for a small truck was itemized, broken down. Richard didn't know. So, I called 2nd Moving Co. and started inquiring. The first lady was pleasant but couldn't answer, so she suggested I talk to their manager, D. (Note: Now I am talking with the subcontractor company, doing leg work that should be done by Moving Co.) When I spoke with D, I asked why it costs $700 for a small truck. His polite response, I kid you not was, "I don't know anything about $700 dollars, we invoiced Moving Co. for $552.20, that's all."

It is now clear to me that Moving Co. was trying to screw us royally. They somehow added a $150 markup to this already outrageous bill?! Nathan mad. Heather was literally ready to violently destroy somebody.

I tried to get a hold of N, because she seems to be the only one that can make things happen, but with no avail. Once again I spoke with R. I asked him how $552 turns into $700. He said, "Well, we've got to make some money somehow."

I responded politely. But what I was thinking was, "You're already making your profit in the large amount from the first invoice. This second markup is just ridiculous." It now felt like they were trying to scam us.

Not to mention, by this point it had been 5 weeks and we still had no word on our stuff getting delivered, and R had no idea where it was.

After several more days and attempts to talk with N, I drafted another lengthy email requesting that Moving Co. pay all or the majority of this $552.20 invoice. I was polite, firm and persuasive. Too long to post here, I simply spelled out how we had been misled, ignored and how the bills were bogus, over priced and much of it should be covered in our initial payment to Premier. The story concludes several days later when N, finally like a ray of warm sunshine, contacts me. She said nothing in direct response to my email; however, she said they could reduce this second invoice down to $176 dollars. By this point I was ready for it to be over. I can handle $176 for an extra truck rental and a bit more labor on their part. Whatever. We agreed and the final invoice was sent for the last time.

Somehow, through persistence and downright nagging, I managed to turn a bill for $1,200 into $176. Magic! This makes me wonder how many people just go ahead and pay whatever invoices get sent to them by this company. I imagine they get away with these rip off scams all the time. I'm just glad we were careful and smart enough to know what we were paying for.

As for our stuff, it was picked up on Oct. 2nd and delivered 6.5 weeks later on Nov. 16th. A far cry from their first estimate of 25 days.

Day 15: The Last Leg

From: Tok, AK

To: Anchorage, AK

Well we did it! We arrived in Anchorage, AK 15 days after setting out from Asheville, NC. Total millage was about 5680 and we have seen more than we could have ever imagined!

We got up this morning in Tok, AK and ate at the Grumpy Grizz, one of two eateries in “town.” We’d have to say though, it wasn’t far off from the Country Kitchen in West Asheville and was quite fantastic.

On the road we went, bellies full and happy. The drive south toward Anchorage was to re-use an over-used word, BEAUTIFUL. It lasted about 6 hours; but in that time we saw another mountain range, at least two glaciers and the sun move mostly sideways through the sky. The sun in the “high-noon” position doesn't happen after the summer here.

For most of the drive we could look, literally, in any direction and see huge mountains. Snow covered most of them, and on some mountains they were snowy on the shaded side and green on the sunny side. This was a cool effect. The highest peak around was completely white, more so than any other. Between two mountain ridges we noticed what looked like a motionless river flowing, but not moving, through them. It was a glacier. We stopped to take some pictures and take in the wonder of it all.

We also learned about a new kind of glacier: a rock glacier. One information sign pointed us toward the side of a mountain that appeared to have suffered a landslide. In actuality, underneath the over grown moss and dirt was a hidden glacier. Ice mixed with rock and soil was slowly moving down the mountainside seemingly underground. It was some fanciness!

From here, Heather took over the helm, driving the second leg of today’s journey into our destination city. We entered Anchorage around 5pm local time and began the daily hotel hunt. With a little advice from Kenny (Momma T's cousin who lives in Anchorage) we headed toward the airport and found prices to be much better than in Canada. Microtel was our choice, which turned out to be a good one, because they have a laundry facility in house (something we’ve been needing).

We tried to find a pharmacy for Heather, but that became frustrating on a Sunday so we moved on. McDonald’s served us our three course meal for dinner and Walmart provided us cash out of our own account with which to exchange for laundry quarters. While out, we drove by one house for rent to get a look-see. On our way back we stopped in for a quick gas station style laser wash and got Jayne a much needed bath. He was so dirty that when Heather walked out of one hotel into the parking lot she couldn't tell Jayne was the truck right in front of her.

It already looks like we are getting a grasp of how the city is set up. Navigation should be no problem in the days ahead. Next task: find a place to live.

For two weeks and a day we’ve been driving, sight seeing and having our hair blown back by all kinds of God’s creation, wildlife and general awesome-ness (for which there is no charge). From our home state, North Carolina, Alaska is like a different world. It was a trip of a life-time and will be unforgettable. We left North Carolina, homeless, with our destination in sight, declaring, “Alaska, here we come.” It’s hard to believe the trip is over and that we’ve made. But, believe it or not, we’re finally able to say to our new home state, “Alaska, here we are!” 

Day 14: Welcome Home: Alaska Hwy part 3; Yukon part 2

From: Whitehorse, Yukon

To: Tok, AK

We left Whitehorse around 10:30am this morning. Nathan drove the first leg. We filled up with gas on the outside of town and hit the road. The road traveled almost directly west until we crossed into the Yukon where the road changes from route 97 to route 1. Further west we ran into the edge of Kluane National Park. Never heard of it? Neither had we. But this was possibly the coolest place we passed by in over five thousand miles.

Kluane Lake is huge and, snowcapped mountains in every direction surround it. The road took us between the foot of mountains and the edge of the lakeside. Breathtaking views caught our eyes every which-a-way we looked. Hannah-banana recently asked us what our favorite part of the trip has been. Kluane National Park may be our answer.

Further down the road we stopped for gas in a little town thingy called Destruction Bay. Strange name. Come to find out it is so named because the high winds actually destroyed the first colony that came to live there. Destruction Bay sat up against Kluane Lake and was a beautiful spit on the map of nowhere.

At the lake, the road turns definitively northwest. There were no towns for quite some time. However, the scenery this day was the mostest bestest of any single day. We took more pictures today than any other of the gorgeous mountain views and lookouts. The snow peppered the trees and capped the mountains making the scenery more majestic and enchanting. Heather is now ready for Christmas.

Just before the USA border there are a few stops, gas stations and houses that are called Beaver Creek, Yukon. Our original plan was to make it to Beaver Creek and stay a night. We’re glad we didn’t. We stopped to use the bathroom (in Canadian it’s called a washroom) and continued the final leg toward the boarder. From here the road quality declined considerably. I suppose this is because the only thing it goes to is the USA, and they don’t deem it worthy to keep up this road. There was also quite a bit of snow covering the road, but thinly enough so that we could proceed at about 50mph (in Canadian its 80 kph). There were ruts, huge bumps, dips and divots. It was basically one notch above 4-wheel off-roading.

Finally, we made it to US Customs and crossed into our homeland (the mother-country). The customs agent made us feel good by simply saying, “Welcome home.” The roads after that, though still snowy were infinitely in better condition. (Silly Canadians and their bad roads.) It did feel like home being back in the states.

When we crossed the border into Canada, it was a whole rigamorow. We had to dig out the gun case from the back, fill out forms, get a gun license, pay a fee, and even temporarily quarantine the dogs. We’d also always heard that the hard part is getting back into the US. But, not so. Today, the agent simply asked us a few questions and sent us on our merry way. He inquired about firearms, and we said, yes, we had some. But he had no interest in seeing them. We mentioned the dogs and that we had the paperwork to show him. “Nah, you’re good,” he basically replied. When we said we were from Asheville, NC, another agent came to the window and was like, “Hey, I’ve got a son in Asheville. Billy Joe Jenkins, do you know him?” Really? How are we supposed to know one guy in all of Asheville? Anyway, all this is to say that crossing the border back into the US was easy as pie. (Mmmm.....I could go for some pie right about now...)

Ninety miles later we entered Tok, AK (pronounced ‘toke’) and found a cheap little hotel for the night. We ate at one of the two restaurants in town for dinner. For breakfast, we’ll probably eat at the other. Good night.

Day 13: Alaska Highway part 2; Yukon part 1

From: Muncho Lake Provincial Park, BC

To: Whitehorse, Yukon

We got up bright and early to the sun rising over our beautiful mountains. We had breakfast in the lodge restaurant with huge windows overlooking the compound, lake and mountains. Come to find out, this place is quite a resort. You can charter flight-seeing tours, fishing trips, and combinations that last all day or just a portion. There’s tent campsites, RV spots and glaciers nearby.

Before leaving we strolled the grounds and waterfront once more to take in the views and smell. The pups wore their vests outside for the first time, and they needed them as Jayne informed us that it was 17 degrees outside (we haven't found puppy boots yet).

Not ten minutes on the road we spotted up ahead something Nathan has been itching to see this entire trip: a bear. It was a medium sized black bear running across the road. Too far away to get a good picture, Heather didn’t want to get any closer thinking that this was a cub and momma wouldn’t be far away. Nonetheless, it was a fun sighting, and watching it run was exciting. (Heather thought it was fluffy and cute as it hopped across our path.)

The Alaska Highway’s beauty continued to unfold beyond our windshield (which was cracked a little today by a rock thrown from an 18-wheeler) throughout the day. We happened upon a few more buffalo today. Some congregating in bunches alongside the road, and a few lying alone on a random scrap of nowhere beside the road. Lola wants her a buffalo to play with.

It was another absolutely beautiful day. The temperature got above freezing only for a little bit. Mostly, it was cold, the road was dry, but the snow on the side of the road wasn’t melting anytime soon.

We drove through a random river of fog between some mountains. It hovered slightly above the trees creating a cool canopy effect. Other than that, the sky was clear and we could see for miles.

The driving continued with occasional stops for gas or to snap a quick picture. We also had to make a quick stop so that Heather could pull off the road and finish laughing at Nathan before she drove off the side of the mountain. See what had happened was…Nathan was trying to read The "Voyage of the Dawn Treader” out loud during the drive. He had been having a little trouble getting tongue tied and in an announcing tone he started reading the third chapter which begins “Land in sight…”. Well, instead of reading what was on the page Nathan (in a very enthusiastic voice) read “Land and shite…”. There was a second of silence followed by hysterical laughing. Heather was laughing so hard she was crying and Nathan laughed even more as she made it known that she was laughing so hard her “cheeks were making her eyes close!” This is indeed why she felt it necessary to pull over. It seemed that driving the Alaska Highway with ones eyes closed was not the best idea. After this moment of hysteria we regained composure and continued on. Ahh, good times.

We arrived just before dark in Whitehorse, found another Best Western (the Gold Rush Inn) and made camp for the night (even got a Milepost discount). When we say, “made camp,” we actually mean it. We ate hot dogs and beans from our camping supply (room had a microwave) followed by a cup of hot chocolate, Mmmm.

Day 12: Alaska Highway part 1

From: Dawson Creek, BC

To: Muncho Lake Provincial Park, BC

The first sight we saw was in downtown Dawson Creek. It was the mile marker post for “Mile 0” of the Alaska Highway. This highway begins in Dawson Creek and runs NW all the way to Fairbanks, AK. It was built in 1942 taking just 8 months to complete through a combined effort of US military workers and Canada providing supplies.

Heather, once again, took the first leg of the drive. The weather began foggy and overcast, but quickly cleared up becoming one of the prettiest days we’ve had.

Today was the first day we saw snow up close. We’d seen it on mountaintops previous days, but it was now situated sporadically on the side of the road. Later on, we began driving over shady portions of road which were covered with compacted snow and some ice.

We drove over a mountain pass during which the temperature dropped several degrees quickly. We passed through Summit Lake, where a lake is sitting at the top of several mountains. There was snow everywhere, and everything was white and beautiful. Back down from the pass the temperature went back up to upper 30s.

As dusk approached, elk started appearing all over the road. We stopped 5 or 6 times to view or to let them pass. Elk are far smarter than dear. The difference in brains is similar to the brain difference between our dogs. Elk see a car coming and run away. Dear just run: at the car, away from the car, who knows. Dakota sees food and goes for it with tenacity. Lola sees food, whips her head around, knocks it on a table, and the table says, “ouch.”

The mountain views are so different when they’re covered in snow. Definition between peaks becomes clearer, but the sky can sometimes smear into the mountaintops blurring the lines. When snow is on the mountains the sky seems bluer and crisper. We’d better get used to snow; we’re going to see lots of it in the next years of our lives. So far, we love it. One of the coolest parts of the day was driving along a lake surrounded by mountains shooting straight up. 

Our original destination for the day was Watson Lake, Yukon. However, near dusk we passed Muncho Lake and a little log cabin hotel called the Northern Rockies Lodge. It overlooked the lake and the wonderful mountains beyond. Heather’s heart was captured. We drove past but she kept talking about it and quickly turned around. She wanted the check their rates and pet policy to investigate the possibility of changing our plans for the evening. Nathan had no objections.

We calculated that stopping short wouldn’t really affect the trip as a whole, and Heather was excited about staying in a remote, romantic place on a whim. A few moments later we were checked into our room for the night at the lodge and excited about seeing the crystal clear lake provide foreground to some of Canada’s most awesome Rockies. Turns out, this lodge is probably one of the most desirable vacations spots. Hopefully, we will return.

Before bed, we took a short midnight stroll down to the water. The moon lit up just enough to see the white snowy ridges of the nearby mountains. Across the water, the sky was so clear we could see the outline of the entire range behind the cabins. It was lovely.

Day 11: British Columbia part 2

From: Prince George, BC

To: Dawson Creek, BC

Knowing that our drive time would be less today, we set out to find in Prince George doggy jackets and tire chains. We found a pet store called Pet Land that, much like a Super Pets or Pet Smart, had what we needed. We found some stylish winter vests for the bubbies that accentuate their individual brown coloring. (Of course, our dogs wouldn’t be caught barking in something that wasn’t stylish.)

Next objective: tire chains. It wasn’t until after driving all over Prince George due to more bad Canadian directions (Cynthia please explain this phenomenon) that we found one of the coolest stores we’ve ever been in: Canadian Tire. Imagine the best parts of an Advanced Auto Parts (with a garage), a Home Depot and a Walmart all combined in one building. That’s Canadian Tire. Here we bought tire chains, bungee chords, a sponge thing, and some winter rated windshield washer fluid. We noticed lots of people buying the anti-freeze washer fluid stuff so we knew we were doing right. After that we filled the gas tank, got some lunch and ice cream at Dairy Queen (our first stop for ice cream the whole trip…not bad for us) and got on the road. Dawson Creek was about 5 hours away.

The light rain from the night before continued throughout the entire day. Overcast and hazy, the drive included fog and limited visibility especially of the mountains. However, it didn’t take away too much from the sight seeing. Because, the fog wrapped the mountains ranges like a scarf and added a beautiful effect we would’ve never imagined. Once again, the mountains and clouds seemed to join together seamlessly.

There were also several small waterfalls and one considerable waterfall along the way. If it wasn't raining we didn't think we would have been able to see as many so well.

About and hour still outside of Dawson Creek, we drove

through Chetwynd, home of the Annual Chainsaw Carving Championship (random, we know). Throughout town we saw dozens of large intricate woodcarvings and snapped a few photos. Mostly, we were just taken aback by the detail with which these carvings were crafted.

When we finally entered town we must have stopped at 8 or 10 hotels inquiring about dog fees and nightly rates. We decided on the Comfort Inn for the night. Who'd of thought this middle of nowhere place would be so busy?

The days seem to be getting just a little bit shorter (getting dark around 6pm), and the snow is quickly inching down the mountains. We expect to see some very soon.

Day 10: Beautiful British Columbia Part 1

From: Vancouver, BC
To: Prince George, BC

We got going around 10am after another good breakfast. We fueled up and filled the extra gas can, ready for anything. It took us a solid hour to get through and out of Vancouver. More than once did we somehow find ourselves no longer on the main route we needed, and we then had to re-find it. Again, Canadian signage could use some American pizzaz, we think.

After the city, Heather took over driving along the Sea to Sky Highway. And from our pictures we now understand why it is titled so. This road winds with the mountains that shoot right down into the ocean. Every picture was beautiful, as mountains in the distance seemed to serve as connectors between sea and sky. Many of the mountaintops were not visible, because they jutted up right into the low-hanging clouds.

This route was the slower of the two routes north; however, we’re convinced it is superbly more gorgeous. At times we were slowed to 20 kilometers/hour (feels like walking speed) just to make the hairpin turns, but scaling the mountains and seeing the incredible sights, lakes, rivers, waterfalls, mountains, mountains and did I mention mountains, was worth the extra time. Eventually, our scenic road joined with the main road to the north. This main road was also very pretty as it took us past rolling hills and Canadian countryside.

The temperature has continued to be perfect. Driving north during the day was mid 50s and at night mid to low 40s. This was the first day we’ve gotten to see snow capped mountains. We even saw a glacier beautifully capping one mountain but our picture of it is not that great.

At night we ran into a little drizzling rain and fog. Nathan sped through the night following two other fast moving cars as they lit the path ahead of us. We stopped for the night at the Travel Lodge in our destination, Prince George. We got a little worried searching for a hotel. The Travel Lodge seemed to be the only place left that accepted pets and had open vacancies. The next day would be on to Dawson Creek, BC.

Day 9: Vancouver Fun!

We spent all day in Vancouver.

We woke up, after having gone to bed at 2:30, tired. We had a nice breakfast in the hotel pub and hit up the front desk man for tips about where to go in Vancouver. He gave us great advice on a sweet sounding urban park and how to find the 2010 Olympic Torch. Naturally, the next thing we did was to go back to our room and take a nap.

We finally rolled out of the hotel parking lot around 2:30pm to tackle this famed city. We haphazardly circum-navigated our way into downtown Vancouver and discovered something we didn’t think was possible: parking is more expensive here than in Seattle. For less time than we parked in Seattle we paid more money in Vancouver. In one parking garage, ½ and hour of parking was $3.50 with a daily limit of $23.50! Robbers. Nonetheless, we parked and went for a walk around Canada Place: the two convention centers used as a hub for the 2010 Winter Olympics.

We strolled out onto a pier-like deck and saw the bay for a while before finding a quite impressive visitor’s center. They instructed us where to exchange for some Canadian dollars. We did so, and while meandering downtown we stopped at a little restaurant called the Bread Garden: Bakery/Café. We shared a quiche and continued on to find the Olympic Torch.

The torch was a lot of fun to see knowing that only months before had this city been swarmed with athletes, coaches, media and tourists. There was also this killer whale statue thing made out of cubes so that from a distance it looked pixeled even though it was 3-D.

After that we went back to our car. I turned in my left leg as payment for parking. We drove down the way to Stanley Park, one of the great urban parks of the world. We took the puptons out of the car and Nathan hopped on his good leg as we strolled the water-line and let the doggies run and play. Lola spotted the huge flock of geese and had a flash back to the wild turkey at our first campsite. All we needed to do was unleash her and it would’ve been Canadian goose for dinner! (Canadians not happy.)

At one lookout point Nathan was leaning on the 3.5-foot high cement wall and Lola suddenly leaped up onto it as a midway pause before attempting to get to the water 15 feet below. Luckily, Nathan was able to react and close-line the crap out of her back to the ground. One second later and Nathan would have been soaking wet and furious as he retrieved Lola from the beach and water. For the next few minutes, it was game over for puppy #2.

Back at the car, we drove for another 15 minutes through the enormous park to get a glance at the rest of it before heading toward Top of Vancouver Restaurant where we had dinner reservations.

Much like the Seattle Space Needle this facility had a revolving restaurant and an observation level. We made it to our 7:30 reservation and got a table right next to the angled windows. The view of the city and bay was beautiful. Lights were on everywhere, and we spun around two full times during dinner. The most expensive dinner we’ve ever paid for ($150 Canadian), we had a great time and enjoyed the food.

With full bellies we attempted to find our way back to our hotel. Eventually, we found it only after driving (as they say) around our butt crack to get to our elbow. Our friend Cynthia is known to have an innate sense of direction. This must be a feature of all Canadians, because we have found thus far their “mappage” and signage to be sub-par.

This was the first time we’ve stayed in the same place two nights in a row, and I must say, it was nice. Not having to pack/unpack was a load off and the down comforter and pillows at this Best Western were delightful. We went right to bed, happy and ready to tackle driving north in Canada.

Day 8: Seattle fun

From: Seattle, WA, USA

To: Vancouver, BC, Canada

After a lovely night’s sleep at the Day’s Inn, we got up, had breakfast and headed into downtown Seattle. Landry had warned us about the ridiculous cost of parking, so as we were leaving the hotel we asked the lady at the front desk about parking and if she knew of any good spots. She directed us to the one parking deck near Pike Place Market that offered free parking. After driving around for half an hour trying to get situated in downtown Seattle, we finally found the deck. However, as luck would have it, Jayne was too tall to clear the entrance because of the height restriction…uhg. So we found a lot a little closer to the market with average prices. We paid a whopping $17 to park for about 5 hours! Wow it would have cost only a couple of dollars in downtown Asheville. Oh well, big city.

We got the puppies situated and headed to the first point of interest for the day, Pike Place Market. It is a public market that was quite large and offered anything from crafts and jewelry to groceries, fresh fish and flowers. It was a very busy place with lots of hustle and bustle.

We soon met up with Landry and Carrie who had driven up from Olympia, WA to meet us for lunch. We wandered around for a while until we found a little sandwich shop completely open to the street called Three Sisters (which was funny because it was ran by two dudes). We ended up sitting and talking for several hours just catching up on each other’s adventures. We had the best time!

After lunch we walked down the street until coming upon a cinnamon shop that was selling sticky buns, cookies and other baked goods. It took all of a half a second to decide it smelled too good to pass up. After purchasing our terribly delicious, amazingly unhealthy treats, we went a little further down the street to the original Starbucks. We had not previously known that Seattle was home to the original shop and of course we had to stop so that Heather could get a pumpkin spice misto. Mmm…yummy.

Following all of our fun eating and drinking coffee, we walked back to the truck to let the pups out to pee and love on Landry and Carrie. Dakota was not fond of the noise of the big city and it made her timid, she is really more of a quiet country girl. Lola didn’t seem to take much notice to the big city, although, we are not sure how much she ever really notices.

To wrap up our fun with our awesome friends we went up to a small grassy park with a view of the bay to take some pictures. Landry and Carrie we loved seeing you and had the best time bumming around Pike Place with you.

From Pike Place it was off to the Seattle Space Needle, which was awesome! We could see the whole city from the top. It was still daylight when we went up, but the sun soon set and we watched the whole city come alive with lights. It was beautiful. From the Space Needle we had a great view of Mount Rainier (Washington’s highest mountain and an active volcano) and the Olympic Mountains: all very gorgeous.

We spent about 1.5 hours up in the Needle taking in the city view. But, eventually it was time to move on, head’em up, move’em out (raw hide) toward that foreign land we often refer to as Canada. It was about a 2 hour drive to the border after we stopped to make sandwiches and buy a few supplies at Wally-world. 
 At the border, everything went smoothly. However, Nathan did have to dig out the gun case from the very back of the camper which took more than a little effort and struggle. Twenty minutes later, we were entering Vancouver, a city about which we have lots of excitement.

Finding a hotel, though, was difficult. We stopped at one that didn’t take dogs, but the attendant gave us easy sounding directions to one Best Western, which gladly took pets. Nathan is still not sure whether the fault in our not finding the Best Western lies with bogus directions, too thick of an accent or simply poor direction following. So we drove around some area of town for 10 minutes till we saw another hotel. They didn’t take dogs either, but recommended a nice Best Western that did. Nathan confirmed with the receptionist that he’d heard the same and asked how to navigate there. Again, we ran into the problem of shotty directions or faulty interpretation of said directions, because 10 minutes later: no Best Western.

Third time must be a charm. We stopped at a third hotel which clearly from it’s outside appearance would not house pets, but Nathan inquired once more about the mysterious Best Western (Did it actually exist? Was it a mirage? Or was this a common joke Canadians play on southerners?) Leaving the third hotel Nathan could do nothing but laugh at the attempt at directions he had received from the greeter. More confused, he had no idea how to reach the coveted pet-friendly lodging but he did finally obtain an address. The Best Western was on a road we had seen a number of times in our wanderings. About 1.5 seconds after getting in the car from the third hotel we had arrived at a beautiful hotel with a sign outside which read: Best Western. FINALLY. The conclusion and lesson of this story is: Canadians are horrible at giving directions. (We’re gonna need some comment/input from our Canadian friend, Cynthia, on this one).

We had the opportunity of quickly meeting three interesting people today.

We had found a place to park near the Space Needle and I was walking to the little kiosk for which to pay $10 dollars for two hours of parking (unbelievable), when I was approached by a man telling me not to put in any money. This man was no stranger to the streets. He told me that there’s a free parking place on the street just next to us. “Show me,” I said, so we walked to the sign, which in fact indicated that parking places on the street side were no charge on Sundays. The deal, for some reason, still seemed shady (also indicated by the concerned look on Heather’s face as she walked across the parking lot toward us). “Come on man, don’t wanna miss it, free parking, I’jus’ saved you som’money,” he said. My rational mind said that the deal seemed solid, though I was skeptical as I imagine most people would be having been solicited by strangers off the street. “I tell you what, I get this space, I’ll hook you up,” I said to him as he smiled and made his way to stand in the road blocking anyone else from taking our spot. Now that’s service, I thought to myself. Here’s a guy just trying to make a few dollars and he wasn’t just asking for free money like most whom I’ve come across. My heart went out to him and congratulated him on finding an inventive way of making some cash. Upon parking, he asked for five bucks, which I gladly gave him. He brightened up so much, asked me my name and then started calling me Nate Dog. This made me smile. I thanked him and told him to take care of himself. We shook hands, completing our business deal, and I said, “Keep an eye on it for me." “I gotchu brother,” he replied as we parted ways.

Pulling away from a gas station, which didn’t take credit cards, we stopped at a stoplight. The car next to us honked and the man motioned to roll down the window. “Your gas cover is open,” he said. “Oh, thanks,” we responded knowing it wasn’t a big deal as we were turning then into a better (credit card accepting) fuel station. “What part of North Carolina are you from?” he asked. “Asheville,” we both yelled back with enthusiasm. The light turned green and the man smiled. “Greenville,” he said before hitting the gas and driving on with a wave.

And lastly, as we were paying Canada Customs $25 for a temporary gun permit, the cashier, a young twenty something like myself, looked at my driver license address and said, “Wow, you are from Chapel Hill!” Heather responded, “Yep. We both graduated from there.” “I hate Duke,” responded the Candian Carolina fan.” “And I’m liking you more and more,” said Nathan, both us with a grin on our faces. Some how, all of the sudden, I didn’t feel like I was in another country anymore. I felt right at home.