Day 30 - 2 July 2009

We awoke early, full of anticipation of the problems that might confront us during the return of the camper, the packing, and the transfer to the hotel that we had booked in downtown Calgary.

First thing we did was to look for a car wash large enough to accommodate the RV because the instructions were to return the vehicle free of road grime, especially tar or mud. So we scrubbed inside and out, washed the windshield, and polished the chrome. I was particularly concerned about the small chip in the windshield and the hatch on top that had been blown open by a sudden gust of wind, thereby breaking off the plastic knob that held the hatch shut. Both damages occurred during that fateful day when my sciatic nerve in my right leg acted up on the way to Monument Valley. All along the road after that I worried about these damages because when we accepted the camper a nice man went all around it with me encouraging me to make a note of any little flaw in the paint, the windshield, etc. I had to assume that when we turned in the camper it would be subjected to the same kind of scrutiny by the rental people. I had even bought some glue and buttons to try to patch the plastic mechanism of the hatch well enough to pass visual inspection, but due to a lack of the proper tools (there was a fan blade in the way) I had abandoned the attempt. I had actually tried to get the chip in the windshield repaired in Rapid City, South Dakota, but abandoned that effort also when it turned out that it would cost $30 without a guarantee that one wouldn't still see the chip in the windshield. I reasoned that if I had to pay for a new windshield anyway I would save myself the $30.

Well, wonders never cease! Since I didn't want to be caught in a lie when the rental people discovered the damage, I decided to "come clean" right up front. I pointed out the broken hatch, but the nice man just shrugged his shoulders and showed no interest in climbing on top of the camper to look at it closer, "the boys in the garage are going to take care of it," he said. He recommended that I mention the chip in the windshield to the ladies in the office who were going to finalize the paperwork. When I mentioned the chip in the windshield, the nice lady said that things like that happen and that was it. She gave me back my entire deposit plus she reimbursed me for a water pressure regulator which I bought in Colorado and the TV extension cable which I had bought in Salt Lake City. Some campgrounds required the water pressure regulator if one was going to connect to their water supply because of its high pressure, which might blow holes into the camper's water pipes. The TV cable was useless because the TV was not set up to accept cable input, it just operated off the roof antenna which was also useless in the Rockies; besides, the US had gone to a digital TV signal and the TV set was still analog.

While I sweated out the finalization of the paperwork, my friend labored with the packing of our belongings. We had more than what we had come with: souvenirs, some new clothes, and left over food. It was eventually all packed in suitcases, bags, and boxes and when the taxi arrived we were grateful for large American cars with their big trunks. The taxi took us to downtown Calgary, to the hotel which I had selected specifically because of its location, because the next two days were to be entirely different from the rest of the trip, that is, in a nice hotel within walking distance to restaurants and other amenities normally found in a big city.

The next day the annual event called the "Calgary Stampede," a giant, over a week long, fair with rodeos, rides, and shows was starting. We had planned this Rocky Mountain trip to end on just this day so that we could enjoy the activities in Calgary for the next two days. With a preview during the afternoon and evening of what was in store during the Calgary Stampede the camping part of the Rocky Mountain trip came to an end.