Author: sandcastle

Day 7 Pacific Coast

 

This morning our battery was down to a 50% charge. We are not supposed to let it get below that. We need to move further south so our furnace fan does not run so much if we want to be able to use other electrical items while boondocking. In the meantime, we turned on our generator to start recharging the batteries. The solar panels and alternator will add to it during the day so we will, hopefully, be fully charged again by the time we park tonight.

Dave says there is a winter storm coming that will bring snow as low as 2000 feet. Snow has become a bad word. We don’t want anymore of that stuff. South. Must keep moving south.

We drove by Westport Beach RV Park. It is a Good Sam Park right on the beach. We might want to stay there some time.

I saw a sign of a true optimist today. It was one of those deer crossing signs overlaid with the red circle and slash that means “not allowed.” Does the owner of that lawn think the deer are going to read and obey his sign?

Coming into Fort Bragg we saw a sign saying, “Train Depot 1 Mile.” It turned out to be Skunk Trains.  We are guessing those are tourist trains but the name makes me wonder about the owner and marketing people.

I saw a place that sells satellite antennas and chain saws. Apparently, if you buy the first you will need the second to get a signal.

In Gualala, California, we ate lunch at the Bones Roadhouse which specializes in BBQ, Brews, and Blues. Motorcycles encouraged. Lots of cool memorabilia hanging on the walls and from the ceiling.  Great music. Good food. They offered corn bread as one of the sides so I got mine to go. Yum!

“Ranch for sale; 971 acres; beach, ocean, timber.” Anyone want to guess the price? Me either

“Road Narrows.” Why do they never tell us when it widens?

So, we are driving down the road, pointed at the ocean, and there is water on both sides of us. Now what?! The road did an amazing U turn and dipped way down.

There are cattle guards across the highway here. We are on open range land.  So it shouldn’t have been surprising to see a cow standing right at the edge of the pavement munching away but seeing the one using the edge of the road marker as a scratching post startled me.

Coming around a curve, I suddenly found myself looking DOWN at a multi-level switchback. I think I’ll cry now.

Awhile later we met a larger motorhome going the other way. The brand on it was “Brave.” I thought, “Or stupid.” Like me? After all, I agreed to take this road without checking our what that might mean.

We camped at Wrights Beach campground in Sonoma Coast State Park. This time the campsite was $35 for  boondocking on a perfectly level site, in the sand, right on the beach. Check out these views.

  

Instead of having a drop box for the camping fee, though, this one said to pay the park host. No one was home there. Either time Dave tried this evening. Nor when he tried the next morning. So we got that view for free.

When we stopped for the night our batteries were 100% charged. Generators are only allowed to be run between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m. So we turned on our generator to do our computer stuff and to run the pump for Dave’s shower and washing dishes. Then we turned it off for quiet time.

It really is quiet time, too. We have no cell phone or EVDO signals here so we can’t do any internet things. So we played cribbage. Then I read while Dave went for a walk on the beach and played games on his iPhone. These are the types of things we used to do when we went camping. Well, not the iPhone part.

TTYL,

Linda

Day 6 Pacific Coast

This morning there was an electrical discharge inside our RV caused in part by our new solar system. Mostly it was caused by Dave’s failure to communicate. He forgets that I can’t read his mind to understand why he makes some of the decisions he does so when he announced his decision I felt like either: a) he thinks I’m too stupid to understand his reasoning, or b) my input is irrelevant. Neither made me happy. So I blew up. The solar system is fine. And after making him explain his thinking to me, so am I. We will, eventually, learn our limits.

In Eureka, California, we stopped to get fuel and groceries. One of the gas stations was named “Patriot Gas.” That made me NOT want to go there. I don’t like to see businesses exploit patriotism.

The road in this area begins and ends freeway time after time. I kind of wish they’d make up their minds but it does help keep us alert.

We planned to eat lunch in Garberville but the town is so small there was no place to park our RV. We traveled some very narrow streets making a good faith effort to no avail.

We played leap frog with the mail carrier. He/she drives fast between sets of mailboxes.

We turned onto Highway 1 and were immediately greeted by signs saying, “Winding Road Next 22 Miles” and “Next Services 26 Miles.” So we pulled off to the side of the road and ate lunch. It’s best if I not do these roads on an empty stomach.

This road makes me think of those “Zoom, zoom” type ads. You  know, the ones where they demonstrate how well their vehicle hugs the road. I am so glad Dave is not a zoom, zoom driver. Of course, he doesn’t want me to get sick any more than I want to be sick.

We camped at Westport-Union Landing State Beach, paying $10 for the privilege of boondocking. The view is worth it.

Dave spent the time between pulling into camp and sunset turning electrical things on and off to learn how many amps each thing draws. Well, how else are we supposed to learn what we can and can’t do while boondocking?

TTYL,

Linda

Day 5 Pacific Coast

 

We entered California first thing this morning.  This time the Agricultural Inspector announced she needed to come on board.  We had no problem with that.  She checked our frig for contraband fruits and vegetables then sent us on our way.

We were barely into California when I noticed the air was already thicker.  Dave laughed at me but he couldn’t explain it away.

Dave’s sister is currently visiting friends in California and it would be great to see her while she is here but she is flying back out of San Francisco this afternoon and we can’t get there by then.  She’s a fun person to know so I am sorry to have missed her here.

The funky thing I am seeing today is ships on shore that have been turned into gift shops.  I wonder if several people had this idea about the same time?  If not, which one copied the other?

I saw an ad for a “shark petting tank.”  It also said, “Just for the thrill of it.”  I can see it now.  “Look, Mom, the shark ate my hand.  Isn’t that thrilling?!”  I also wonder how thrilled the shark is.  More thrilled if he gets a hand than if he doesn’t, I guess.

As we entered the redwood forest the sign said to turn our lights on for the next eight miles.  So much for our solar panels recharging during the day today.

There are lots of warning signs around here.  The next ones warned of a 7% downgrade the next 2 miles with a 30 m.p.h. truck speed limit.  There are lots of places for trucks to pull off and let other traffic pass.  For this application, we act like a truck.  We don’t like leading parades.

Another sign said “Beach Hours: Sunrise to Sunset”.  What happens to the beach at night?  Does someone turn it off?

It didn’t look like we were going to find any restaurants any time soon so we stopped at a pullout for lunch.  We pulled some South Beach Wrap kits from the frig but I still have lefse on my mind so I took the filling from mine and mixed it with the pasta salad from yesterday’s stop at The Crazy Norwegian then spread butter and sprinkled Splenda and cinnamon on my tortillas to make faux lefse.  Being a wheat tortilla made it a little weird but it was better than nothing.

We stopped for the night at Clam Beach County Park at exit 723 from Highway 101 just south of Trinidad, California.  We paid $10 for basic parking lot camping except it’s on the beach.  Here’s the view from our RV.

Tonight we get to figure out how to use our new batteries to power all our electrical needs.  Wish us luck.

TTYL,

Linda

Day 4 Pacific Coast

We were headed back to Highway 101 this morning with me using the GPS part of Dave’s iPhone to help us make the right turns when the phone rang. So I answered his phone. It was for me  Very weird. It turns out that Dave applying for Social Security triggered a mandate for them to call me to tell me I could apply under his and mine when my time comes. I thanked them and assured them I certainly plan to apply under his since I’m pretty sure half of his will be more than all of mine.

Back at Am Solar Deb had said she didn’t think Seven Devils Road was paved but a customer in the shop at the time said it was. Deb admitted it had been a few years since she’d been on it. So we decided to risk it rather than go north to go south. It turns out they were both right. It is paved as far south as the junction with Beaver Hill Road where we turned towards Highway 101. South of there it is not paved and there is a warning sign recommending motorhomes not go that way.

Once we got back on Highway 101 my phone rang. I tried answering Dave’s phone again before realizing it was mine this time. Our daughter and I were chatting away when we drove out of my coverage area. I’m having trouble getting used to that.

While I was still talking to her, Dave signaled to get my attention. Another Winnebago View was about to pass us. The copilot of that one and I waved to each other. It’s amazing to me how many Views we have being seeing along the west coast.  I think lots of people have decided smaller is better given the current fuel situation.

Another thing I am enjoying in these tourist towns is the names on some of the businesses. Today we saw “Jailhouse Rocks,” a jewelry shop, and a restaurant actually named “The Greasy Spoon.”

At Cape Blanco State Park, we stopped for an ocean view fix.  Here’s the lighthouse there.

The park has camping with water and electrical hookups for just $12 but the dump is closed due to failure of the drainage field and the only campsites with a view of the ocean have cabins on them. Oh, well. There are other places on the ocean to camp.

In Port Orford we stopped at The Crazy Norwegian for lunch. It felt like we were Up North in Minnesota. There were lots of signs about lutefisk and Uff Da and a sandwich named The Scandihovian. Small place but good food. No lefse, though.

The we stopped at Battle Rock City Park for another ocean view fix and to read the sign telling more of our nation’s embarrassing history.

  

We stopped at Humbug Mountain State Park to check out their campground. It’s in a shady valley with a trail at the end of C loop leading under the highway to the beach. Dave estimates it’s about 1,000 feet to the beach. Their dump was also closed also but I don’t know if it’s permanently so here.

We stopped at lots of scenic overlooks where Dave took lots of pictures of the ocean. He now has several of them cycling on his desktop since he couldn’t decide which to use.

We didn’t stop at Ophir State Beach. We could see it is a paved wayside with restrooms, overlooking the ocean, and somewhat sheltered from the highway but we don’t know if camping is allowed there.

We had intended to buy diesel in Port Orford but didn’t do so. We were glad when we got to Gold Beach to discover it was 10 cents a gallon cheaper than it had been in Port Orford.

In Gold Beach there are RV parks on the ocean. We may stop at one of them someday but not today.

One of the interesting things I learned with all these ocean view stops is that I need to be able to see the beach not just the water. Without the waves lapping the shore the ocean just looks like a big lake to me.

We crossed Bruce’s Bone Creek. I decided not to speculate about that name.

We camped at Harris Beach State Recreation Area. We paid an extra $1 for a site with cable TV even though we don’t watch TV because the only sites with a view of the ocean had cable connections and you pay for what the site offers, not what you plan to use. Much of life is like that.

TTYL,

Linda

Back to the Coast

We made it out of camp this morning with about 10 minutes to spare before the 11 a.m. checkout time. The weather is heavily overcast but there’s promise of sunshine ahead.

Wow! The sun is now reflecting off the clouds as brightly as it does off snow in Minnesota at this time of year.  We miss our friends and family back there but I sure don’t miss snow!

We just passed a sign warning us it is illegal for vehicles like ours to drive in the left lane when we we saw another sign warning, “Right Lane Closed.” I bet you didn’t know we are driving a hovercraft. Neither did we. Let’s see, which law shall we break?

Today we got caught in a new definition of stop and go travel. Those who get queasy easily should probably stop reading now and skip ahead to the next paragraph. Not long after we left camp, my system got upset and I developed diarrhea. Every time I needed to go, Dave tried to find a place to stop. None of the places he found could be long term places. I found myself wishing our toilet had a seat belt so I could just stay there awhile. We made at least three of those emergency stops before the medicine I take when this happens kicked in. I hate have such a vulnerable digestive system. It has been giving me trouble all my life so I’m sure it will continue to do so but I sure wish it would only act up when we are parked for the night rather than when we are out on the road or in some other public place. If I’m ever with you and suddenly ask directions to a restroom, please answer quickly. Thanks.

Dave and our daughter have a different problem. I call it the head banging, feet hanging syndrome. They are both so tall they have trouble fitting into a lot of the small RVs we prefer to drive or the beds those RVs contain. Dave is pleased to have found the Winnebago View since he now has no side effects of this syndrome.

We passed a sheep farm with a llama standing guard. Our daughter’s former in-laws tried that once. Supposedly, llamas will protect sheep from predators. The llamas they got, though, were afraid of the sheep! It was interesting to me to see this llama looking like he was doing his job.

Oregon Highway 38 rocks! The sign said so: “Rocks”

Today’s interesting street name was Lutsinger Creek Road. I had images in my head of being at the Renaissance Fair and listening to a performer play the lute while singing. Do you suppose this street was named after someone whose ancestor did just that?

We stopped at the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area. Guess what we saw there? You got it in one!

By the way, that picture was taken with Dave’s new camera. It was a lot better than the ones from my camera.

We stopped at the DQ in Reedsport for lunch. Dave bought the food and brought it back to the RV to eat since I was still not sure I felt like going far from home. I like their chicken strips basket because they offer gravy as one of their dip options. Dave eats his chicken strips plain so I get lots of gravy. I also get his toast. He gets my French fries although he seldom eats them.  

I could live on bread and meat. Fruits and vegetables are optional as long as I have bread and meat. Which is part of why I’m fat. Salty, crunchy snacks and lack of exercise are the rest of the reasons. I tried to blame it on heredity too since my grandparents and their siblings were not skinny people. But when you look at my parents that theory gets blown out of the water.

The Safeway here has a sign saying “Serving Reedsport since 1935.” I hadn’t realized that grocery chain had been around that long. I guess I really wouldn’t know that since *I* haven’t been around that long!

Now we are camped for the night at Bastendorff Beach County Park near Charleston, Oregon. This place was recommended to us by Deb at AM Solar. I’m glad she told us about it. Here’s the view from our campsite.

Not bad, huh?

TTYL,

Linda