Winter Adventures at Home

We have had an overabundance of snow for the past three days, and the weather forecast says there are several more days to come, leaving us essentially house bound. Our routine each morning, is after coffee, catching up with e-mail, Facebook, and the news, we have breakfast and go for a work-out in the Mill, which is the new location here at Dallas Retirement Village that is equipped with exercise machines. Next I go out and clear off the snow on the solar panel on our van so that the batteries will continue to charge. A good part of the last couple of days has been spent working on a jigsaw puzzle in the Jasper St Lobby.  For the last three weeks we have been participating in water volleyball in our new swimming pool one a week in the afternoons. Our evenings are usually spent watching Youtube, and movies. 

Our Winnebago Solis Pocket van after the first night of snow

The view from our bedroom of our central courtyard

the Christmas jigsaw puzzle

Jeanette enjoying our morning adventure

This morning the bright sunshine inspired us to venture out for little adventure and enjoy some more fresh snow.  It was a little more complicated than you might think. It took a while to dig our snow gaiters and hiking poles, and then to layer up good against the 30-degree temperatures. 

Day Tripping

This photo was taken a couple of months ago, October 6th in the nearby town of Independence. We are parked behind their Civic Center, where we have good access to walk and bird on the Riverview Park Trail along the Willamette River.  Now the days have grown shorter, the weather is colder, wetter, and the leaves are gone, as is our desire for complicated overnight trips. And then there are the distractions, or opportunities, you choose the word, of the new facilities here at Dallas Retirement Village.

With two new exercise rooms, a hot tub, and a swimming pool, we have lots of options to fill in the winter days.  However, we continue to use the van, primarily for daytrips to close-by parks to walk and bird.  It's a convenient mood of transportation, lots of room out of the elements to potty, change clothes, and enjoy lunch in the comfortable dinette with a furnace to keep us warm and comfortable.

Here are the links to bird walks from yesterday's daytrip.

 eBird Checklist - 10 Dec 2021 - Sarah Helmick SP - 13 species

eBird Checklist - 10 Dec 2021 - 14320–14424 S Pacific Hwy W, Monmouth US-OR 44.72092, -123.22170 - 1 species

eBird Checklist - 10 Dec 2021 - Adair Wildlife Area - 17 species