Redwood Highway

Left the lovely Bodega Bay on Thursday, continued north on Highway 101.
I've ordered Pedroncelli wine each time it is on my wine site, wine.woot.com. I love the fruit forward style. A stop there was a must for me. When I told the hostess I was a wooter, she offered me a 25% discount. Such a deal! We left with two cases of wine which made it a challenge for Jack to store it somewhere inside the coach.....no room in the bays. Never fear, he did it!

We found a campground at the southern edge of the Redwood Highway, we planned to drive Smartie through the Avenue of the Giants redwood grove.  Wait a minute! We couldn't stay there another night because the cell phone and the aircard were very, very weak.  Therefore, Jack drove the coach through the Avenue of the Giants, a feat because of the narrow road with huge redwood trees on each side.  It was worth it to me because of the magnificent trees; can't speak for Jack.

The Redwood Highway between Eureka and Crescent City is 80 miles of stunning, breath-taking scenic vistas, Pacific Ocean on one side, redwood forests on the other. Up and down from sea level to several thousand feet high, each turn in the road a new view. Just when we thought we'd seen the best views in California, another vista appeared to awe us.

Now parked in Crescent City for several days, then north to the Oregon Coast.

Bodega Bay



Jack, Marilyn, Del

 We hit it lucky here in Bodega Bay, just north of San Francisco. Our campsite is right on the bay, 180 degree water view. Everywhere we travel in California it just keeps getting more magnificent, such natural beauty! We were joined by my sister Marilyn and her husband, Del.
They will celebrate their one year anniversary on May 7th.With two kite shops in town we had a clue that it would be windy....yep. We drove to the top of the ridge to Bodega Head to view the sunset. Winds of 40 mph nearly blew us off the path, however, the coastal view was stunning and mind-blowing. We all sat in the car for sunset. Wimps!
      

Marilyn brought dinner for us from home, special receipe chicken and rice, and fresh peach pie. So good! As a wonderful treat she brought gorgeous roses from their garden. They smell so good. We had lots of laughs and played cards. I relieved them of $3 playing Rap (now we can buy some diesel for the coach). Before heading home Marilyn and Del treated us to a late lunch....wonderful fresh crab louies!
Today we head north to my favorite winery Pedroncelli and the Redwoods Highway.

Seacliff State Beach

 Easter Sunday (note the bunny ears)  we traveled six miles to Seacliff State Beach, smack dab on the sand. So popular I could get a campsite for only one day..but it was worth it. The waves were beautiful and the winds were down so we actually sat outside the whole day. Sister Cindy and her husband John joined us for the afternoon...just sitting and chatting. Our dear friend Ardith arrived with dinner.... gourmet pizza, salad and brownie bites for dessert. Such a deal!

This morning we drove to San Jose to meet with Remington Stone, Jack's Marine Corps Squadron mate. He is part of the reunion group that meets every two years. For the past forty years he has been an astronomer with the University of California at Mt. Hamilton Observatory. Quite impressive!

We traveled north and now are parked waterfront on Bogeda Bay 
on the coast. Sister Marilyn and husband Del join us tomorrow.

Santa Cruz 2

Friday, April 26th
We started the day with a wonderful walk on West Cliff Drive, a bike/walk trail overlooking the ocean. Lots of joggers, bikers....we could watch the hundreds of surfers in the waves and view the historic Boardwalk and Wharf. Jack and I both went there as little kids to ride the rollercoaster and merry-go-round, play in the sand.    beachboardwalk.com

Our long time dear friend Ardith took us to Capitola, a unique beach town for lunch and a stroll. The restaurant, Stockton Bridge, overlooked the beach and waves.......she always knows the best places to go. I found a lovely glass tile with an ocean wave on it made by a local artist for a special momento of our California visit.


The Cassingham Men


Friday evening we were at Jack's brother's home for dinner. Joining us was nephew Wayne and his wife, Dori. Conversation with the Cassingham men was lively! As usual sister-in-law Peggy cooked a wonderful meal.

Saturday morning we had a very special treat....on the beach was the Santa Cruz Ukelele band, aka Sons of the Beach.  Close to 100 ukelele players of all ages, with Hawaiian shirts,  leis and of course, bunny ears for Easter, played and sang their hearts out. I loved it! I had to restrain myself from joining in and dancing. Please check out their website.
sonsofthebeach-santacruz.com

Santa Cruz

On Wednesday we traveled 180 miles north on Highway 101 through gorgeous California terrain, green rolling hills, ranging vistas. We traveled though the Imperial Valley which has to be the lettuce capitol of the world. Huge fields with hundreds of pickers.... looked like a hard way to earn a living. We ran into the first rain of our five week trek, kept raining all day.

Jack's brother Archie led us to the Santa Cruz Harbor which has 12 parking spaces for RVs with full hookups. We'll be here until Sunday where I was able to get one night at Sea Cliff State Park right on the ocean.
The harbor has slips for over 800 boats and we are parked with a water view, in walking distance to the ocean. It was rainy and dreary all day. We are spoiled and look for sun and blue sky. The coach and Smartie got so dirty and wet, but neverfear, Jack didn't rest until all was clean.


Today is much better, sunny and pleasant. We met Archie, his wife Peggy and cousin Maggie for breakfast and good conversation.

Jack & I went  to one of my all time favorite wineries, Storrs, grapes grown in the Santa Cruz mountains. Very yummy and fruit forward. storrswine.com

Now it's time for a walk on the beach!

Pismo Beach

 We arrived here on Sunday. Once again the word for our trip is WINDY! We are parked one block from the beach near Oceano Dunes State Vehicle Rec Area.......which means people can drive their vehicles on the sand. Campers, cars, trucks can spend the night on the beach, dry camping or in tents. They trailer their ATV's and dunebuggies. Of course the wind brought out many kite surfers zooming over the waves.

Each day has brought less wind....we've walked on the beach, strolled the beach town, enjoyed the sunsets. Pismo Beach is noted for it's clams. One giant clamshell is made to look like a bunny!
We are stunned by the beauty of California scenery, everything is so green due to the heavy rain they've had here.

 Today we drove to Paso Robles  for wine tasting. I was looking for the winery of one of my past favorites....JanKriss Crossfire. Boo Hoo, it didn't taste as good as I remember. However, Jack picked two whites that he liked. We strolled the town and sampled goodies from a bakery.

We visited Emily, sister Cindy's mother in law, who lives in Morro Bay. She shared her memories of growing up in this beautiful area.  Emily is a good old broad, fun to be around. Please note that Jack is in the picture too.

Santa Ynez Valley

Arrived in this gorgeous valley on Wednesday, only one campground in the area but it is a goodie. The landscaping, trees, lush green grass, mountain views make it a 10. We had dinner at the Pea Soup restaurant. I had been there 45 years ago with Jill, Robin and Flora (Jack's Mom)....it is still the same tourist stop and the soup in a bread bowl is tasty.

Thursday we caught the Santa Ynez Valley Transit, a 20 passenger bus that circles the valley, stopping at Buellton, Solvang, Los Olivos and Santa Ynez. Great way to sightsee, we got off at each town, stayed an hour or so, then back on the bus

 We found Solvang, the Danish capital of the U.S.A, to be delightful. Really quaint, clean tourist town with many bakeries, for sure we sampled the goodies. With authentic architecture we felt like we were in Europe. The Danish heritage is preserved here for the tourist to enjoy.

Of course this area is know for it's many wineries so we picked a lovely one to visit and sample the vino.  Rusackvinyards.com It is located in the Ballard Canyon and on their oak tree shaded deck we enjoyed the mountain views while sipping yummy syrah. I wore my wine tasting t-shirt, which made the wine taste even better!

The Santa Ynez Valley was the location for the movie, "Sideways",  fun to see many of the movie sites.
This afternoon we'll visit Foley Vineyard for their wine & cheese pairing. Think I might like it???

Huntington Beach

We traveled 12 miles north to Huntington Beach, parked at Bolsa Chica State Beach. It is an asphalt parking lot wide enough for two rows of campers, Pacific Coast Highway on one side, the sand and surf on the other side. Not fancy but the ocean is wonderful. Yesterday was so windy it whipped my hair into a froth, much less wind today. Along the sand is a bike/walk trail that goes for miles. Today we biked into the town of Huntington Beach to look around, buy a newpaper, mail our taxes. We biked back and spent the afternoon sitting on the beach watching the waves.

 Yesterday Robin and Group joined us for dinner at Ruby's, a 50's style dinner located at the end of the Huntington Beach pier. Fun Food and spectacular ocean view.



Sunday

Sunday, April 10th....

We all went to Robin's church. A mega church, the campus is amazing, large buildings, huge sanctuary. Very enjoyable, modern service.  Marinerschurch.org 

We had a lovely lunch at an Irish Pub, then spent the afternoon relaxing at the campground and chatting. We are parked waterfront on the Newport Back Bay lagoon, very nice. Kids fed the ducks and climbed the trees. The weather is gorgeous, not too hot, not too cold.


This morning we'll hit Trader Joe's to replenish the wine and snack supply, then we move north a short way to camp at Huntington Beach on the ocean.

CALIFORNIA!



 

Now in sunny California at Newport Beach. Wow, lots of traffic and people, soon as we crossed the border into CA we noticed a difference. So great to be with Robin and grandkids. 









Robin, Olivia, John

 Saturday night Robin's boyfriend John took us to the Angel's baseball game in Anaheim. We rode the train to the stadium. The event was so entertaining and fun! The giveaway was ski beanies, kept us warm on a chilly night! John brought bags of food, we feasted and drank beer.

Robin, Nick & Olivia spent the night in the coach, a slumber party!






On the train

 



Lake Havasu

We left the Grand Canyon....7000' elevation, 40 degrees, and  230 miles later arrived at Lake Havasu, 575' elevation and 85 degrees. What a change! Shorts! No blanket on the bed!



London Bridge



Lake Havasu City is here because an enterprising man, Robert McCulloch, bought the land and needed a tourist attraction. Voila! The London Bridge, brought brick by brick from England.  It worked! Lovely area, thriving city, lots of boats. golakehavasu.com

Very windy here. We rode the ferry across the lake to a casino...only wanted the water view. Delightful ride on the lake. Tomorrow starts Pacific Offshore power boat racing on the lake...Jack loves the engine sounds and  beauty of the boats.

Next stop...Newport Beach to be with daughter, Robin, and grandkids, Nick & Olivia.

More Grand Canyon

Yesterday was cold here at the Grand Canyon...when we were viewing the sights it was in the 40's. No problem, it was bright sun and we had jackets and gloves. Impossible to get good pics with my cell phone that show the awesome beauty of the Canyon.
 We are impressed with the National Park system here at the Grand Canyon....very clean, user friendly, good signage, well maintained. Jack has a Golden Age Card so we get in free! Last night we went to a view point to watch the sunset with 200 of our new friends, way more people here than I would expect for early April.


Hermit's Rest, last stop on Rim Trail



Today we continued our tour of every Vista Point along the shuttle bus route, every view different and astounding. We walked between several view points on a paved trail along the rim. Big change in the weather, now in the 60's and we carried our jackets. Jack got "viewed out" and he's ready to move on down the road.

Grand Canyon

Entered AZ, it was windy, windy, windy. Our fuel mileage went from 9.7 to 6.5 mpg. We spent the night near Winslow, a lovely desert themed park on a site with a panoramic view of the desert, mountains and sunset....it was like a postcard. The coach was rocking from the wind, easily 40 mph.

Heading north on Hwy 64 to the Grand Canyon, Jack visited the Planes of Fame museum.There were about 30 restored aircraft; U.S., German and Russian.  Most of them still airworthy.  planesoffame.org

We started our GC Adventure with an IMAX film. Lucky for me it was a flat screen, not the dome that gives me motion sickness. It was gorgeous and entertaining. Then we went to the Vistors Center to gather info. We went to Angel Camp Village to catch a ranger talk on Condors. Very well done.
Finally a pic of the two of us taken by a kind tourist. I was surprised to see so many tourist being it is only April, can't imagine height of summer. The shuttle busses do a good job of people moving. Two more days to explore other GC areas.

Albuquerque

We arrived here around noon on March 30.  Very windy here. Beautiful area, a valley bordered by the Sandia Mountains. Clear blue skies and brilliant sunshine.

First item of sightseeing was the Concrete Cowboy which I found on a nifty website,  RoadsideAmerica.com Full of oddities along the road. I had to get a pic! It is only the top half of the cowboys body, don't know where the rest of him is.


Next was a visit to J&R Vintage Auto Museum, of course..... located in Rio Rancho about 10 miles north of town. More that 60 restored vintage cars and trucks, really well done. We learned about the Great American Race  from a 17 time participant. Living history. Even I enjoyed it! jrvintageautos.com





March 31, Thursday

Today we visited the outstanding Albuquerque Museum of Art and History.  My favorite part was a  Conquistador & horse in full armor with a description of each part. In front is a wonderful sculpture garden...that is me being part of the sculpture.
The museum offers a docent-led walking tour of Old Town, a highlight for us.... very well done. We asked a local for the best Mexican food in Old Town. We ate so much homemade tamale and guacamole we couldn't
 eat dinner that night. Yummy!



The day's sightseeing ended with a visit to the Hot Air Balloon Museum. Albuquerque is the hot air balloon capital of the world with a world famous Balloon Fiesta every October. We learned everything you'd ever want to know about ballooning!




April 1st, Friday

Today was Jack's day....he visited the Unser Racing Museum while I sat outside and read the newspaper. The Unser Family's racing started with racing up Pike's Peak in home built race cars, all different. Then on to bigger and better things such as Sprint cars and Indy cars where they won many championships. Many of these championship cars are on display. Beautiful! All the Unser racers were crazy gear-heads and would race anything that came along.  unserracingmuseum.com 

We ended our Albuquerque visit with the Best of ABQ Trolley tour. I know, we should take the tour on the first day, but April 1st was the first day of their tour season. Lots of fun and laughs, guides were great!


In the morning on to the Grand Canyon.....