October, 2006 - Bridge Coast to Coast Saga

October 2 - 8 - Wells, Nevada to Clovedale, California
Monday, October 2. We are headed toward San Francisco and left our resort in Wells, NV at about 8:30 this morning. We were getting a pretty good rain but the forecase said it should end by morning and we were headed in the direction it was coming from.

The drive through Nevada was not too memorable, but it was a bit more scenic that Wyoming. There are mountains to the north and to the south of the highway and the muted fall colors are pretty. Our destination was the Desert Rose RV Park in Fernley, NV, a very nice, well run place that cost us $25 for the night (Good Sam).

After my cooking burst of energy yesterday, I ordered a pizza for delivery tonight - tasted pretty darn good for a change!

Our motorhome and toad are filthy, but we thought it best to wait until we get to the end of the trail, at the Russian River in Cloverdale, CA where we will have more time to do a better job. It is there that we will join up with Ben for the 1st time in a year - this is something that excites us no end!!

Tuesday, October 3. I�??m having a real struggle with my computer this morning. Back in August when I took it in for repair of a mechanical problem, I removed all of the programs and backed them up. Since then I�??ve been reinstalling. This morning, I was working with my Palm program and synchronizing the info from the handheld to my desktop when I lost all of my calendar. How frustrating! Mike is also having problems with his laptop - he installed Linux OS last week and lost all of his Windows stuff.

The distance to our next destination was only 128 miles, but it took us nearly 4 hours. We headed west on US 50 this morning because it was a much more direct route and probably a lot more scenic, which it was. The drive took us through Carson City, NV and South Lake Tahoe through the mountains and there was construction for 50 miles. The road narrowed to 2 lanes with orange cones and cement dividers. It was pretty intense for Mike but he is a great driver and I trust him. The scenery changed from desert to mountains and evergreen covered hills.

Ghost Mountain Ranch in Pollock Pines was our destination, a resort in our ROD membership. It almost felt claustrophobic when we pulled into the place because the road is narrow and the tall pines are up close to the road on both sides. The area is beautiful but the resort itself has been neglected and the facilities aren�??t real attractive. When we got to our assigned campsite, the electric post didn�??t include a 30 am plug, but required a 50 amp plug with a 30 am adapter. Fortunately, our next door neighbor, Jim (a full-timer for 12 years), had just what we needed and was willing to loan it to us for the night.

We took a nice, long walk to see the ghost town on the site, the former filming set for �??The Virginian�?� television series. The location was pretty remote so we didn�??t get good TV reception and definitely couldn�??t get internet access with the phone or aircard. It was an early to bed night.

Wednesday, October 4. We were unhooked and on the road by 8:45 this morning and got to the Canyon Creek RV Resort near Winters, CA, not too far west of Sacramento. The countryside is beautiful and the park is very nice. We took a pull-thru site that wasn�??t real pretty, but faces the Putah Creek.

It was a rainy day and we have no cell phone signal and the aircard doesn�??t work. Lucy and I went for a nice walk along the creek and saw some birds and ducks, but that was about it.

We heard a thump on the roof and I glanced out the window to see a small white thing falling to the ground. On checking out the door, realized that it was a small hawk-like bird. The Audubon Field Guide identifies it as an Elf Owl, a really cute little guy. It was struggling and breathing hard, so we thought it might be suffering. Mike went out to check on it and it had become upright but was sitting in one place, turning its head almost 360°. We were able to get real close to take a picture. After an hour or so it was able to fly and perched on a branch in a nearby pine tree. We were happy to learn that it must have been stunned, probably hitting our TV antenna.

Thursday, October 5. Our expected drive today was about 2 hours but it took us close to 3 and we only drove 90 miles. State Road 128 took us through a good part of California�??s wine country. It was a gnarly, narrow, and winding road that had some serious potholes, but it was also gorgeous countryside, wineries dotting the hillsides and the valley. In one area it looked just like Florida with huge oak trees and Spanish Moss. Another area was an incredible blue-green color and the roadsides were covered with evergreens and eucalyptus - even the soil and rocks were the same color.

The Russian River Resort near Cloverdale, CA was our destination and we will be staying here for a week, Ben will join us for the weekend. I�??m looking forward to staying put for several days. The park is very nice but the sites are close together. We were able to chose one that is on a corner, so we have a little more space and privacy. As soon as we got hooked up, the priority was to wash the road dust off the vehicles. Finally, we found a park that would allow us to wash them. Shortly after starting, the rains came and I had to take a break until it cleared once again.

We are able to get a weak cell phone signal, but cannot use the aircard once again. The park has wireless in the clubhouse, so that is our only choice this week.

Friday, October 6. Today was shopping and haircut day. Its been 6 weeks since haircuts and we�??re both feeling that every day is a bad hair day. We drove to Windsor because someone told us there was a Home Depot and we had to get a replacement part for one of our drawers. We were able to take care of all of our errands there; dog food, groceries, haircuts, and the part.

Lucy left us with some surprises when we got back to the motorhome and I had to do some laundry - that didn't make me too happy but I try to understand that she's an old dog. Sometimes its hard.

Ben arrived at 8:00 and it was so great to hug him and have a face to face conversation again. Ruby is still her cute little self. We had some dinner and sat around talking and catching up.

Saturday, October 7. It was a great day, just hanging out together, taking walks down by the river, playing with Ruby (Lucy's not much for playing these days). In the afternoon, we took a drive to a couple of the nearby towns to see if we could get Ben's new Swiss watch sized. We found a jeweler in Healdsburg that could do it, then drove back to Cloverdale to the local Octoberfest. We had a beer and headed back to the resort for a great dinner.

Sunday, October 8. It was a beautiful hot day and we hung around being lazy most of the day. None of us were too interested in "doing something" other than just being together. It is so nice! Ben left at about 7:00 to head back to the city.

October 9 - 15, Cloverdale, CA to Pacifica, CA
Monday, October 9. Santa Rosa, a 35 mile drive south of here was our destination today - to pickup prescriptions at Walgreens. We took a back road from Santa Rosa to the Korbel Champagne and Winery in Guerneville, a beautiful stretch of road that took us through wine country. We strolled around the beautiful gardens, then bought some brandy to restock our bar. Also took a scenic route back toward Cloverdale.

Tuesday, October 10. Today was hang around the campsite day doing laundry and some necessary maintenance (cleaning the storage bins). Mike spent some time at the clubhouse where he could get wi-fi to download programs to get his computer working. Nothing seems to be working though and he is very frustrated.

When we were leaving our site to go walking this evening, we met a very nice couple who were admiring our motor home. We had a nice conversation and found out that they were checking out the next morning - too bad. That is one drawback to the lifestyle - everyone is on the move and you usually don�??t have time to really get to know someone.

Wednesday, October 11. Another day of cleaning up the storage bins and trying to get Mike�??s computer going. Finally, at about 9:00 pm, he had Windows back on it and was starting over from scratch - but at least he was able to get Windows back. And we thought these things were going to make life easier - in many ways they are more hassle than they are worth. But here I sit typing away and enjoying every minute of it.

Lucy and I took our last walk along the woodland paths tonight, a real plus about this park.

Thursday, October 12. Moving day. We left the Russian River RV Resort at 10:45 and traveled south on US 101 until we got to California 1, just north of San Francisco, across the Golden Gate bridge, through Golden Gate Park and the western part of the city, and on to Pacifica where we will stay at the San Francisco RV Resort for the next week. It is a much more convenient location to Ben�??s house but more expensive than other parks we have been to ($295 for the week). It is a beautiful sunny afternoon with temps in the low 70s.

Our site is nice, on a cliff overlooking the ocean. There is an access point, but you can�??t actually walk on the beach unless you are real brave - it is rocky and most of it is cliffs. There is a walkway facing the ocean with a fence to keep us from falling off edge of the cliff (a 15-20 foot drop). When Lucy and I were going for a walk, I SAW WHALES!!! I think they are either humpback or killer whales with a white belly. The first time ever and I saw several, not up close but swimming in the distance I could see them surfacing; first the head out of the water, then the fins, and also could see the blows. I hurried back to the site to get Mike and we both got to see them.

We didn't connect with Ben tonight, but will join them for dinner tomorrow. It got real windy this afternoon and Lucy was real skittish.

Friday, October 13. It was a pretty busy day - we had to find a pet store to stock up on dog food so found our way there just fine. We also checked out a place to board Lucy for the weekend so we can hang out with Ben and not have to worry about her. We're still undecided as to what to do.

In the evening, we drove to their apartment and got side-tracked for almost 40 minutes. We knew just where to go but were not allowed to make left turns where we needed to and ended up way beyond our destination. Ben's directions helped us to get back on track and we found our way from there. Mike and Ben went to get pizza and we enjoyed the evening just hanging out at their apartment. Ben recommended a different route back to the RV park and it was a much better and quicker drive.

Saturday, October 14. It was a busy day hanging out with Ben, starting when we met him at Fort Funston's Dog Park. I have mentioned this place in previous journal entries, but will describe it once again. It is hundreds of acres of land on the coast with hiking paths and beach access. Mostly it is used as a dog park and there are hundreds people and their dogs running, jumping, playing ball, greeting each other, and just plain having fun. Ruby played ball the whole 2 hours we were there and Lucy had great fun sniffing around then catching up with us.

We then dropped the dogs off at our motorhome and we went to the East Bay for a sandwich and piece of bean pie (a pie made from white beans that tastes similar to pumpkin pie but not quite as sweet) at the Muslim Bakery and to a surplus store.

When we returned to the city, we all gathered at Ben's apartment to geek out with our computers. Ben helped me to change the appearance of the website. It was close to 11:00 when we got back home.

Sunday, October 15. Today's highlight was a gathering at Ben and Jill's home with her parents, Dennis and Lois and her brother Casey. It was a very enjoyable afternoon just hanging out, having some Old Fashioneds and a wonderful dinner of steak, twice baked potatoes, green beans with red pepper, garlic and pine nuts, and for dessert - a delicious apple raisin walnut pie. The dinner was superb and the company was wonderful.

October 16 - 18, Pacifica, CA
Monday, October 16. The weather is unpleasant today, cold with high winds that rock the motorhome. We have to be careful every time we open the door so it doesn't fly off the hinges. We took a walk along the beach where we thought we would be protected by the cliffs, but it was really cold there too.

It was a good day for soup and I found a recipe for Tortilla Soup and pulled the slow cooker out from under the dinette and had it simmering all day. Ben and Ruby joined us for dinner and we all really enjoyed it. Ben said the wind was blowing so hard when he came by Ocean Drive that it was like a sandstorm.

Ruby will be spending the next couple of days with us because Jill is at Yosemite with her family and Ben is working.

Tuesday, October 17. It was beautiful when I first went outdoors this morning - the sun was coming up and that nasty wind was gone. I decided to get our laundry out of the way so that was the big project for today. The weather has continued to be very nice and we've done a lot of walks around the resort and sat outdoors reading today. I sat on a picnic table on the edge of the cliff for quite a while hoping to see whales again. I saw a spout a couple of times but it was too far out to get a good view of the whale.

We've also found a couple of workcamping jobs listed that we have decided to check on. One is not far from here - between Santa Cruz and Monterey and the other is a place that we stayed in last fall near Palm Springs. We shall see.

Went to Ben's for the evening and he treated us to dinner at the Pacific Cafe just around the corner from his house. Its always a great choice - the food is excellent.

Wednesday, October 18. Not much going on today other than a little bit of cleanup around the motorhome. Mike washed the car and the outside of the motorhome to get the salt spray off. I took the dogs for a few walks and played ball with Ruby.

In the evening, we went to Ben's, had pizza, and hung out with Jill's family again. It is our last night here before moving on down the road once again. It was hard saying goodbye again, but maybe we will be sticking around in California for the winter - will have to see what comes up.

October 19 - 22, Pacifica to Oxnard
Thursday, October 19. We left Pacifica at around 10:30 and traveled as far as Moss Landing where we stopped at the RV park with the same name and filled out applications for jobs as Assistant Managers. They are looking for someone to work 2 days a week through the winter. The managers seem like very nice people and it is a small park with 46 sites, new and very clean facility.

When we left there, we decided to take California 1 to San Luis Obispo. The trip took us 9 hours and we traveled about 160 miles. The road was hilly and had many hairpin curves where we had to slow to 15-25 mph. One of the reasons we decided to take that route was so that we could stop near San Simeon to see the Elephant Seals. That was worth the drive and we both chalked it up to experience. We both took turns driving and were frazzled by the time we got to the El Chorro Regional Park just as it started to get dark.

Friday, October 20. First thing this morning, we were greeted by the Park Ranger, ready to collect the fees since we didn�??t deposit them last night, both of us were too tired to walk back to the park entrance with the $$. He was a nice guy and had no problems with it.

We arrived in Oxnard early afternoon and had a nice reunion with our dear friends, Mary and Lance. Their friend Maggie came over for dinner and we had a nice visit.

Saturday, October 21. Mary and I took Lucy for a nice long walk and we wondered if the poor girl was going to make it back to the house. She slowed way down and made it back. We also ran some errands to get cards for Lance�??s birthday.
In the evening, we met Maggie and several other people at the Café Bariloche in downtown Ventura. We had an excellent South American-style dinner, then walked to the City Hall where we went on a 1½ hour Ghosts & Ghouls Tour. The tour was led by one of Ventura�??s renowned storytellers, Richard Senate, who captures tales of spirits haunting the Old Courthouse, a hospital, a downtown restaurant, a bank building and an old inn in chilling detail. It was fun and Mike even captured an �??orb�?�, some kind of ghostly appearance in the courtroom - check out the picture on the website and see if you can see it.

Sunday, October 22. Today is Lance�??s birthday and we started out with a relaxing morning drinking coffee and reading the newspaper. In the afternoon we went to the farmers market at the Oxnard Harbor then checked out a couple of open houses in Ventura. One was a single story house that was jacked up to add a floor, had small rooms and a price tag of $739,000. The other was on the hillside on a very narrow street, small rooms, a deck on the roof that you could only get to be going outside and around the house, a huge back yard, beautiful views of the city and ocean and its price tag was $1.1 million. In the evening, Maggie invited us to her house for wine and cheese. After that, we had a wonderful dinner of chicken-cheese enchiladas with Mary�??s wonderful green sauce.

October 23 - 29, Oxnard & Ramona (near San Diego)
Monday, October 23. Mary and I started the day with a nice, long walk. It was also shopping day with a trip to the pet store, the western store, Fry's Electronics, and Costco took up a good part of the day. The evening was spent watching TV and having my tortilla soup for dinner.

Tuesday, October 24. Another low-key day spent reading, computing, walking, and just hanging out. May bought a laptop computer and Mike helped her get it and wireless setup. We watched the original 1948 movie "All The King's Men" starring Broderick Crawford. It was a good movie and a good prelude to the recent release.

Wednesday, October 25. Today was a fun day of exploring and some shopping in Ventura. After locating the Ventura County Museum of History and Art, we parked and walked to the Top Hat, a burger landmark on Main St. After lunch, we went to the museum and saw a Cowboy exhibit with displays of the tools of the trade and some very nice decorative saddles. Another gallery included historical items. The display that interested me the most was Tree of Liberty: Blood of Patriots, a series of historical wax figures in 1/10 scale. They were elaborately dressed and realistic.

In the evening, we had a joint effort dinner with grilled shrimp and scallops, garlic potatoes, and a mixed veggie salad.

Thursday, October 26. Mary and Lance wanted a ride in the motorhome, so we went to Costco and they graciously let us use their discount card to fill up on fuel and for the 1st time in a long time, the bill was less that $100. We drove south on Hwy 1 to Pt Mugu State Park to check out the camping area on the beach - not bad, and we will consider it for future stays.

It was the last day of our visit and Mary made linquine with clam sauce for dinner that was excellent.

Friday, October 27. After doing laundry and having breakfast, we drove south to Ramona, about 50 miles east of San Diego where we plan to spend the next 2 weeks. It was about a 4-hour drive and took us right through the middle of LA - there really was no way to avoid it so we just took the most direct route. Mike did a great job!

We arrived at the Ramona Canyon RV Resort and were setup by about 4:00. The place seems nice, but we are having trouble with internet and phone connections once again. I really think these places should provide wireless internet. The area around Ramona is called "The Valley of the Sun" and the park is located in a canyon that is surrounded by huge Live Oak trees and boulders scattered here and there. The ground is very desert-like with not a lot of ground cover, just exposed dirt.

We are still waiting to hear about the job in Moss Landing and a phone call to the manager didn't give us any more information either. So we patiently wait for news (with our fingers crossed).

We had a nice dinner of turkey tenderloin and sweet corn fresh from the farmers market and watched "The Da Vinci Code" (brought back lots of memories of our trip to Paris).

Saturday, October 28. No phone, no aircard, no e-mail, no internet all day. Boy, are we hooked! We walked the park looking for sites where we could get a signal and found a couple but weren't allowed to move there because we are not 50-amp and they are reserved for the big guys. We got permission from a fellow that has wireless, but his service is also pretty weak. So we spent the day, reading and relaxing.

Sunday, October 29. We moved to another site today with hopes of having a little better reception with all of our electronics. It is working right now, but its the 1st I've been on all day, and it is now 5:30 pm. Oh well, I'm over the shakes.

We drove to Ramona to do some grocery shopping today. Its kind of a nice little town - lots of antiques, restaurants, etc., and seems to cater a lot to the 4 wheel drive, ATV's, motorcycles that travel the dirt roads east of here. We will be checking that out some more in the next week or two.

October 30 - 31, Ramona, CA
Monday, October 30. Not much today, hanging around the rv park, catching up on some maintenance and cleaning on the motor home, reading, chatting with folks, walking, and just hanging out.

Tuesday, October 31. Today we took a drive to the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and to Borrego Springs to the park visitor center. It was a nice drive about 50 miles to the west of here. The terrain changed from a mountainous area to desert. As we approached Borrego Springs the whole valley ahead of us became green with palm trees and other trees, an unexpected surprise since the desert was mostly muted colors. It was really pretty. The park is a 600,000 acre desert that has dirt trails for ATVs, 4-wheelers, camping, etc.

On the way back, we stopped at the small town of Julian that is located at the base of Volcan Mountain. We did some window shopping and stopped at the Julian Pie Company for a slice of delicious hot apple pie with cinnamon ice cream. Several people that we have talked with recommended a stop at this place and it was well worth it.

This afternoon, we heard from Moss Landing that we didn't get the job. So its back to Plan A and we will be heading toward Phoenix.

Created on 10/02/2006 08:09 PM by bridge
Updated on 11/05/2006 05:39 PM by bridge