GEM Is Sold, New Horizons Abound

Yes, Gem sold last February.

We actually had three prospective buyers, plus four more prospects waiting on the edge of the dock. We feel very good about Gem's new stewards.

And now, looking at new ways to cruise, last year we bought a Land Cruiser, a 1999 Airstream motorhome. Yes, Land Cruiser is the name of the model. A bit of a classic as Airstream stopped manufacturing class A motor homes in '05. A well layed-out coach on a Chevy chassy, with a workhorse 454 engine.

We had hopefully planned a big trip last summer, but a failed dashboard air conditioner squashed that hope (southern CA and the southwestern states without air? You must be kidding!). We kept trimming down the trip at the same rate that we discovered more things to fix, and finally just stayed home enjoying local overnights.

Before that, a couple of years back we towed a KZ 14 Sportsman travel trailer we picked up in Lincoln NE. Lots of local trips with her - - Sequim, Port Townsend, and one great 8,000 mile trip Nashville, Lincoln NE, the Dakotas, Glacier National Park to catch what's left of the disappearing glaciers as well as enjoy the great majestic scenery. We've also tripped through the Grand Canyon, the Natches Trace, and Yellowstone. The trailer was great with good room for it's size, even a separate tub/shower in the bathroom - - no soaked TP after every shower.

But then life wonderfully changed. June retired on  June 30th - - YEH! - - after more than 45 great years as a church lay professional (spiritual development, adult education), opening up the possibility of more than just summer road trips. The thought of doing more extensive travel with the KZ didn't sound all that comfortable, especially converting the dinette table into a double bed every night. The KZ was sold, and now comes the Land Yacht,  christened "Gypsy Heart".

On March 23rd we will be heading out for a couple of months on Gypsy Heart, towing our new 2013 smart car named Bleue (we're told a smart is a car, so no need to add 'car'. One wouldn't say, for example, a Ford car). We'll head first south to Santa Rosa CA,  and then to Escondido CA. Then east to Sedona AZ, Santa Fe NM (a big favorite), the Natches Trace, on to Nashville, Lincoln NE, and then west as we meander home to Kingston. A rough itinerary, but lots of flexibility in it.

While you may think us now exclusively road warriors, not so. While two former Christ Crafts, a Richardsons (with 16 year living aboard), and most recently our '32 classic Gem are no longer under our stewardship, we are not completely on the hard. Airstream calls are motor home a "Land Yacht", so we'll go with that.

We still have the Boston Whaler!