Author: Janet

This is Las Vegas???

This is Las Vegas???
If you have been avoiding Las Vegas because “it’s not your thing”, maybe you should take another look.

If you have been with us on our journey from the beginning, you know our west coast base is in Las Vegas, Nevada.  It is an easy place to get reasonably priced flights any time of the year.  We have been here several times and, like most tourists, get mesmerized by all that is “The Strip.”  Those bright twinkly lights are amazing — but then, I am a sucker for Disney World too.  However, bright lights fade, and this past visit has really given us an insight into a plethora of activities that don’t involve lights and slot machines.

So… think Vegas isn’t your thing?  Read on and I’ll give you some options you might not be aware of.

Death Valley National Park
Sunset view of Dante's Peak at Death Valley National Park
Dante’s Peak

It is close.  Only about a two-hour car ride away, Death Valley makes a full, but fun, day trip.  At two hundred eighty-two feet below sea level, you can’t miss Badwater Basin.   It is the lowest point in North America, confirmed with a sign way up on the mountain wall indicating the point of sea level. 

You can walk on dunes and feel like you are in the Sahara Desert, have lunch in the historic Oasis Inn and view their art collection that includes Remington bronzes, drive through the aptly named Artist’s Drive and take in the beautiful colors displayed on the mountains.  At The Ranch at Death Valley, there is a free, outdoor museum with stage coaches, mule team wagons, and equipment used in borax mining. 

Make sure to stop at the visitor center and take a picture with the iconic temperature sign out front.  Finish your day at the stunning Dante’s Peak for a spectacular sunset.  It will cost twenty-five dollars to enter the National Park but your admission fee is good for seven days.  Bring lots of water along as there are few opportunities to buy it.   If aliens are your thing then make sure to take the highway 95 route to Death Valley and stop in Area 51 for “pictures with the Aliens.”  All manner of alien souvenirs is available here.

Lake Mead National Recreation Area

Lake Mead provides so many outdoor opportunities that you could spend a week here and not do it all.

Hoover Dam
Mike O'Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge view from Hoover Dam

Mike O’Callaghan–Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge
Viewed from Hoover Dam

The most well-known attraction in the area is Hoover Dam and it’s only about thirty minutes away from Las Vegas.  I won’t bore you with facts about the dam as there are countless PBS specials about what it took to build this engineering marvel.  Even if you aren’t impressed by the engineering of Hoover Dam, there are still fabulous views, bronze sculptures, all sorts of Art Deco worthy of a monument to achievement.  It is free to visit Hoover Dam, however, there is a parking fee on the Nevada side, free parking on the Arizona side.  Tours are an additional cost.  You may want to check that wind speeds are not too high on the day you would like to visit as they can knock you around a bit.

The Lake
Paddle Wheel on Lake Mead
Lake Mead paddle wheeler

Lake Mead Cruises offers daytime sightseeing tours, weekend brunch tours, and evening dinner cruises on a paddle wheeler.  We chose to do a daytime cruise.  The cost was thirty dollars per person and there are sandwiches, burgers, snacks and drinks available for purchase onboard.  The cruise is narrated, takes about ninety minutes and they bring you as close to the dam as they can safely manage.  The dam is remarkable from any angle but from the water it is especially nice.  This tour is a great way to slow down and enjoy some relaxing sunshine and water.

Want to captain your own boat for the day and enjoy that beautiful blue lake?  Several businesses on the lake rent anything from personal watercraft to houseboats.  Check out Callville Bay Marina or Temple Bar Marina for more information and rates.

Colorado River

The Colorado River is what feeds the Lake Mead playground and the National Recreation area follows the river down to Laughlin, Nevada.  Below the dam is a popular spot for kayak tours.  No rapids are involved and there are opportunities to see wildlife, explore Emerald Cave and more.  A half day trip will cost about one hundred to one hundred-fifty dollars.  As the tour company will have to apply for a permit for each person booked, it is a good idea to try and arrange this one in advance.  Check here for rates and adventures:  Blazin Paddles; Evolution Expeditions; River Dogz.

If paddling a kayak isn’t your thing then there is still a way for you to get out on the river.  Black Canyon River Adventures will do all the work while they take you down the river on a large comfortable raft.  This trip includes lunch and a bus ride back to the origination point.

4×4 Trails

Do you drag around a Jeep behind your RV, never utilizing your four-wheel drive capabilities?  Want to give it a try?  Lake Mead National Recreation Area is a great place to “get your feet wet”.  There are approved back country roads that will give a four-wheel owner the opportunity to see what most others don’t get to.  Off roading is allowed on trails marked by a yellow arrow sign and black numbers on the arrow indicate the road number.  Detailed maps are available for download at nps.gov.

Hiking Trails
Janet and Joey pose at red rock hiking

Hiking trails abound in the recreation area and if you are a hiking enthusiast then you don’t need me to tell you how to go about it.  But…you don’t have to be an athlete to look around.  It is fascinating.  There is even a trail that follows the old railroad bed and you get to go through the tunnels.  Your puppy can go on these too.   Just remember to wear sturdy walking shoes and bring along plenty of water.  Go to nps.gov for more helpful tips about trails and hiking.

Desert Bighorn Sheep

Shy and camouflaged, desert bighorn sheep are hard critters to spot.  Hemenway Park in Boulder City will give you the best opportunity to spot one or a few.  Hemenway is a city park inside a neighborhood where the sheep roam around unmolested.  The park closes at dusk and is a nice additional stop when going to or from the Hoover Dam.

Old fashioned Car Tour

Hiking, biking, 4×4 and tours sound like to much for you?  Just get in your car and drive.  A beautiful scenic drive awaits you after you enter the Lake Mead National Recreation Area from the Lake Las Vegas entrance or Lake Mead Parkway. 

You will have to pay a twenty-five-dollar entrance fee per vehicle and your fee is good for seven days.  The drive will give you a little sample of three of the four desert ecosystems found in the United States.  This is where the Mojave Desert, the Great Basin Desert and the Sonoran Desert all meet.  It is about a fifty-mile drive from Lake Las Vegas, around the northern side of Lake Mead, opposite the Hoover Dam or southern side and there are ample opportunities to pull over and take a few stunning photos.  This is a great drive to combine with a visit to the Valley of Fire.

Camping
Callville Bay Campground view
Campsite View

Numerous campgrounds are available in the recreation area.  A couple have full-hookups available but most only provide a restroom, dump station, and potable water.  There are plenty of opportunities for remote boondocking if that is your preference.  Visit nps.gov for more camping information.

Valley of Fire State Park

The Valley of Fire is a unique area composed of Navaho Sandstone which gives the rock formations their brilliant red color.  They almost appear to glow or be “on fire” when the sun is high overhead.   Several movies have been filmed here, including Arnold’s Total Recall, due to the bizarre color and formation of the rocks.  Several short hikes to notable rock formations are available along with picnic locations and a small visitor center.  Ten dollars per vehicle is the entrance fee and is good for the entire day.  This is another place that it pays to bring along plenty of water.  We love this park combined with the Lake Mead drive.  It makes a wonderful day trip to explore the Nevada desert.  You can still enjoy this park if you don’t hike; there are plenty of stunning sights from your car window. 

Valley of Fire red rock formations

When you look at the map, there is a circular route from the National Recreation Area to Valley of Fire and out to Interstate 15, then back to downtown Las Vegas.  I wouldn’t recommend this route as your day will be finished with little scenery and interstate traffic.  Our recommendation would be to turn around go back the way you came.  The scenic drive will look different from the opposite direction.

There is a campground available in the Valley of Fire.

Spring Mountains National Recreation Area

The Spring Mountains are one of the most delightful finds we have made and is only about a forty-five-minute drive from downtown Las Vegas.  The Spring Mountains are part of the Sky Island ecosystem found in only a small region of the United States.  There are species and terrain unique to these mountains, rising almost twelve thousand feet from the Mojave Desert.  And there are trees, tons and tons of trees, which you might be desperate to see after a few days in the desert.   Several opportunities to enjoy the recreation area are available.

Lee Canyon
Lee Valley skiers coming down the slope

Lee Canyon is a ski and snowboard resort that is operated in partnership with the United States Forest Service.  During the winter season there is tubing, snowshoeing, snow play areas and ski/snowboard runs.  Lessons and rentals are available and there is a small café in the lodge.  Lift tickets are about seventy dollars and there is a five-dollar parking charge.  There are ample opportunities to play in snow or view the wildlife – such as wild horses — on the way up to the lodge.

Joey the Labrador sits in the snow
Joey

Summer activities include a scenic sky gondola ride and hiking. 

Be aware that, in winter, you may be required to have snow chains.  Also, an important note, you cannot use Uber or Lyft to get to Lee Canyon from Las Vegas.  There is little to no cell phone coverage so no way to call for a return.

Mt. Charleston

Another significant location within the Spring Mountain National Recreation Area is Mt. Charleston. Mt. Charleston houses the park visitor center, campground, a couple of small restaurants and lodging.  We enjoyed a pleasant lunch at the Mt. Charleston Lodge where the restaurant view is of the snow-covered mountains.  Also, they provide cabins that have the same scenic view.

Highway 158 connects Mt. Charleston and Lee Canyon and is a scenic ten-mile drive.  Various hikes and overlooks are available to stop at.  Watch for wild horses throughout the area as they seem to like walking down the middle of the highway.

Janet in snow for selfie at Lee Canyon, Las Vegas.
Janet and Ken in snow at Spring Mountains
Janet and ken in snow at Spring Mountains
So, this is Las Vegas

Grand Canyon by helicopter, balloon tours, horseback riding through Red Rock Canyon, desert ATV rides, ghost towns and abandoned mines.   There are a multitude of options.  Check out Viator.com for tour ideas.

Brilliant pink cactus bloom
Desert Cactus

So, if you have been avoiding Las Vegas because “it’s not your thing”, maybe you should take another look.  The best time of the year, as most places, is spring. The days are balmy and the nights cool, rain has the desert in full bloom, there is still snow in Lee Canyon. Spring just seems a little more pleasant to get outside and make memories. Always grateful.👫

RV Relationship Survival

The most often heard remark when people find out about our RV life is something like – My wife/husband and I would kill each other.

The most often heard remark when people find out about our RV life is something like: My wife/husband and I would kill each other.

Bigfoot 29G
Our Tiny Home

Well, I cannot say the thought has not occasionally crossed my mind, but it crossed my mind long before we moved onto an RV. An RV hasn’t changed that we occasionally get aggravated with each other. We live in about two hundred and forty square feet. With a large dog. And with two cats. There is no way to do that without there sometimes being friction.

It’s been over a year we have been together practically twenty-four seven. So, I thought now would be a good time to share some of what we have learned about getting along in close quarters or our RV relationship Survival methods.

Remember why you picked each other.

When you are crammed together, and your companion starts to get on your nerves, it is time to remember all the wonderful qualities you originally saw in them. Are they kind? Thoughtful? Loyal? Or funny? Now is the time to remember what made you so excited to be with this person. It is also the time to remember, this, most likely is not worth getting angry about. If it truly is a problem for you, wait until later, then kindly explain how their habit or behavior affects you.

Have clear tasks or jobs that you each do.

In other words…stay out of the other person’s lane. If it is their job, then let them do it, however they like — okay, admittedly this one is difficult for me. Clearly you should be cross-trained. Either person should know what to do in an emergency, or if the other person can use a hand (after you ask). But let each person do their tasks their own way.

Make sure that you each get to do something you wanted.

It sounds silly. But sometimes you are so excited about a new location you end up running around, trying to do everything, except what each of you truly wanted to. Take your time. Make sure you get to do the thing or activity that is most important to each of you. There is no guarantee that the opportunity will come around again.

No Screaming.

You just would not believe what we have heard other couples yell at each other. It’s actually a great lesson in what not to do. You will encounter stressful situations at some point in your RV travels. Slow down. Be patient with each other. We find it helps to speak face -to-to face if we are having a problem, say, ummm like…parking the RV. Find out what the stressed person needs to relieve their pressure.

Say “you rock” sometimes

You are the only source of support for each other out there. Make sure to tell the other person when they do something awesome.

Always remember you are doing this to have fun.

Selfie of Janet and Ken at Sea Lion Caves
Elevator selfie
at Sea Lion Caves, Oregon

I suspect this type of togetherness is similar to having children. A bad or weak relationship is made worse but a good relationship grows stronger. Ken and I have survived the children and for us, the RV life is making our relationship stronger than ever.

And….

If all fails, and you need a little alone time, here is my favorite tip. Unhitch the tow and drive alone for a while. Turn up your favorite music. Sing as loud as you want. Dance in the seat. Do it for however many miles it takes but usually about sixty is good for me.

These are some of our coping strategies. Do you have others? Leave a comment and share your RV relationship survival tips.

Always Grateful. 👫

Test of our Boondocking Limits

We were ready. Yes we were. Everything had been done to prepare for the test of our boondocking limits. All the meals were prepped. The last leisurely showers were taken…and I had resigned myself to living without smooth legs for the duration 😬. We were doing okay out there. The test to see how long we could go without being connected to utilities was underway. And then…

The generator died.

Now, in our younger days, Ken and I did our share of primitive camping, but we aren’t really into that level of outdoorsiness these days. And besides, we love our electronics (and the new InstantPot). The only option was to pack it all up, go back to Vegas to the local Cummins dealership, and get the generator repaired. Which we did.

Attempt Number Two

It’s now day six in the captain’s log for attempt number two. Water supplies are holding and we continue to enjoy sunny days, which are keeping our batteries charged. The generator is running smoothly, after it’s little hiccup, and all systems are functional

It’s working

I am kind of amazed we are spending this much time un-tethered, and it’s fairly easy. How much more can we do? We really don’t know. How many sailor showers can we stand? The gauges supposedly tell you how much of this and that we have, like water and propane, but (hearty laugh) we’ve learned not to trust those.

Since this is a test, the location we have chosen does have a dump station and fresh water fill-up nearby. It will only be a matter of putting away the awning, cranking up the RV, and driving a short distance.

We are taking baby steps. We are still finding our way in the RV world, learning still more about ourselves, and what trade-offs we are willing to make. The beauty is that there are options with this lifestyle.

Better camp locations
Janet flying a kite on a breezy day at Lake Mead
A breezy day on Lake Mead

We adore our location on Lake Mead. It’s peaceful, beautiful, and a huge surprise that it is so close to Las Vegas. But if we get a noisy neighbor, we can move, if sailor showers get old, there’s an RV park only thirty miles away.

Saving money
boondocking site at Callville Bay view of Lake Mead
Campsite view

What is important from a financial standpoint is that this form of camping is only costing us ten dollars a night here at Callville Bay. We are in a National Recreation Area and are using a senior pass that cuts our camping charges in half. To be positioned in an RV park with all it’s utilities and amenities would be about thirty to fifty dollars a night – and sometimes even more. You can see that boondocking is a considerable savings. In addition, you have options to be more remote than we are now, which would cost us nothing – but we are not quite ready to go there yet.

Everyone has their ideas about what they will and won’t deal with. This was a test of our boondocking limits but so far, we’re good. That extra twenty dollars a night is staying in our pockets and will allow us more in the dining and entertainment fund. I’ll remind myself of that when I take my next two-gallon shower.

Always grateful. 👫

The RV Laundry Experiment

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money.

Laundry is a difficult task when you live in an RV. Some of the large RVs have a washer and dryer on board, but when you want to stay small and manageable as possible, you don’t get that option. So, laundromats are the de facto option. Sigh… This prompted the RV laundry experiment.

Laundrymats

Always a pet peeve of mine, laundromats are not where you want to spend your time and money. The equipment does a poor job, it’s often dirty, and can cost $20.00 and up just to do a few loads. At hundreds of dollars annually, this is an expense the budget conscious can avoid.

Last year, we were learning the ins and outs of this RV lifestyle. This year, with a little experience under our belt, we are learning how to economize.

Portable washing machines
Washer used in the RV laundry experiment

Ken and I did a little research and for about one hundred twenty dollars, found a small washing machine. Made from plastic and light weight, it agitates in one compartment and then you transfer to a spinner compartment. It’s a lot like doing wash in an old time wringer machine. (Which I have had the great fortune of doing when I was newly liberated from my parents home. Thank you, Grandma.). The process isn’t hard. You fill the tub. Agitate the desired amount. Transfer to the spinner. Then repeat for the rinse.

It Works!

I am overjoyed with the results. The portable washer is able to do about one-third to one-half of a regular size load, and takes about half an hour to complete all the steps. The agitator is strong enough to get my clothes completely clean, and I even have the choice of normal or gentle agitation. Currently using it outdoors, but if necessary, the washer can be placed in the bathtub and used inside.

Clothesline
Portable clothes rack mounted on RV ladder

We added a portable collapsible clothes hanger for about eighty dollars. It will hold two loads of laundry for drying.

So, it looks like the RV laundry experiment is a success. The portable washer has been used for three weeks now. The water and electric are provided by the RV park for the wash, and we use solar power for the dry. After about a ten week payoff for our initial investment, our laundry will be free.

What a sweet word that is.

Always grateful. 👫

Laissez les bons temps rouler!….Let the good times roll!

Does New Orleans live up to all the hoopla?

Ken and I have started out the new year on the road with our first stop in 👑New Orleans. Probably not the best choice when you have vowed to do better on your budget and your diet🎺🎶🍽 but it was in our path, so who could resist?

Does New Orleans live up to all the hoopla? We only stayed for three days but I’m all in. New Orleans is older than our country, filled with restaurants that have created (and continue to create) iconic foods such as Oysters Rockefeller, Bananas Foster, Po’Boys and Gumbo and overflowing with fantastic old buildings. If you are a foodie or history buff then NOLA is a must.

From NOLA, we continued west. There was a frightening experience in Vidor, Texas where we tried to overnight at a Walmart. We still aren’t sure what the motive was but we were harassed and followed out of town at 1:00 am. FYI: The police are little help until an actual crime has been committed. We didn’t feel like waiting around for that to happen. So, we followed our instincts and left. Thank goodness The Burrow was refueled before our stop and we were able to get far, far away from Vidor, Texas.

Our next stop was with long time friends and family in Austin. We love Austin and even though it was a quick visit, it was like old times with friends Tim & Kaye who were generous enough to let us driveway surf.

Other than a cold front that forced us to spend a couple of days in Van Horn, Texas and another stop to visit family in Scottsdale, we made an uneventful trip back in to Las Vegas (our West coast base).

So, here we go again. New adventures are calling. A little more RV savvy, a little less stressed and a lot more certain that this is where we want to be.

This year we intend to focus on economizing our travels. So stay tuned. We’ll be writing about some of the measures we are taking (including more boondocking 😬) and how effective they are. And, of course, we will be sharing photos of our stops and flops.

Always grateful. 👫

Are we done with RV Life?

Arrrrrgh! I have a first grandbaby to get to.

Is the traveling over for us?

Many emotions ran through our minds as we headed east and south to an annual family get together in Cedar Key, Florida. It’s the same feeling you get when your vacation has come to an end and it’s time to pack your gear and go. It’s sad. You want to stay and play but at the same time you miss the familiar and are excited to be back home.

It’s those familiar surroundings that are so enticing. Roads that you know every curve, every dip, and every stopping place. Restaurants where the food is always good. The ease of grocery shopping. And, getting all your favorite old products. Just knowing. The knowing, the familiar, wraps you like a warm blanket and a comfortable pair of old slippers. Home.

Ken and Janet at a tiki bar in Cedar Key, Florida.
Low Key Hideaway, Cedar Key, FL

We spent two weeks visiting with family in Cedar Key, a tiny little island on the Florida Gulf Coast. The chance to do a little fishing, enjoy some food favorites, like stone crab and smoked mullet, were welcome entertainment. It was a great visit but was soon time to move further south to Ft. Lauderdale, where our first grandbaby was expected to arrive within the next couple of weeks.

The Burrow rolled down the Florida Turnpike and other feelings and remembrances started crowding our minds as the pace got more frenetic and shoved out the pleasant warm fuzzy emotions that we had harbored since the Florida/Alabama line. The traffic, the rudeness, the heat, the population, the acres of concrete. These are but a few of the reasons we wanted to leave in the first place.

Arrrrrgh! I have a first grandbaby to get to.

We are currently parked in South Florida. The weather is perfect. My new granddaughter is perfect. Visiting with my children, family and friends is perfect. It will be hard to go. But we will. We have been bitten by the travel bug.

Ken and I make plans for the kids to bring the new baby to us, maybe Oregon or Yosemite, someplace grand and inspiring that we would love for them to experience while sharing in our granddaughter’s growth. We make adjustments and changes. We figure it out.

Our time in South Florida is packed with RV modifications and upgrades, doctor appointments, figuring out our travel plans for 2019. And baby time. Lots of baby time because it will have to last for a while.

It’s time. It’s time for our kids to adjust to their new family life and time for Grandmama and Grandpa to go and dance under the harvest moon. Even though change is inevitable it doesn’t mean it’s easy but we will try to meet the changes with anticipation.

Cedar Key, Florida

Thank you everyone who has made our last year such a memorable one. We sincerely hope 2019 will be as much fun. Looking forward to show you where we are headed.

Always grateful.👫

We Have Squirrels!

I know that your first thought is literally we have squirrels in The Burrow but that is not the problem. I mean squirrels, as in, distractions.

We need to do laundry (because we are COMPLETELY out of clothes). But we will just wear dirty ones. We can’t miss those Roosevelt Elk.

Sea Lion Caves, Oregon

Need to go pick up groceries? – Dinner is now boiled carrots, a can of tuna and ice cream. The sea otters, or sea lions (we aren’t sure which), will be playing in the lagoon at 7:00 PM. And we certainly cannot miss that.

Organize our departure route through possibly treacherous mountain passes? Are you kidding? We might miss the Sea Lion Caves.

And to top it all off – it does not get dark here until near nine o’clock at night. Arrrghhh!

This has become a particular problem in Oregon because, as we are finding out, they have been hiding their glorious state. There are countless outdoor adventures, huge variety in delicious foods, and stunning scenery — but unlike our beautiful Florida and recently visited California — it is not overrun with tourists. Plus, you are not even allowed to pump your own gas here; that is the gas attendant’s job. Who cannot get on board with that?

Scenic highway 101, Oregon

Squirrels are rampant here in Oregon. We both agree it is one of our favorite states to date and can’t wait to show you as we explore more of this delightful surprise.

Private beach picnic

For now though, it’s off to have a private picnic on a secluded beach. We have squirrels. And it’s a blast.

Always grateful. 👫

RV travel with your pet

It’s the dog!!!
Joey the Labrador poses in back of buckboard wagon
Joey poses at fairgrounds

Yes. The RV emergency is the dog. But today, the phrase “it’s the dog” is a good thing.

We returned from an early mountaintop visit, where we must go for all things electronic to function, and Ken and I proceeded to load the RV for heading out. Now, our usual routine is for me to secure the inside while Ken secures the outside. This morning was no different but what was different was the smell in the bedroom.

It was faint but I thought, distinct. That electronic burning smell. It seemed to be getting stronger near the floor.

No alarm was sounding but knowing I had three fur babies to get to safety if there was a problem prompted me to insist on some action before there was a fire and we all burned to a crisp.

I made Ken aware of our impending death in my usual fashion. That is, to pound on the window nearest his head and scream there is a problem. Ken immediately came in and started trying to puzzle it out while I unloaded cat carriers and prepared to abandon ship. Thinking we could all die in a blaze at any moment, I made Ken shut down our electric.

With all in readiness to leave The Burrow behind, we tried, by process of elimination, to figure out what could be happening. We agreed there was an odd burning smell. And it was centrally located on the back floor. But what? We checked everything we could think of. The smell didn’t seem to be getting worse, but neither was it better.

We hunted. We looked. Ken checked things. We sniffed. And we couldn’t pin down a thing.

Should we stay or should we go now?

Ken convinced me, reluctantly, we should proceed with our preparation to roll out so I shooed the animals from the bedroom to finish locking it down in there. The smell seemed better. The electric was off which only confirmed my worst fear.

Imagine my surprise when, as I got to the front of the RV, the smell came back. Sniff, sniff. Sniff. I think it’s coming from the couch. Is it? Could it be? Huh?

Ken was consulted. Sniff, sniff. Yes I believe it is. It’s the freaking DOG.

Relief
Joey the yellow Labrador plays on CA beach
Joey on CA beach

After some discussion, we realized Joey had been running and playing for over an hour in a forest that had burned sometime in the past. His paws were where the burning smell came from. We confirmed that the inside of Armadillo (the Jeep) smelled the same, I was so relieved. The RV emergency was over.

So, happy, happy, we don’t lose our home in an electrical fire today. I’m thrilled to say, while patting the big, goofy lug,…….It’s the dog.

Joey the yellow Labrador at Fort Morgan, Alabama
Our boy Joey at Fort Morgan, Alabama

Always grateful. 👫

Visit Yosemite National Park from Fresno to Sonora, CA

“Where am I goin’? 
I dont know
Where am I headin’?
I ain’t certain
All I know
Is I am on my way”

Paint Your Wagon
Our Visit to Yosemite National Park

Gold rush towns, waterfalls, lazy rivers underground gardens and apple cider. It was all included in our visit to Yosemite National Park.

Ken and I discovered that we like moving slowly. That is, moving The Burrow only a couple hours drive at a time. It’s calming and less stressful to everyone onboard our rolling home.

So, we haven’t moved more than a couple hundred miles from the Southern Sierra (our last post). But the natural wonders, history-rich gold towns, outdoor adventures and jaw dropping beauty just keep multiplying. At Forestiere Underground Gardens, an orangery (yes, it really is underground) in Fresno, we saw what one man’s intelligence, tenacity and will-power can accomplish. By carving out tunnels, with only hand tools, he managed to create a cool pre-air conditioned home and was on his way to creating an underground inn. We took a ride on Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad, an authentic mountain steam train that at one time hauled logs from the forest.

Being There

Now we are positioned a mere 6 miles from the entrance to Yosemite National Park. Though it requires a 5 mile trip up a mountain to get cellphone service, we couldn’t have enjoyed ourselves more.

The magnificence of Yosemite is apparent within a few miles of your entrance. Grandeur is the one word that comes to mind. Half Dome; The Ahwahnee Lodge; Bridal Veil Falls are all so photographed and seem so well known until you are standing there. Then it occurs to you. No picture painted with watercolors or words, oils or chemical solutions can ever capture what you are seeing.

Armadillo has had a chance to stretch here as we did a little mountain crawling out in the woods. It’s kind of like going on an unfamiliar fair ride for the first time. Stomach clenching but fun. And grabbing a few of the sweet blackberries blanketing the woods, hoping a bear is not nearby to mind. That’s up there on my list of heaven.

Time to Relax

This is a second visit to Yosemite for us. But 30 years ago we only had time to rush through the park like tourists at Disney World. Today our campsite is on a crystal clear, lazy stretch of river. We may float down it a few times or sleep in the cool shade on the bank. Maybe we’ll get energetic and go slide down the falls into the rainbow pools. Maybe take a hike or open the bottle of organic apple cider that we picked up at a local orchard, Indigeny Reserve, and drink the whole thing (it does go bad very quickly-really it does-or so we have been told). Whatever we choose for today, I know it will be just right because it’s really, really hard to go wrong here at Yosemite. Always grateful.👫

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A quick note
Just a few days after we left, the Ferguson Fire closed down Yosemite National Park. Please keep all those who are fighting to save our national treasure in your thoughts.

Say “Thanks” to a Farmer.

The Pacific Northwest has been all we expected and more. Forty miles of towering redwoods give way to massive four-story high dunes in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area

A little glimpse and I almost forget that we aren’t home.

The Pacific Northwest has been all we expected and more. Forty miles of towering redwoods give way to massive four-story high dunes in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area. A stroll along the docks in coastal towns like Florence, Oregon, where you can snag fresh tuna, salmon and Dungeness crab from the fishing boats. Meadows abound with majestic Roosevelt Elk. A giant cave filled with sea lions and pristine, secluded beaches, all made it hard to leave for new play places.

Oregon Coastal Sunset
Scenic Columbia River Gorge, Oregon

Through the magnificent Columbia River Gorge we traveled to eastern Washington/Idaho where the views were vast rolling hills of wheat as far as you can see. It was harvest time, the end of summer and we watched as the farmers worked until evening’s last light to get the wheat harvested. The setting was so peaceful, we kept saying “let’s stay just one more day”.

Wheat Fields, Colfax, Washington

We did finally move on to experience the “weirdness” of Portland. Downtown is overflowing with historic buildings, restaurants and breweries all waiting to be tasted or explored. From the largest bookstore in the country to those Voodoo doughnuts, Portland did not disappoint.

Long Beach, Washington

Ken and I are having the time of our lives out here traveling. It is exciting to see new things and to explore areas of the country that are so different from Florida. But while exploring the differences, there are moments; a shaded trail; a glimpse of a palm tree out a restaurant window; a farmhouse, when I forget that we are thousands of miles from our home state. There is a little “oh!” moment, a jolt of homesickness when the realization hits that it’s not home we are seeing.

These are small moments of sadness scattered throughout the joys we experience daily. But the small moments are overshadowed too by our commonalities. We travel the backroads and see differences but many more likenesses. From the fishermen and farmers, the RVers and campers, and the moms and dads, whom we all share the goals of love and happiness, health and safety, and it is a comforting realization.

Say “thanks” to a farmer today.

Click here for our latest video of Oregon:
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Always grateful. 👫
h