What’s happened since our last post?

March 27, 2024 – Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

We were enjoying the sunny spring days in Cabo San Lucas, playing beach games, dipping our toes in the ocean, and walking around the acres of our community.

Then our company arrived, and our days became the days of others. The most dependent mother/daughter duo with combined ages of almost 100 needing to share a bedroom, walk hand-in-hand, sit huddled up in the back of the jeep and incapable of making the decision of whether to add onions to the salad or not.

Not all a gloomy cloud, we made the best of it by touring Todos Santos – a sleepy surfer town approximately 30 minutes north of Cabo San Lucas, dining at our favorite Asi & Asado for delicious tacos and appreciating the talents of the local artists dancing, painting and performing in the moonlit streets of San Jose del Cabo. If you are in the area the Art Walk Thursday nights is a must see!

Seven days later, 10 rolls of toilet paper, a combination of 15 face, hand and bath towels and our sunny spring days returned. Only now they included loads of extra (unnecessary) laundry, replenishing basic supplies and writing out a list of hotels in the area should we have a request for an all-inclusive stay (including concierge and chauffer) at Casa Nina Prieta.

Seriously, that may be a world record for two petite women to use that much toilet paper and that many towels in seven days. I don’t think they are a combined 150lbs and 8ft tall standing on the other’s shoulders.

The Four Seasons wouldn’t be providing that amount! I guess some people just can’t get enough of luxury Egyptian cotton towels with just the right amount of absorbency, thickness and softness and unmatched comfort and impressive durability of Charmin Ultra Soft. Time to up your game Four Seasons!

Let’s skip ahead to the days post empty toilet rolls and dryer sheets

Mother’s Day 2024 – Scottsdale, Arizona

A perfect way to say “we love you, Mom” is a quick flight to Scottsdale. Beautiful plane, great pilots, yummy snacks, blue skies, and family.

It was a short stay in Scottsdale, thankfully, as we watched the temperature start to climb to a hot 110F or 45C. And, we may look and eat like labs, but we do not swim in pools. I can’t even convince Miller to dip his “shovels” in lakes or oceans.

We did have some fun though. It’s rabbit season and unlike some places we have been to the rabbits in Scottsdale are cute little bite-size bunnies. Cabo San Lucas has scare-me-away my size jackrabbits. Fun to chase but a lot harder to carry home for dinner.

On the road again

May 30, 2024 – Canada, eh!

It’s not a straight one-day cozy drive to British Columbia, Canada. But it is a first world, paved roads, easy riding in a Range Rover, kind of three-days. The one-way trip with bikes, three months of human and dog necessities, two humans and two beautiful, well-behaved doggies is 2,635-kilometers. Piece of steak, right?

Our journey to Canada

You can take a coastline trip north or an in-land route. We decided to take the in-land route from Scottsdale to Page, Arizona to Twin Falls, Idaho to Bellevue, Washinton and lastly to Whistler, British Columbia. We are planning to take the coastline route in a few months when we travel back, but it’s too early to determine the exact route. Although Mom has said that Napa Valley, California will be a definite stopover.

The fun times can be challenging too. No matter how many kilometers of road you have travelled, you’ve got to stretch your legs, take pee breaks, find gas, snacks and water or you will feel like the cozy Range Rover has been converted into a pint size mini clown car.

Our general guide to survival is a soft sided, insulated cooler in the back seat – doubles as a pillow for Miller – filled with cookies for us, water for Mom and Dad, Mom’s homemade dog pre-packaged meals on ice, a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos for Dad and some form of chocolate for Mom. She has stopped throwing in the easy-to-peel oranges and eat the core-and-all apples, as they tend to make the entire trip.

Motels, hotels, and luxury suites

It’s always fun when we start planning our road trips.

• Which route should we take? Then,
• What should we pack? Then,
• What do we need to unpack? Then,
• Can we squeeze it all in? Then
• How about the roof rack? And the biggie,
• Where are we going to stay?

“Dog friendly” usually comes with an asterisk, which after witnessing my Mom on a few occasions is important to follow to the very bottom of the page. It usually comes with a “but wait, there’s more” like pet size and breed allowed and the cost per pet. I check most of the boxes, but good old Miller gets smuggled in sometimes depending on his weigh-in. And that can make potty time and stretch-my-legs after naptime difficult when you are on the 13th floor of a 300-rooms hotel with only two elevators.

First night – Page, Arizona

If you want to make the same trip, I suggest pushing through Page or smuggling your fur babies in somewhere other than the Lake Powell Resort. It had the deep feeling that historically it was a cool place to vacation, especially if you want to escape the Arizona heat and you love the water. Sadly, time may have caught up and it could use a few bucks or two to give back the charm and appeal I’m sure it captured years ago. We arrived at 9pm and were wheels up by 7am.

In the light of the morning, there was peace being lakeside. The rabbits were lucky.

The drive from Scottsdale to Page was our shortest. We were in for the long-haul days and comfortable nights for remainder of the trip.

Second night – Twin Falls, Idaho

Thankfully, our road time was uneventful with light traffic, sunshine and blue skies. We were very impressed with the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Mariott when we reached Twin Falls 10 hours after departing Page. All the comforts of home with our own kitchenette – finally Mom could warm my meals again – clean sheets and floors, human size bathroom (Dad prefers not to have to stand on the toilet to close the door), and even a view. After a long day of travel, we felt grateful to swap the beautiful morning lakeview for clean and comfortable hospitality.

On the road again and headed to Bellevue, Washington for the last night before the first night in Whistler, British Columbia. Uneventful drive again, except this time the snacks were swapped out for a what Dad says “calories don’t count on a road trip” pit stop at Hops & Drops. So far, the best burger and mac-and-cheese on the planet! This gem of a family-owned restaurant we found in Lakewood, Washington. Mmmmm!

Third night – Bellevue, Washington

The W hotel is located in downtown Bellevue. It definitely has a funky, modern vibe with a hidden entrance and a nightclub. Not typically our style after a 9-hour drive, but it did have the suite luxuries that appeal to us.

Big city view, large open spaces to lounge and snack, bedroom with a king size bed, decor to help Miller blend in, and a record player to listen to old-school disco beats.

Shout out to the people of Bellevue, Washington! They are probably in our top five of places with the friendliest “dog lovers” of all. Good thing because the W hotel has no outdoor or indoor areas for us to go potty. Yup, around the busy block of downtown Bellevue for all passerby’s and storefront keepers to see that we are healthy was not quite the morning we were expecting after such a fun night. Luckily for us, we have taken care of business in many, many places.

Fun fact

Have you ever been on a road trip and played games like eye spy, count the red cars, first to see something blue with black stripes or sing songs like how many bottles of beer on the wall? We do. And on this trip, we wanted to know how many places we have visited.

Check this out

• COUNTRIES: NINE
• PROVINCES: FIVE
• STATES: SEVENTEEN

Can you guess which ones by our journey stories? Patches on our red racing suits? Maybe we have crossed paths and shared stories with you?

Let’s have some fun and pretend we’re on a road trip together. Drive on, take a guess!

Fourth day, June 2, 2024 - Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

Peacefully motored across the Canadian border and on our way along the busy streets of Vancouver. Over the Skybridge connecting us to the Sea-to-Sky section of highway 99 the roads travelled through the beautiful snowcapped mountains. Yes, it is June 2024, and the mountain tops are covered in snow. Absolutely beautiful between the green forest and blue-sky contrast.

It wasn't long before we were welcomed in typical wet, west coast weather. At one point, I was thinking a boat may have been the better mode of travel. I no longer wonder why ferry and float planes are so popular.

Growing up in Cabo where the streets have no drains, and only a few days of rain, I was quite surprised that the winding roads of highway 99 from Vancouver to Whistler have no drains, and an average of 161 days of rain each year.

In the end we made it, eh! Safely to the cabin in the mountains of Whistler, BC, Canada.

And today, that is where our journey continues. We are settled and enjoying the mountain fresh air, hunting for squirrels and rabbits, hiking the trails with a careful eye on the mountain bikers, and roaming the streets of the village.

That's all for now, friends. Please stay connected, we'll be sharing our next journey soon.

Spoiler alert

Since arriving in Whistler, we have taken a road trip to Edmonton, Alberta. Why? The Edmonton Oilers games 3 & 4 of course!

Love always, Miller & Modela