On the Road Again.....

It has been a while since I have written on the blog.  We had a very nice visit with family in Las Vegas.  Went to several Circque du Soleil show's, thanks to our local connections.  Saw Willie Nelson in concert at the Belagio.  Visited Red Rocks and spent lots of family time.

Cousins playing, no fighting, no playing....can't keep it straight :)

Joshua Tree

Leaving the California coast we headed inland toward Palm Springs to a city called Indio.  This town was picked based on campground and it's proximity to Joshua Tree National Park.

Reflections After One Year on the Road

I just caught up with a few weeks worth of blogs and was looking back on some of this past years entries and it's just so cool to see how much we have done and how many places that we have visited.

We had very little idea of what to expect when we set off last year.  We left on a cold December afternoon in New Jersey and literally had no idea where we were headed.  Spent our first night in a Walmart parking lot and then made a B-line for warmer weather.

We had so many "learning" experiences those first weeks, including almost pulling the front legs off of the fifth wheel.

We have made so many great memories, seen so many amazing places, and, I think I speak for all of us.........are so grateful to have had this opportunity.

I asked Diego and the girls to make a list of their favorite and least favorite things about traveling the country in a fifth wheel.  Some were more prompt with their responses than others.

The first to reply was Sofia.  She likes not being in one place all the time, getting to make so many new friends, and getting to see her family along the way.  She doesn't like that she doesn't see her other friends very often, that she has to share a small space with her sister, and that she can't run or jump in her "delicate" house :)

Luna says her favorite has been making new friends and seeing so many new places, but she doesn't like the days that we relocate because they can be long and she doesn't like that sometimes it's cold inside the camper.

For me, I love travel days.  I love the feeling of all of my "stuff" with me and I'm moving.  I remember that feeling in college driving down Interstate I10.  Everything I own in my trunk and I'm on the move. Freedom is my favorite and that moving down the road gives me such a sense of it.  I love passing through towns, seeing beautiful landscapes and getting to know new places.  I have loved meeting so many great people along the way too.

My least favorite things have been making reservations, making reservations, making reservations. Looking ahead, checking reviews, distances, Verizon coverage, etc. can be very time consuming and tiring.  My next least favorite has been when after doing all of that research, pulling into the place and it's not that great.  And lastly not having a mechanic, hair-cutter, or doctor at my fingertips that I know and trust.

As we get closer to Las Vegas we are all feeling excited to have some down time with family and rest up.  We're not sure what our next plans are, but we know that there are still a few places left that we want to see and are hoping to travel lighter this next leg of the trip.

A Place Where Everyone Can Spell Diego

We left Long Beach and drove south.  Diego has family in this area too, so we were planning a little reunion.
We camped at Guajome Regional Park in Oceanside, CA.  The campground was just okay.

We spent a couple of days in San Diego.  We drove by Balboa Park to see things.  Then to Seaport Village to get some work done.  The weather was just beautiful and there was a Starbucks right next to the village.  We all got a little work done and then the girls all headed down to the park by the water.

All I Want To Do Is Have Some Fun.........

We left Santa Maria and took Hwy 101 down towards the coast through Santa Barbara and Ventura.  At Ventura we headed down towards hwy 1 on the coast.  Once the ocean came back into view we were near Point Mugu and had a hungry group.  Took the first ocean side spot that we would fit into and made some lunch.


We took our time relaxing with the beautiful view and somewhere in those relaxing moments we locked ourselves out of the truck :)

Butterfly Trees

This next stop was picked because it was literally the only place we could find for Thanksgiving weekend.  Making reservations has proved to be our least favorite activity this past year and in our denial we waited until the last minute to reserve something.  As we started calling around we realized, wow, a lot of people go camping on Thanksgiving.  Finally one lady called us back and had a spot.  At this point I was wondering, why does she have a spot?  How bad is it? :)

It turned out to be fine and the girls loved it because there was a Boomers next door.  It's a race car, putt putt, batting cage place.  The weather was very nice and even warmer than our previous stop.

Visited the little Danish town of Solvang that was nearby.  Cute little place with a neat history.

Bubble Gum, Anyone?

A little southeast of our previous stop, we headed to Paso Robles.  We were trying to make our way down the coast and based on campground preferences and a recommendation to check out San Luis Obispo, we ended up in this area.

The campground was a nice little place.  Nothing fancy, but had lots of sun since we had been covered by redwoods at the previous spot we were happy to have it.

The car and camper had a professional bath this week.  They are white again.

Not a Derelict to be Found

We cut back across the state and headed back out to the coast.  We were aimed for Watsonville, because I had found a campground that seemed nice.  We arrived in the dark and it was raining. When we arrived I looked at Diego and said, "I'm not gonna stay here."  We have driven into several campgrounds this past year that have not been the best, but this particular evening I either wasn't in the mood or it was that bad, I'm not sure which.  We found another place and headed that way.

 We ended up staying at Santa Cruz Redwoods RV Resort.  It was fine and definitely better than our first option.  Paid the most for a week at a campsite that we have the whole trip.  We were just outside of a town called Felton and it was a quaint place.

This week we visited San Francisco and spent some time on both sides of the Golden Gate Bridge that we learned is called that because it is built over the Golden Strait.

Golden Gate from the north end.

Lake "Taco" and the Captain

Our next destination was found in an effort to get as close as we could to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite NP, but not be freezing cold.  The campgrounds were slim pickins, but we found one called Commanche Lake Recreation Area and even though it didn't have many ratings, the other options had terrible ratings, so we took a gamble.  It felt like we left civilization to get to the site, which if you're on vacation is good, but if you living everyday life it is not always the best.

The campground itself was nice and our site was on the lake.  Apparently it can be a pretty rowdy campground in the summer, but for us in early November, it was quiet and peaceful.

That's our camper out there in the distance.  Commanche Lake Rec Area.

Hallow Redding

Made the pass from California's coast inland toward Redding.  The drive was very scenic with a hint of fall colors.

The pass from Arcata to Redding.  Beautiful drive.

NPS Recreation area on our way into Redding.

Redding was a nice change of scenery.  Much drier conditions and lots of sunshine!  The laundry has become my humidity test.  There are so many things that we don't put in the dryer and when I hang them out to dry, depending on our where we are, it can take anywhere from 30 minutes up to 3 days to dry.  In the Coos Bay area I thought they would never dry.  This was a "30 minutes to dry" stop.

Tree Giants

We left the Coos Bay/Charleston area a day earlier than we had planned and followed Hwy101 south. Had a travel day with on and off rain and sunshine.  The air at some times seemed so thick with moisture it was like driving through the clouds.  We were headed for the town of Arcata, CA and excited to see some redwoods.  We took lots of pictures because the views of the ocean and cliffs from Hwy 101 were so beautiful and there were lots of pull off areas.

Coos Bay and an Eleven Year Old

We drove south and west back to the Oregon coast to Coos Bay/Charleston area.  We had a long drive, but once off the interstate it was very pretty.  Stopped for dinner at a side of the road food truck and had some yummy Mexican.

Yummy food to break up a long drive.

We made it to our campground pretty late, 9:30pm, to find out that Diego didn't have a signal at all! After all that research, the Verizon Coverage map failed us :(

When we arrived we were exhausted and it was a bad combo of being late at night, everyone tired, and Sofia's birthday the next day.  We stayed hitched and climbed into bed for a good nights rest.  

Columbia River Gorge

We had thought we would stay on the coast heading south through Oregon, but it turned out we needed an airport for Diego, so we decided to head a little inland and check out Portland.  We stayed at a state park about 40 minutes southeast of the city called Milo McIver.

There was an episode of Grimm being filmed just on the other side of our campground.  I don't know that show and wouldn't have even known it was being filmed except that we went on a hike and saw a couple of security guys and asked them what was going on.  The were hanging out near the dam located on the river there.

Hydrothermal Dam near Milo McIver state park.

The Trail Ends with the Goonies

Beautiful drive from Port Ludlow to Astoria.

Bridge from Washington to Oregon

Our campsite was at Fort Stevens State Park, just over the bridge from Astoria, in Warrenton, OR.

The park was very nice.  Well maintained and the biggest state park I have ever seen.  It has over 400 sites and a very nice biking/hiking system that goes for miles.

Lush Coast

Headed back down through Seattle and looped around to the Olympic Peninsula to stay in Port Ludlow.

Port Ludlow

We stayed at a park run by the city and it was very nice.

Port Ludlow campground

Tons of trees and felt very much like a small state park, but was right near the middle of town.  "Middle of town" meaning the one gas station, post office, Italian restaurant, and hair cutter in town.
It was a short drive to several things we wanted to see and the spot was perfect for our purposes.

Got Boat?

We left the Leavenworth/Wenatchee area and had a beautiful drive on Hwy 2 through the Wenatchee National Forest.

Beautiful drive

Great scenery.

We were headed west and north towards the coast, to Anacortes.

Holy Toot!

The wildfires of Washington meant we had to make a last minute change in our route and skip the Winthrop stop.  It was a bummer, but with only one road open in that direction we were nervous that we might get stuck up there, not to mention the air quality was not good.

We rerouted to the Leavenworth area and stayed at Wenatchee County Park.  The air was okay the first day, but then, depending on which way the wind was blowing, was not great.  The campground was okay.  Next to a busy highway, but quite a few trees and was well maintained.

We started our week out with our first day back to a little book work for the school year.  We were testing our some of our new material and seeing how we liked it.  The afternoon of our first day we went to Cashmere, WA.  The town is very small and has a candy factory that has been around for generations, called Aplets and Cotlets.  We took a tour and picked out a couple of boxes to take home.

Heading behind the scene for our tour.

The Finger

Yup, we are in the finger... of Idaho.  From Flathead Lake we headed south and then west towards the "finger" of Idaho to Coeur d'Alene. We stayed at Coeur D'Alene RV Resort and it was okay.  Nothing special, but was fine for visiting the area.

Between preparing for a new school year, "can I have" requests, sisters arguing, and lots of other every day activities, here are some of the thing we did in Couer D'Alene, ID:

Downtown and Lake Coeur D'Alene:

Lake Coeur d'Alene

Lake Coeur d'Alene

The first full day in the area was Diego's birthday.  He got to choose the activities and they included: sleeping in, football, and sushi.  After the football game we went down to the lake and downtown area.  We walked and the weather was beautiful.  Warm with a great breeze.  Awesome playground with water splash pad.

Do You Like Ninjas?

From Missoula we headed north up to Flathead Lake.  We are staying at a state park called West Shore and it is about 10 minutes south of Lakeside, MT.

Our site at West Shore State Park

Our site is beautiful and just up the hill from the lake itself.  The water at the lake looks like the Caribbean.

The lake from the campground

It is so clear, but the water is fresh and a little chilly depending on how hot the day feels.

Mi-zooooo-la

Next stop............Missoula, MT.

Campground was great.  Lots of shade trees, friendly staff, nice restrooms and laundry room.  They even had a concert one night, but we missed it.

Our spot for the week.  The flowers all over the park were beautiful.

Missoula is home to the University of Montana and quite a happening place.  I love all the activity that the city had going on.  It was a small, big city with every shopping and food option you could want, but had a nice vibe.

Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin

Headed north from Henry's Lake and had all country roads to reach Three Forks, MT.  This town is part of Lewis and Clarke's expedition to discover the west and I read somewhere in town that it was where Sacagawea recognized and was reunited with her brother during the negotiations with the natives in the area for food and horses.

Three Forks is named for the three rivers that converge just northeast of the town to form the Missouri River.  They are the Jefferson, Madison, and Gallatin Rivers, named by Lewis and Clark after two presidents and a treasury secretary.  From Three Forks the Missouri River flows north and after traveling 2,565 miles reaches the Mississippi River.  The Missouri River is the longest single river in North American and drains about 1/6 of the North American Continent.

"Go Get Chu One"

After hanging in out in Victor, ID area, the whole group relocated together that weekend and headed up closer to the west side of Yellowstone NP at Henry's Lake State Park in Idaho.  Very pretty park with a lake and mountain view.

Large Marge and The Hairy Toe

We made the short drive across the pass from Palisades to Victor, ID and arrived to our campground. We had planned to be in the National Forest that week so we could have more of a "camping" experience for Jon and Steph.  We changed plans at the last minute and not sure if it was a good decision or not, but either way it worked fine.
We ended up at Teton Valley Campground in Victor and about a 20 minute drive to Jackson Hole, WY and Grand Teton National Park.
The day we arrived was Luna's b-day, so after setting up camp we took her into Jackson Hole to a movie.  She picked Inside Out and it was a good choice.  Pretty cute movie.  We toured the town a little and grabbed some groceries.
Jon, Steph, Bryce and Taylor arrived late that night and sleeping children were carried into the camper.
We took it easy that first day.  Sang Happy Birthday to Luna and did a little hike.

More Tiny Towns

I could probably write this blog entry with one sentence because we are in Palisades, ID and our campground is the only thing here :)  Just joking, but close.  Not sure of the population here, but I'm thinking it's in the teens.  The gas station here is the hardware store and the grocery store. :)



We drove up from Bear Lake with a dip back into Wyoming and returned to Idaho.  Country roads and small towns were again the theme of this drive.  Those are my favorite kind.

Cave, Lake, and Crepes

So the plan was to avoid extreme seasons.......snow and intense heat.  We should have researched a little more thoroughly because the intense heat won't let up.  We have done all kinds of research and reading about why it's colder at higher altitude when it seems it would be warmer cause you're closer to the sun and why is the sun so intense and ready to burn your skin at such high altitude.  This weather has inspired all kinds of learning opportunities :)

So from the beautiful luxury of Mountain Valley Resort we headed north through Utah and even dipped into Wyoming briefly and back into Utah up to Bear Lake.  It's amazing how much of this country is land as far as the eye can see with the occasional house, farm or trailer.  We have seen so many signs similar to "Welcome to _______.  Population 121"  And so many times we have said "who is living here?"  I want to knock on their door and hear their story.  Not just because it's a microscopic town without a grocery store, but because some of the towns look abandoned.  Like a scene out of The Walking Dead.

So as we arrived to the Bear Lake area, things started looking more lively.  There was a cute little town called Garden City on the southwest side of the lake and several boat rental places as we drove up the west side of the lake.

Garden City down in the distance and Bear Lake from top of a nearby mountain.

The water was beautiful.  Almost reminded me of the Gulf of Mexico on a clear, calm day.  I had just seen what the Great Salt Lake had in store, so when the lady at the campground told me the most fun thing to do in town was swim in the lake, I was skeptical.