Thursday 6/18,09 After a very lazy morning, with the sun shining brightly, we headed out for a ride and a little more sightseeing. We went south on 101 to a small town, Depot Bay www.depoebaychamber.org , the "Whale Watching Capital of the Oregon Coast." It has a long seawall where you can park, sit & watch the ocean. They are also have a Whale Watching Center that has a movie on whales & lots of pictures & information. A wall of glass with binoculars to use & search the ocean for whales. When you come in the center you are greeted by a blackboard that tells how many whale sightings for that day (1) the week & the year...the year was over 600. So of course we assumed our position at the wall of glass & started looking. They say they have a pod of resident gray whales that make their home there from March thru December. Then I hear someone say, "there's one" & Will says, "I see it" of course I can't find it . They continued to watch him spout water & then he would dive & come back & spout more water. They tried to help me find him but I never did....I felt very dejected and sad.
We then head out in search of postcards as I don't take pictures (sorry Rog) I usually buy several postcards from each town we visit & keep them together as my "pictures." Of course it's noon time & Will's lunch so we head for a small cafe - chowder for me & a hot dog for him. Both were NOT good and cost $12, so one more time we make a vow to bring our own lunch when we go out. We then head for Newport, a town we have already seen but there was still more to see. On our way there (22 miles) we stopped at a place called Devils Punch Bowl which was a beautiful view with this gigantic whole just below the seawall & the water comes in & out. At low tide people actually climb down there & hang out on the rocks...I just can't imagine that one. I started a conversation with a nice couple vacationing from Washington (I'm the mayor, you know) and they started telling us about the area & about the whales which at that exact moment we ALL saw it, including ME and this "guy" actually dived where we saw his tail out of the water heading down...it was terrific. I started applauding, what a show...now I felt better, I saw a whale.
We continued on into Newport & parked down by the boat harbor walking up and down the docks, reading the names of the boats and actually talking to some of the guys who work on the boats. It was interesting, the sun was shinning, it was a great day....I saw a whale dive!! Then back to our home, fix a fish dinner, watch a movie & go to bed...life is good.
Friday, 6/19/09 it rained all Thursday night and I mean alllllllll Thursday night. At one point it woke me up when I felt water as I had left my bedroom window open & it actually was splashing & hitting me in the face. What a shock that was. When we got up this morning the RV park was starting to look like a small lake. They had to bring pallets to one RV so they could get out their door. Fortunately, it wasn't us! We spent the morning marking Washington state booklets that we have with different places we want to go & things we want to see which gets exciting with the thought of moving on. Of course Will didn't want to leave the house, his heater & fireplace so I took the car & headed into town, Lincoln City, OR as I was starting to feel stir crazy with NO walk this morning. I drove down by the beach, watched the rain & very angry ocean, found some little shops to walk through, bought my 2 newspapers, a bag of pretzels & headed home....I was now set for more rain but fortunately the rain has stopped (for now) but it is very gray & the weather prediction for the weekend is more rain. Have I mentioned how much I miss the Fresno weather.....hot and hotter!! We both love this trip but very grateful we don't have to live here.
Signing off for now; much love to our family and friends and to Nancy, who is sick with the flu in New York City, sweetie, I hope you feel better soon and I can't wait to see you next week.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Newport, OR
Monday, 6/15/09 well another glorious way to start the day....the sun is out and I'm taking my 3 mile walk on a deserted Oregon beach. It is absolutely amazing to be out here all by yourself with the surf pounding and the sun shinning down. Honestly, if the sun was out more often in this state you couldn't keep the people away....including me.
After returning to the RV Will and I packed a picnic lunch & were off for a day of sightseeing in Newport, OR. Newport seems to have more people than anywhere else we have been along the coast, maybe it's the sun or just lots to do here. www.newportchamber.org They have a world class Oregon Coast Aquarium www.aquarium.org here but it seemed a little pricey so we passed on it choosing to go to the Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center, a donation only and it was the right choice. A huge octopus greets you when you come inside and the place is filled with exhibits you can touch, such as my friend's - the stingrays. We had a wonderful time there reading & viewing all the exhibits and the place was so interesting.
Newport has two lighthouse, the first one built unfortunately in the wrong area as ships could not see the light coming in from the north. This lighthouse was built in 1871 and was only used till 1873. It has been restored and you can tour the lightkeepers house, that has been furnished by the historical society and is truly beautiful. We had our picnic lunch right out front over looking the bay and the beautiful bridge that brings you into Newport. After lunch we headed out to the other light house, Yaquina Head Lighthouse www.lighthousefriends.com which is managed by the federal government so we got in free with out Golden Age Passport (did I tell you how much I love being over 60 and retired!) This was an amazing place also, we climbed to the top of the lighthouse (114 steps) with a spectacular view. There are also approx 30,000 birds on the rocks around the lighthouse, also sea lions sunning themselves, and then down to the beach to explore the tide pools. Now this was a real treat, honestly you could sit there for hours watching the "action" in the tide pools but the ranger came up and told us the tide was coming in and we would have to leave shortly.
We then headed to Newport's historic downtown area to go in and out of the tourist shops which there are plenty. Same drill as always, I go in the store & Will waits with the other guys on the benches provided outside. They also have many different murals painted on the outside buildings which we just found so intriguing. As it was now late afternoon and we were both dead tired (all those steps we climbed) We bought a small bowl of clam chowder from the famous Mo's restaurant which we took home and shared at dinner. It was a great day but there is still more to see in Newport, hopefully this week in Lincoln City we will go back the 20 some miles south of here. It was a great night sleep for both of us.
Tuesday, 6/16/09 well it's moving day and we are not sorry to leave this RV park which is extremely hilly and our site had a very large tree sitting in front of our RV door. Fortunately, we were small enough we could get in & out but it wasn't easy. So we are off for another long drive for Will, 25 miles north on highway 101 to Lincoln City, OR www.oregoncoast.org well actually Kernville, OR. Now I should have been suspicious of a town called Kernville, think Kernville, CA near Bakersfield but on we forged on. We found the turnoff and then drove another 4 miles off highway 101 and there it was.....Chinook RV park. Just think of a cow pasture surrounded by mountains covered with trees and a large river running through it. We checked in at the "red barn" /grocery store, clubhouse & who knows what else. But it's a Coast to Coast park & we "paid with our points" so upfront cash was only $7.00 for 7 days (bed tax?? but it's MY bed) So down the gravel road we went, maybe a half mile or so to our assigned RV spot. We backed the RV in and Will set us up and after discovering that we had no cell phone service and of course no computer, Will said do you want to leave but we both decided this is really part of "on the road" experience and anyway only 6 more days until we move on. Now I must tell you it is the quietest place we have ever been, we both slept in until 8 am this morning and NO frigging overhead lights. Pure heaven.
Wednesday, 6/17/09 Because this place has NO laundromat I decided to go into town and spend sometime alone & let Will putter around the RV by himself. I did the laundry, walked around town for a little while then indulged in a pedicure. What a treat!! After having lunch out I then wandered down to the outlet stores they have here and managed to spend the rest of the day going in and out of shops. Of course my purchases are safety tucked away in the back of the trunk ready to be smuggled in shortly (don't tell Will) honestly, it wasn't much...a new BLACK hoodie and blue shirt. Tomorrow Will and I will go back into Lincoln City and check out the beach and other sights in the area....hopefully the sun will be out again. Much love to our family and friends and reminder...NO CELL PHONE SERVICE.
After returning to the RV Will and I packed a picnic lunch & were off for a day of sightseeing in Newport, OR. Newport seems to have more people than anywhere else we have been along the coast, maybe it's the sun or just lots to do here. www.newportchamber.org They have a world class Oregon Coast Aquarium www.aquarium.org here but it seemed a little pricey so we passed on it choosing to go to the Oregon State University's Hatfield Marine Science Center, a donation only and it was the right choice. A huge octopus greets you when you come inside and the place is filled with exhibits you can touch, such as my friend's - the stingrays. We had a wonderful time there reading & viewing all the exhibits and the place was so interesting.
Newport has two lighthouse, the first one built unfortunately in the wrong area as ships could not see the light coming in from the north. This lighthouse was built in 1871 and was only used till 1873. It has been restored and you can tour the lightkeepers house, that has been furnished by the historical society and is truly beautiful. We had our picnic lunch right out front over looking the bay and the beautiful bridge that brings you into Newport. After lunch we headed out to the other light house, Yaquina Head Lighthouse www.lighthousefriends.com which is managed by the federal government so we got in free with out Golden Age Passport (did I tell you how much I love being over 60 and retired!) This was an amazing place also, we climbed to the top of the lighthouse (114 steps) with a spectacular view. There are also approx 30,000 birds on the rocks around the lighthouse, also sea lions sunning themselves, and then down to the beach to explore the tide pools. Now this was a real treat, honestly you could sit there for hours watching the "action" in the tide pools but the ranger came up and told us the tide was coming in and we would have to leave shortly.
We then headed to Newport's historic downtown area to go in and out of the tourist shops which there are plenty. Same drill as always, I go in the store & Will waits with the other guys on the benches provided outside. They also have many different murals painted on the outside buildings which we just found so intriguing. As it was now late afternoon and we were both dead tired (all those steps we climbed) We bought a small bowl of clam chowder from the famous Mo's restaurant which we took home and shared at dinner. It was a great day but there is still more to see in Newport, hopefully this week in Lincoln City we will go back the 20 some miles south of here. It was a great night sleep for both of us.
Tuesday, 6/16/09 well it's moving day and we are not sorry to leave this RV park which is extremely hilly and our site had a very large tree sitting in front of our RV door. Fortunately, we were small enough we could get in & out but it wasn't easy. So we are off for another long drive for Will, 25 miles north on highway 101 to Lincoln City, OR www.oregoncoast.org well actually Kernville, OR. Now I should have been suspicious of a town called Kernville, think Kernville, CA near Bakersfield but on we forged on. We found the turnoff and then drove another 4 miles off highway 101 and there it was.....Chinook RV park. Just think of a cow pasture surrounded by mountains covered with trees and a large river running through it. We checked in at the "red barn" /grocery store, clubhouse & who knows what else. But it's a Coast to Coast park & we "paid with our points" so upfront cash was only $7.00 for 7 days (bed tax?? but it's MY bed) So down the gravel road we went, maybe a half mile or so to our assigned RV spot. We backed the RV in and Will set us up and after discovering that we had no cell phone service and of course no computer, Will said do you want to leave but we both decided this is really part of "on the road" experience and anyway only 6 more days until we move on. Now I must tell you it is the quietest place we have ever been, we both slept in until 8 am this morning and NO frigging overhead lights. Pure heaven.
Wednesday, 6/17/09 Because this place has NO laundromat I decided to go into town and spend sometime alone & let Will putter around the RV by himself. I did the laundry, walked around town for a little while then indulged in a pedicure. What a treat!! After having lunch out I then wandered down to the outlet stores they have here and managed to spend the rest of the day going in and out of shops. Of course my purchases are safety tucked away in the back of the trunk ready to be smuggled in shortly (don't tell Will) honestly, it wasn't much...a new BLACK hoodie and blue shirt. Tomorrow Will and I will go back into Lincoln City and check out the beach and other sights in the area....hopefully the sun will be out again. Much love to our family and friends and reminder...NO CELL PHONE SERVICE.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Howard & The Blackeye Peas
Friday, 6/12/09 Just as I was preparing to take my morning walk, daughter Nancy calls from New York telling me that Howard (the boyfriend) and his 2 daughters were going to be at the NBC Today show Friday morning concert and I must watch. She had given them her VIP passes that entitled them to a personal tour through the studio, sitting on "THE couch" and at Matt Lauer desk and then right up in front of the stage for the performance of The Blackeye Peas (not real sure on the spelling of that). We were unable to get the local NBC station on our TV so I ran down to the club house (I only had 5 minutes till the performance started) and turn on their TV. Now of course there are only several thousand people out there but as luck would have it I caught several glimpses of Howard, rocking out, but never saw the girls. While watching the concert I was so glad we could NOT get the concert on our TV because Will would have died at seeing & hearing them. Hopefully Howard will post a video on Facebook soon and I can really get to see your fun morning. Good going guys and another GREAT Nancy Willis connection!!!!
Then our friends, Roby & Ron picked us up for more sightseeing that afternoon, we drove through several small communities, Winchester Bay and saw the Umpqua River Lighthouse. We didn't go through the lighthouse only the gift shop which had everything lighthouses. www.lighthousefriends.com Then on to The MyrtlewoodGallerywww.MyrtlewoodGallery.com Myrtlewood is found only in Southern Oregon and they have these shops in every town with so many beautiful carvings.
Of course the big event for the afternoon was to go to Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area. I have been telling Roby & Ron that we keep seeing road signs in Oregon, that say ELK but we have never even spotted one. Ron said, "not to worry, we have an elk reserve here and you can always see elk." I said that's what I want to do so off we went. Well the reserve is a beautiful 3-mile section of Oregon Highway with two designated viewing areas and benches all along the way for viewing. They have mowed hay out there for the elk to eat, everything an elk would want but still NO ELK. We drove slowly up the highway, with NO elk in sight; made a u-turn to come back & still no elk. Roby & Ron were in disbelief, they said they have NEVER been out here without seeing some elk. As we were driving away I shouted, "there's two" but I was the only one who saw them so maybe it was just wishful thinking. Will and I will continue to keep looking. www.blm.gov/or/districts/coosbay
We then headed back to Winchester Bay to have a fish dinner at the wharf. Unfortunately, the three of them had fish & chips and it was not nearly as good as what they had the day before (a correction is in order, Ron brought to my attention that I wrote we had abalone but it was calamari.) I had FRESH grilled halibut that was fabulous. I said, "I'm sorry your dinner isn't good, but my is delicious, sorry guys." It was another wonderful day with our friends and we were sad to leave them but look forward to our next visit, where ever that may be. Thanks friends!!
Saturday, 6/13/09 We headed out early as Will had a big driving day.....25 miles. We decided to "dry camp" for free at Three Rivers Casino in Florence, OR. For those not familiar with dry camping, that's parking in the casino parking lot with NO electricity, water or sewer, just a free space. www.threeriverscasino.com We only wanted to see a couple of things in Florence & decided this would be a good test for dry camping. Our first stop was to see the Sea Lion Caves, this features the world's largest sea cave right on highway 101 www.sealioncaves.com We took the elevator 200 feet down to the cave which is truly amazing. It was approx. 2 acres and in the winter, a big time for sea lions, there will be 700 in this cave, unfortunately this is summer & there were only about 25 sea lions in the cave, but amazing to see. After returning to the top I hiked down to another point where there were hundreds more sea lions laying out on the rocks. It was fun seeing them but nothing like the place Ed & Connie Patterson took us to see over by Cambria, CA and that one was FREE. On our way back to town we stopped at Darlington State Natural Site that has a boardwalk that you can view a very rare carnivorous plant, the Cobra Lily. It was interesting but we never saw it "swallow anything" so we didn't stay long. www.oregonstateparks.org/park_115.php
We headed into the old town of Florence that is another cute and quaint Oregon town, lots of tourist shops, eating places, a farmers market in progress and a wharf to walk out on. The weather has been chilly and not much sun. We are bundled up and can't believe people are walking around in short sleeve shirts and shorts....what am I missing here. Cute town but one day was enough. www.oldtownflorence.com Oh and by the way, the dry camping was OK and surprisingly quiet but we decided we would much rather have the amenities and stay in an RV park.
Sunday, 6/14/09 Another long day of driving for Will, 35 miles to South Beach, OR. We are slowly working our way up the Oregon coast as we are meeting daughter Nancy at Nike in Beaverton, OR on 6/25 (more on that when it happens.) We will be at our current park for 2 days and then on to Lincoln City, OR for 7 days, all Coast to Coast RV parks, which Will is a member. Today was strictly relaxation, a walk across highway 101 to take a stroll on the beach and an ice cream social at 2 pm. Will was able to make a "great cowboy book score" 5 books from the RV trade library and he met a guy Larry in the clubhouse that has lots by his favorite author, Louis Lamour, and got 11 more books. Boy was he happy, he's reading right now! Signing off with much love to family and friends.
Then our friends, Roby & Ron picked us up for more sightseeing that afternoon, we drove through several small communities, Winchester Bay and saw the Umpqua River Lighthouse. We didn't go through the lighthouse only the gift shop which had everything lighthouses. www.lighthousefriends.com Then on to The MyrtlewoodGallerywww.MyrtlewoodGallery.com Myrtlewood is found only in Southern Oregon and they have these shops in every town with so many beautiful carvings.
Of course the big event for the afternoon was to go to Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area. I have been telling Roby & Ron that we keep seeing road signs in Oregon, that say ELK but we have never even spotted one. Ron said, "not to worry, we have an elk reserve here and you can always see elk." I said that's what I want to do so off we went. Well the reserve is a beautiful 3-mile section of Oregon Highway with two designated viewing areas and benches all along the way for viewing. They have mowed hay out there for the elk to eat, everything an elk would want but still NO ELK. We drove slowly up the highway, with NO elk in sight; made a u-turn to come back & still no elk. Roby & Ron were in disbelief, they said they have NEVER been out here without seeing some elk. As we were driving away I shouted, "there's two" but I was the only one who saw them so maybe it was just wishful thinking. Will and I will continue to keep looking. www.blm.gov/or/districts/coosbay
We then headed back to Winchester Bay to have a fish dinner at the wharf. Unfortunately, the three of them had fish & chips and it was not nearly as good as what they had the day before (a correction is in order, Ron brought to my attention that I wrote we had abalone but it was calamari.) I had FRESH grilled halibut that was fabulous. I said, "I'm sorry your dinner isn't good, but my is delicious, sorry guys." It was another wonderful day with our friends and we were sad to leave them but look forward to our next visit, where ever that may be. Thanks friends!!
Saturday, 6/13/09 We headed out early as Will had a big driving day.....25 miles. We decided to "dry camp" for free at Three Rivers Casino in Florence, OR. For those not familiar with dry camping, that's parking in the casino parking lot with NO electricity, water or sewer, just a free space. www.threeriverscasino.com We only wanted to see a couple of things in Florence & decided this would be a good test for dry camping. Our first stop was to see the Sea Lion Caves, this features the world's largest sea cave right on highway 101 www.sealioncaves.com We took the elevator 200 feet down to the cave which is truly amazing. It was approx. 2 acres and in the winter, a big time for sea lions, there will be 700 in this cave, unfortunately this is summer & there were only about 25 sea lions in the cave, but amazing to see. After returning to the top I hiked down to another point where there were hundreds more sea lions laying out on the rocks. It was fun seeing them but nothing like the place Ed & Connie Patterson took us to see over by Cambria, CA and that one was FREE. On our way back to town we stopped at Darlington State Natural Site that has a boardwalk that you can view a very rare carnivorous plant, the Cobra Lily. It was interesting but we never saw it "swallow anything" so we didn't stay long. www.oregonstateparks.org/park_115.php
We headed into the old town of Florence that is another cute and quaint Oregon town, lots of tourist shops, eating places, a farmers market in progress and a wharf to walk out on. The weather has been chilly and not much sun. We are bundled up and can't believe people are walking around in short sleeve shirts and shorts....what am I missing here. Cute town but one day was enough. www.oldtownflorence.com Oh and by the way, the dry camping was OK and surprisingly quiet but we decided we would much rather have the amenities and stay in an RV park.
Sunday, 6/14/09 Another long day of driving for Will, 35 miles to South Beach, OR. We are slowly working our way up the Oregon coast as we are meeting daughter Nancy at Nike in Beaverton, OR on 6/25 (more on that when it happens.) We will be at our current park for 2 days and then on to Lincoln City, OR for 7 days, all Coast to Coast RV parks, which Will is a member. Today was strictly relaxation, a walk across highway 101 to take a stroll on the beach and an ice cream social at 2 pm. Will was able to make a "great cowboy book score" 5 books from the RV trade library and he met a guy Larry in the clubhouse that has lots by his favorite author, Louis Lamour, and got 11 more books. Boy was he happy, he's reading right now! Signing off with much love to family and friends.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Lakeside & Coos Bay, OR
Tuesday, 6/9/09, our last day in paradise with an ocean view Gold Beach, OR www.goldbeach.net I asked Will about moving up here and he said "sure, just find someone to put wheels on your mobile home in Fresno and have them move it up here for you" so I guess that meant NO. It truly was wonderful taking my daily 3 mile walk on the beautiful, deserted beach each morning. So Wednesday, 6/10/09 morning found us back on the road again, heading north up highway 101.
Around lunch time we came to a cute, quaint village town Bandon www.bandon.com which seemed perfect to pull off and fix our lunch and take a walk around town. They have a wonderful boat harbor, lots of bakeries, sweet shops, restaurants and tourist shops. A REAL tourist town. It was a great stroll, Will sitting on the benches in front of the shops as I went in and looked only.
We passed through Coos Bay that early afternoon on our way to our park, Osprey Point RV Resort www.ospreypoint.net This park was recommended by our friends, Roby & Ron of Lakeside, OR who we will visit with and it was closest to their home AND double bonus, it was in our "cheap" stay book. Three nights for $36.00, a real deal!!
Thursday, 6/11/09 we awoke to no sun and drizzle (welcome to Oregon folks) and waited for our friends to pick us up and give us the grand tour.....which they certainly did. A drive through many of the small towns around the Coos Bay area, and then a wonderful fish lunch at their favorite restaurant, Fisherman's Grotto in Charleston, OR www.charlestonmarina.com They have been going to this restaurant for years and our waitress, also the owner, Davine took very good care of us. Three of us had abalone and Will (of course) fish & chips...very, very yummy. If you are ever pasting thru Charleston, make this a definite stop. Then it was on to Shore Acres State Park www.oregonstateparks.org or www.shoreacres.net A truly beautiful park where at one of the look out points we were able to see many, many sea lions and beautiful large rock formations in the ocean. Because the ocean was calm this day, the waves were not crashing against the rocks clear up the side of the hills. But the most unbelievable sight was a fisherman, fishing off one of the rock points, 50 to 75 feet right above the ocean. When we had the telescope on him, not believing what we were seeing, he actually caught a fish and reeled it in and Will guessed it about 20 inches. Fabulous!!!
We then went into a beautiful garden, at this park, that at one time was the private estate of an early lumberman. We wandered around the gardens and ponds and viewed the gorgeous plants and flowers (think Pacific Grove, CA) Our friends said that two of their kids were married in this garden. I'm sure if you check out their website you will see what I mean.
Then it was back to their home site, which is two acres on a hillside, surrounded by lush greenery and trees. They have a family of deer that visited them each day. Ron & Roby have done an incredible amount of work, with a gazebo, a garden, a place for their boat (hey Rog, they both fish on the bay several times EACH WEEK, eat your heart out!) and live in their motor home. They love it here and it's easy to see why, leaving only in the winter time. Well tomorrow is another fun filled day with our friends and then sadly we will say good by with many memories and much thanks. Signing off with much love to our family and friends.
Around lunch time we came to a cute, quaint village town Bandon www.bandon.com which seemed perfect to pull off and fix our lunch and take a walk around town. They have a wonderful boat harbor, lots of bakeries, sweet shops, restaurants and tourist shops. A REAL tourist town. It was a great stroll, Will sitting on the benches in front of the shops as I went in and looked only.
We passed through Coos Bay that early afternoon on our way to our park, Osprey Point RV Resort www.ospreypoint.net This park was recommended by our friends, Roby & Ron of Lakeside, OR who we will visit with and it was closest to their home AND double bonus, it was in our "cheap" stay book. Three nights for $36.00, a real deal!!
Thursday, 6/11/09 we awoke to no sun and drizzle (welcome to Oregon folks) and waited for our friends to pick us up and give us the grand tour.....which they certainly did. A drive through many of the small towns around the Coos Bay area, and then a wonderful fish lunch at their favorite restaurant, Fisherman's Grotto in Charleston, OR www.charlestonmarina.com They have been going to this restaurant for years and our waitress, also the owner, Davine took very good care of us. Three of us had abalone and Will (of course) fish & chips...very, very yummy. If you are ever pasting thru Charleston, make this a definite stop. Then it was on to Shore Acres State Park www.oregonstateparks.org or www.shoreacres.net A truly beautiful park where at one of the look out points we were able to see many, many sea lions and beautiful large rock formations in the ocean. Because the ocean was calm this day, the waves were not crashing against the rocks clear up the side of the hills. But the most unbelievable sight was a fisherman, fishing off one of the rock points, 50 to 75 feet right above the ocean. When we had the telescope on him, not believing what we were seeing, he actually caught a fish and reeled it in and Will guessed it about 20 inches. Fabulous!!!
We then went into a beautiful garden, at this park, that at one time was the private estate of an early lumberman. We wandered around the gardens and ponds and viewed the gorgeous plants and flowers (think Pacific Grove, CA) Our friends said that two of their kids were married in this garden. I'm sure if you check out their website you will see what I mean.
Then it was back to their home site, which is two acres on a hillside, surrounded by lush greenery and trees. They have a family of deer that visited them each day. Ron & Roby have done an incredible amount of work, with a gazebo, a garden, a place for their boat (hey Rog, they both fish on the bay several times EACH WEEK, eat your heart out!) and live in their motor home. They love it here and it's easy to see why, leaving only in the winter time. Well tomorrow is another fun filled day with our friends and then sadly we will say good by with many memories and much thanks. Signing off with much love to our family and friends.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Gold Beach, OR - An ocean view
On Monday, 6/8/09 as we were preparing to leave Klamath River RV park for Oregon we ran into some people, Joan & Lennie of Florida, we had met briefly in Scotia, CA and in our small talk & good byes we discovered that Joanie has had the same back surgery that Will is facing in the near future. Because we have NEVER met anyone who has actually had this surgery we asked if we could talk to them about it. What wonderful people, they must have spent at least an hour or more with us in their RV, Joanie showing us her actual surgery pictures on her computer, her scar and even how she can bend & twist with NO pain. She told us all about the place it was done, Florida Spine Institute, hospital, city, an RV park near the place, the absolute Doctor we should use....just a wealth of information. Much thanks, gratitude, & love to you both for taking the time to share your information, it makes it so much easier when the time actually comes.
We finally hit Oregon Monday afternoon and the first thing we noticed after the gorgeous scenery was the big drop in gas prices. YIKES... We had just filled up in CA at $3.09, that's the RV of course and when we hit OR the price was $2.69. After calming Will down we saw the landscape changing in front of our eyes. No longer redwoods but pines, cypress and lots of blue Pacific ocean off to our left. Of course as my job is navigation and housing I'm trying to find an ATT signal so I can call our next destination, Port Orford and get reservations in a Camp America park, the cheap RV parks. Only an answering machine but surely they will call us back soon, well they didn't. As we reached Gold Beach and we had not heard from the other guy I consulted the expensive RV book to see what was there. While calling around, Will says, "look up the street there's an RV sign right there." I call, they had room, they say, just go in, find any space you want & then come to the office, 2 blocks away and pay...your kidding, right? Well we do that and low and hold this park is on a slop & we take the top spot with a fabulous ocean view. We can see the ocean from all the rooms, dining room, living room & MY side of the bed in the bedroom. The sun was shining in Gold Beach and we knew we had hit the Mother Lode of deals....which we did. www.GoldBeach.org
Gold Beach is just a small tourist town almost all on Highway 101. The big tourist attraction is a ride up the Rogue River www.info@mailboat.com on a jet boat that takes mail to an even smaller town, Agness. We had signed up to take the ride today, Tuesday, 6/9 however, Will is not feeling well and seems to be trying to come down with a cold. It's ok, I have walked all over the town, up and down the beach and feel like I could stay here for a much longer time. But alas, tomorrow is moving day as we are heading up towards Coos Bay, OR where our friends, Roby & Ron live. We met them in Camp Verde, AZ on our last trip and had so much fun together and look forward to seeing them again.
Thank you for the nice comments & emails regarding the blog, I am having a lot of fun writing it. And I must say Rog I am MOST IMPRESSED that you were actually able to leave a comment. Is Doctor Bob around the house? Much love to all our family and friends.
We finally hit Oregon Monday afternoon and the first thing we noticed after the gorgeous scenery was the big drop in gas prices. YIKES... We had just filled up in CA at $3.09, that's the RV of course and when we hit OR the price was $2.69. After calming Will down we saw the landscape changing in front of our eyes. No longer redwoods but pines, cypress and lots of blue Pacific ocean off to our left. Of course as my job is navigation and housing I'm trying to find an ATT signal so I can call our next destination, Port Orford and get reservations in a Camp America park, the cheap RV parks. Only an answering machine but surely they will call us back soon, well they didn't. As we reached Gold Beach and we had not heard from the other guy I consulted the expensive RV book to see what was there. While calling around, Will says, "look up the street there's an RV sign right there." I call, they had room, they say, just go in, find any space you want & then come to the office, 2 blocks away and pay...your kidding, right? Well we do that and low and hold this park is on a slop & we take the top spot with a fabulous ocean view. We can see the ocean from all the rooms, dining room, living room & MY side of the bed in the bedroom. The sun was shining in Gold Beach and we knew we had hit the Mother Lode of deals....which we did. www.GoldBeach.org
Gold Beach is just a small tourist town almost all on Highway 101. The big tourist attraction is a ride up the Rogue River www.info@mailboat.com on a jet boat that takes mail to an even smaller town, Agness. We had signed up to take the ride today, Tuesday, 6/9 however, Will is not feeling well and seems to be trying to come down with a cold. It's ok, I have walked all over the town, up and down the beach and feel like I could stay here for a much longer time. But alas, tomorrow is moving day as we are heading up towards Coos Bay, OR where our friends, Roby & Ron live. We met them in Camp Verde, AZ on our last trip and had so much fun together and look forward to seeing them again.
Thank you for the nice comments & emails regarding the blog, I am having a lot of fun writing it. And I must say Rog I am MOST IMPRESSED that you were actually able to leave a comment. Is Doctor Bob around the house? Much love to all our family and friends.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Day 6 & finally on the internet...
Well we did in fact leave Fresno on June 1st and I have NOT been able to get on the Internet with my fabulous & expensive ATT card. When we arrived in Klamath, on Sat 6/6, we took the computer into Crescent City to see what the matter was, only to be told the att card doesn't work in these parts. I am now using the wi fi at the RV park, (of course, I didn't even know I had wireless) so after the owner showed me how to get on....here goes the new Northwest blog.......
Day 1 - 6/1 we left Fresno and had a very pleasant trip up Interstate 5 passing through the nightmare of Sacramento traffic and looking for a place to park overnight. As RV parks were very scare we finally found one in the city Woodland at the local fairgrounds. OK, here's the picture....we are parked in the fairgrounds parking lot, (lots of dirt) with electric & water only for $25. There was one other RV there who was staying for 2 WEEKS, visiting his daughter & this was the second year they had done this (unbelievable, 2 weeks in a parking lot .) Our nightly entertainment was to walk over to the baseball field & watch the 5 & 6 year old play tee ball. Needless to say, we were up early & left. Oh and did I mention the light above us made our RV look like daylight all night long.
Day 2 - 6/2 & 3 were much better. We arrived in the beautiful coastal redwood area staying in a great park, Richardson Grove RV, in Garberville, CA. After we arrived, we walked across the street, to view the Grandfather redwood tree and a log cabin www.one-loghouse.com that is made out of 1 large piece of redwood, that contains a bedroom, kitchen & living room. That afternoon we drove up to Richardson Grove State Park & walked along the Eel River and walk the trails through the redwoods. Day 3 was devoted to taking the 31 mile drive through Avenue of the Giants. This is a drive, through several small towns that have this beautiful stretch of redwoods, such as The Chimmey Tree, a 78' redwood gutted by fire, The Shrine Drive-Thru Tree (which we drove thru) Founders Grove, dedicated to the founder of the Save-the-Redwood League, the founders tree is 346 feet tall. The most spectacular thing about these trees, that even when they fall, they continue to serve as a host to other trees & vegetation that will continue to grow. The quiet and serenity of these redwood groves are unmatched by any other place I have ever been. This would be on "my to do list" for everyone. www.ancientredwoods.net
Day 4 - 6/4 & 5 We continued up highway 101 staying in a passport america campground in Scotia, CA. Another park surrounded by redwoods everywhere you look. The park was a dump, but the scenery was glorious. We did drive into Scotia which was a company town for the local lumber mill. The mill is only partial open today, with no more tours and the town is composed of retired mill workers. We did walk through the beautiful lobby of Scotia Inn, which was built with redwood. www.townofscotia.com
On Thursday, 6/4 we left for Ferndale, CA a small tourist town consisting of old Victorian houses. We parked & headed for the Ferndale Museum and then walked many, many streets looking at the beautiful restored buildings of businesses and homes. We also drove through the Ferndale Cemetery, which is quite a tourist attraction. It winds its way up a very high & twisty road with all of these very old plots to see & read. We then took a drive out in the country of Ferndale where there was suppose to be an old Victorian house you could tour, but the tours don't start for 2 weeks. However, the Master Gardener's were having a pot luck & invited us to join them & see the gardens & tour the old barn. We even had our picture taken with the group & will be ever known as the Fresno couple that crashed their party. They were so nice and very happy to have us. Real country hospitality. www.victorianferndale.org/chamber
The next day, Friday, 6/5 we took a drive into Eureka to see the historic downtown area, of course we arrived to early (is there such a thing?) as few places were open. We stopped at the local visitors center & got our information so we (or is the me) could plan our day and activities. Of course, the first thing Will noticed was that everyone was a "hippie with long hair" and that was enough of Eureka for him. Actually, just think Santa Cruz and you have Eureka. We did go in and out of store's and walked on their 4 block long boardwalk along the water. We then drove over the Somoa Bridge to have lunch at the Samoa Cookhouse, www.samoacookhouse.net a lumber-camp restaurant that still serves meals family style and has a fabulous logging museum. Lunch was terrific (Will had pot roast) and we BOTH had carrot cake for dessert, which was "off the charts" good. We then drove the couple miles to Woodley Island Marina www.humboldtbay.org and walked around the marina viewing the fishing boats. At one point, a commercial fishing boat captain called us over so we could see the huge halibut one of his customers had caught that morning. It was 98 lbs, the largest his vessel had ever caught. The guy that landed it (it took him 30 minutes to get it in the boat, was sooooooo excited he was calling all his friends & trying to get them to come down and see it before they cleaned it. (Rog, you would have been beside yourself!) After this walk we drove back into Eureka to view Carson Mansion. This is a beautiful old 3 story Victorian home that was owned by a lumber magnate and is now a private men's club with no admittance by the common folk, but anyway, it was beautiful to see from the outside. www.eurekachamber.com
Saturday, 6/6 we arrived at Klamath River RV Park, a beautiful Coast to Coast park that is located right on the Klamath River off highway 101. We face the river and have a great pull thru spot. Saturday afternoon we drove over to Crescent Cityto check on the computer, get information at the visitors center, saw a wonderful museum and learned all about the Tsunami that happened here in 1964. On highway 101 along the coast are Tsunami signs saying you are entering or leaving Tsunami area. We thought this was a bunch of crap and a hugh waste of money making these signs until we learned in Crescent City about their Tsunami that wiped out 6 blocks along the coast line of this city. Actually, the first Tuesday of each month they sound the Tsunami siren so the local folks will know what it sounds like. YIKES
Today, Sunday, 6/7 we visited Mystery of the Trees, a place a few short miles from where we are staying that was an amazing place that you walked a trail viewing more spectacular redwoods with a sky ride that took you to the top when there was an observation deck. A beautiful morning and well worth the $11.00 senior price to see it.
Well friends, that brings you up to date on our trip so far. Tomorrow will be one week and if they are all like this it will be a great trip. We leave here tomorrow and head for Oregon. Hopefully, I will be able to continue the blog and keep you posted of our were abouts and activities. I hope you will continue to post comments on blog or send me an email at sportsgirl107@sbcglobal.net but PLEASE folks -NO JOKES -as I just have to delete them. Thanks. Much love to all family & friends.
Day 1 - 6/1 we left Fresno and had a very pleasant trip up Interstate 5 passing through the nightmare of Sacramento traffic and looking for a place to park overnight. As RV parks were very scare we finally found one in the city Woodland at the local fairgrounds. OK, here's the picture....we are parked in the fairgrounds parking lot, (lots of dirt) with electric & water only for $25. There was one other RV there who was staying for 2 WEEKS, visiting his daughter & this was the second year they had done this (unbelievable, 2 weeks in a parking lot .) Our nightly entertainment was to walk over to the baseball field & watch the 5 & 6 year old play tee ball. Needless to say, we were up early & left. Oh and did I mention the light above us made our RV look like daylight all night long.
Day 2 - 6/2 & 3 were much better. We arrived in the beautiful coastal redwood area staying in a great park, Richardson Grove RV, in Garberville, CA. After we arrived, we walked across the street, to view the Grandfather redwood tree and a log cabin www.one-loghouse.com that is made out of 1 large piece of redwood, that contains a bedroom, kitchen & living room. That afternoon we drove up to Richardson Grove State Park & walked along the Eel River and walk the trails through the redwoods. Day 3 was devoted to taking the 31 mile drive through Avenue of the Giants. This is a drive, through several small towns that have this beautiful stretch of redwoods, such as The Chimmey Tree, a 78' redwood gutted by fire, The Shrine Drive-Thru Tree (which we drove thru) Founders Grove, dedicated to the founder of the Save-the-Redwood League, the founders tree is 346 feet tall. The most spectacular thing about these trees, that even when they fall, they continue to serve as a host to other trees & vegetation that will continue to grow. The quiet and serenity of these redwood groves are unmatched by any other place I have ever been. This would be on "my to do list" for everyone. www.ancientredwoods.net
Day 4 - 6/4 & 5 We continued up highway 101 staying in a passport america campground in Scotia, CA. Another park surrounded by redwoods everywhere you look. The park was a dump, but the scenery was glorious. We did drive into Scotia which was a company town for the local lumber mill. The mill is only partial open today, with no more tours and the town is composed of retired mill workers. We did walk through the beautiful lobby of Scotia Inn, which was built with redwood. www.townofscotia.com
On Thursday, 6/4 we left for Ferndale, CA a small tourist town consisting of old Victorian houses. We parked & headed for the Ferndale Museum and then walked many, many streets looking at the beautiful restored buildings of businesses and homes. We also drove through the Ferndale Cemetery, which is quite a tourist attraction. It winds its way up a very high & twisty road with all of these very old plots to see & read. We then took a drive out in the country of Ferndale where there was suppose to be an old Victorian house you could tour, but the tours don't start for 2 weeks. However, the Master Gardener's were having a pot luck & invited us to join them & see the gardens & tour the old barn. We even had our picture taken with the group & will be ever known as the Fresno couple that crashed their party. They were so nice and very happy to have us. Real country hospitality. www.victorianferndale.org/chamber
The next day, Friday, 6/5 we took a drive into Eureka to see the historic downtown area, of course we arrived to early (is there such a thing?) as few places were open. We stopped at the local visitors center & got our information so we (or is the me) could plan our day and activities. Of course, the first thing Will noticed was that everyone was a "hippie with long hair" and that was enough of Eureka for him. Actually, just think Santa Cruz and you have Eureka. We did go in and out of store's and walked on their 4 block long boardwalk along the water. We then drove over the Somoa Bridge to have lunch at the Samoa Cookhouse, www.samoacookhouse.net a lumber-camp restaurant that still serves meals family style and has a fabulous logging museum. Lunch was terrific (Will had pot roast) and we BOTH had carrot cake for dessert, which was "off the charts" good. We then drove the couple miles to Woodley Island Marina www.humboldtbay.org and walked around the marina viewing the fishing boats. At one point, a commercial fishing boat captain called us over so we could see the huge halibut one of his customers had caught that morning. It was 98 lbs, the largest his vessel had ever caught. The guy that landed it (it took him 30 minutes to get it in the boat, was sooooooo excited he was calling all his friends & trying to get them to come down and see it before they cleaned it. (Rog, you would have been beside yourself!) After this walk we drove back into Eureka to view Carson Mansion. This is a beautiful old 3 story Victorian home that was owned by a lumber magnate and is now a private men's club with no admittance by the common folk, but anyway, it was beautiful to see from the outside. www.eurekachamber.com
Saturday, 6/6 we arrived at Klamath River RV Park, a beautiful Coast to Coast park that is located right on the Klamath River off highway 101. We face the river and have a great pull thru spot. Saturday afternoon we drove over to Crescent Cityto check on the computer, get information at the visitors center, saw a wonderful museum and learned all about the Tsunami that happened here in 1964. On highway 101 along the coast are Tsunami signs saying you are entering or leaving Tsunami area. We thought this was a bunch of crap and a hugh waste of money making these signs until we learned in Crescent City about their Tsunami that wiped out 6 blocks along the coast line of this city. Actually, the first Tuesday of each month they sound the Tsunami siren so the local folks will know what it sounds like. YIKES
Today, Sunday, 6/7 we visited Mystery of the Trees, a place a few short miles from where we are staying that was an amazing place that you walked a trail viewing more spectacular redwoods with a sky ride that took you to the top when there was an observation deck. A beautiful morning and well worth the $11.00 senior price to see it.
Well friends, that brings you up to date on our trip so far. Tomorrow will be one week and if they are all like this it will be a great trip. We leave here tomorrow and head for Oregon. Hopefully, I will be able to continue the blog and keep you posted of our were abouts and activities. I hope you will continue to post comments on blog or send me an email at sportsgirl107@sbcglobal.net but PLEASE folks -NO JOKES -as I just have to delete them. Thanks. Much love to all family & friends.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Going back on the road 6/1/09
Gosh, it's almost time to head back out on the road again. We leave Monday, 6/1/09 for the Northwest. The plan right now is to see the Redwood Forest in California, head up hwy 101 along the coast of Oregon, Washington, Vancouver and hopefully see some of British Columbia and if were lucky a short Alaskan cruise. We hope you will join us, through our blog, and enjoy the trip with us. We also welcome all comments, emails and any communication along the way.
Right now the plan is to return to Fresno sometime in September, 09. Please follow along.
much love to all.
caw and will
Right now the plan is to return to Fresno sometime in September, 09. Please follow along.
much love to all.
caw and will
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