Slow-Prep to Move South (Elks Lodge 309 – COS, CO)

We’re slowly getting prepped to move south as we continue to say goodbye to family and friends here in Colorado Springs.  We talked to the camp-host and determined that we don’t have to rush off, there’s no one currently parked in the ‘overflow’ waiting for a spot.

On Saturday, while Stilla entertained our oldest daughter Jennifer and grandson Kaan at the Coach, I rode the Harley over to Pikes Peak Harley Davidson for an “End-of-Summer” Luau.

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Free food and free beer (tips accepted of course)… can’t beat that!

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My ’96 FLSTC “Heritage Softail Classic” at PPHD.

Some of the new bikes are sure looking good.  Back in the ’90s and earlier, you had to spend a lot of extra money adding all the accessories you wanted after you bought a ‘plain’ new bike.  Nowadays, they come with all the accessories straight from the factory, i.e., fat rear tires, chrome controls, custom footboards, air cleaner housings, etc.,

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There were more people in attendance than my pictures suggest.  Most hung-out inside shopping, which is what the dealership likes of course 🙂

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On Saturday evening we attended a birthday party for Tom.  Stilla is friends with his German wife, Martina.

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Birthday boy (Tom) in the gray shirt.

The birthday party for Tom (his 40th) also doubled as a farewell party (of sorts) for Stilla and her German girlfriends.

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Stilla’s German girlfriends from Colorado Springs.

Lots of good food which included German-style desserts… Yum!

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Friends John and Frank.

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Tom’s wife surprised him with an unexpected arrival of relatives that had just flown in from Germany.

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And there was even a relaxing campfire in a raised pit to enjoy once the sun went down.  It was a nice evening… thanks Tom & Martina, and Happy Birthday once again!

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On Sunday morning, I rearranged things in the basement of the Coach and packed up our chairs and tables.  Then I made my 2PM appointment with our tax-guy and finally got our 2014 taxes submitted.  Yoo Hoo!  And Yes, before you ask – we had filed for an extension.  Taxes for last year were challenging and required a lot of preparation for several reasons: I was still working for part of the year; we rented out the house for most of the year; had to evict the renters; and did a lot of repairs among other things… all of which, had to be painstakingly documented for our tax records.

On Sunday evening we went out for dinner with my Dad & stepmom Elaine.  They’re going on another campout with the FCRV group on Monday.  Maybe we can stop by to say Hi again because they’re going to the KOA in Colorado City which is along our intended route south.  They’ll be there all week, so if we leave on Tuesday, we can stop by to say goodbye again.  Thanks for the dinner Dad & Elaine!

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On Monday I washed out the back of the pickup while Stilla worked on the inside of the Urban Escape Vehicle, vacuuming and cleaning.

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I even ended up washing the whole truck and most of the Coach.  After the pickup was all cleaned up, I loaded up the Harley and the bicycles.  All set to roll… we just need to raise the jacks, pull in the slide outs, and hook up to the truck.

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Later in the day, our youngest daughter Joleen stopped by with her boyfriend Dylan to say goodbye.  Then we relaxed the rest of the day and enjoyed our last evening at the Elks Lodge.  We’ve been here since 6 September… time to move on 🙂

My next post will be from somewhere south of Colorado Springs… check back to see where we end up.