Road Trips 2012 & Real Estate

[Gene]

Sunday, a day of late sleeping, an early afternoon nap, more pizza and being lazy on the beach. The guy that bought Upper Crust Pizza this year has done some improvements, kept the same recipes and has a better attitude than the previous owner—Al had done this too long and it was time for a change. I hope Al is enjoying himself and give him credit for making this place so good.

Gualala looks bigger with more new buildings. This is probably the effect of Sea Ranch, a big upscale subdivision along the ocean south of town. This was controversial when it was planned, partly because of limiting beach access for miles. Some of that was solved and things may have settled down. Gas went down since yesterday by 10¢ to a cheap $4.15 for regular. Distilled water was $1.29 in the Surf Market and other prices were just as bad. I try to buy as little as possible in resort towns, but sometimes you need something.

I didn't take a photo of the upper reaches of this campground. It is not a pretty sight. It gets better by the ocean, but when they're not working on the sites, it must look just about as crowded. But it isn't the campground, but the ease of getting to the beach, the sound of the waves and the fairly fast wifi. I do worry about getting out of here and onto a busy road with poor visibility, but a slug of paint thinner will ease the anxiety (see the movie, The Master, for more on paint thinner as a liquid refreshment).

We got some pretty good fruit at the Surf Market. They must send the tasteless, rock hard stuff to Colorado and keep the best for themselves.

Tomorrow we start home with an addition of 7.27 gal. of special $4.15 gas—we'll fill the tank later when it gets "cheaper". First to Bodega Bay where we will be careful of any birds, then inland on Cal. 12. This will take us through the Napa Valley and lots of traffic, but I don't know a better way to get to central Cal. and around Sacramento. We hope to get to Fresno so we are 2/3 of the way to Kernville where an old friend lives. After 2 nights in Kernville, we really go home and the forecast for Utah looks ok for clear roads next Friday.

Treatise on street names: To pass the time I read street names and have come up with 3 classes of them:

1. Rural roads are usually descriptive of something such as Green Valley, Bruce's Bones Creek (not a road, but a real creek in Oregon), Hexenkopf Road (real also, in Pa., meaning Witch's Head Rd.) or Hangman's Knob Rd.

2. City and town roads are orderly, often numbered or alphabetical. They can be letters or names in alphabetical order. They like grids and number houses according to a system of north/south or east/west. Central Ave and Main St. may be at the middle of town and one side is north or south or east and west. Presidents, states and tree names are common in some order. Elm St. is the most popular name in the US.

3. Suburban roads are pretty names or the name of the developer, his wife and children. Thus Seaview Lane, Lois Lane, Happy Trail. Note than "roads" and "streets" are replaced by avenues, boulevards, lanes, circles, and trails. A sort of sublime happiness reins. Maybe that's a good thing as I have never been the same after living on Hexenkopf Road.

I cannot classify Soldotna, Alaska's Funny River Road. It seems there are still people with a sense of humor.

Gene

[Lily&Me]

You're in rare form today, Gene, laughed so hard I cried.

Doug drove Cal. 1, I did most of the looking, some shrieking. It is a spectacular drive.

We spent a couple of nights in two of the larger pull outs, which was amazing. Coffee in the morning, looking out over the ocean-----mmmmmmm.

There is a beautiful, expensive campground in Malibu, on a bluff overlooking the ocean. Can't remember the name, but we stayed there a couple of nights and partook of the delicious seafood from the restaurant at the base of the hill.

Travel safe,

Maggie

[Gene]

Originally Posted by Ag&Au

My uncle was a Keeper at that lighthouse. One of my cousins volunteers as a docent there at times.

Ken, could you have gotten us in for free?

Warning to those who want to get close, but not pay to get closer, to this lighthouse—there was enough room before the gate to turn around, but if people had been parked in the entire space there, I don't know what we would have done. There are hiking trails in the area and people park at that spot to go hiking. I was lucky. I didn't have to convince the guy in the booth to let me turn around inside.

Gene

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

Ken, could you have gotten us in for free?

.

Gene

I probably could have, but would have is the question. I think my fee for arranging free entry is $25.00 per person. I'd have to check my "fees for favors" schedule to be sure?

Ken

[Gene]

Originally Posted by Ag&Au

I probably could have, but would have is the question. I think my fee for arranging free entry is $25.00 per person. I'd have to check my "fees for favors" schedule to be sure?

Ken

I'll remember that next time you call in the middle of the night from the county lockup hopped up on paint thinner.

Gene

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

I'll remember that next time you call in the middle of the night from the county lockup hopped up on paint thinner.

Gene

Does that work?

Ken

[ROBERTSUNRUS]

Hi, I guess that I have doing it all wrong, all of these years. I thin my paint with water, since it is water based or water soluble.

[Gene]

You don't thin the paint with it. In The Master, Joaquin Phoenix's character mixes drinks with paint thinner and alcohol and serves them to Phillip Seymour Hoffman who plays the title part. They both really liked it. Seems kind of dangerous to me.

This morning the ocean was at high tide and a lot of the beach had disappeared. It was cold and clear. The weather has been much better the last few days. I got in the truck to start it and all I could hear was the solenoid clicking. I knew the battery was getting weak, but hoped to nurse it home. I tried again and more clicking. I waited a few seconds and it started. I left it running. I wish we still had ammeters so I could tell how much it was charging. We hitched up and wove our way through the campground maze to get back on the road.

The last 50 or so miles to Bodega (no bird attacks) were the hardest part of the coast drive, maybe because I had had enough and wished I were driving a sports car. As we turned inland, the lack of traffic on Veterans Day was welcome, but eventually we arrived in the Greater Sacramento-San Francisco—Oakland Metroplex and were reminded just how different the coast is from everywhere else in California (except the Mojave Desert). Cities we never heard of have hundreds of thousands of people. Every road seems to be a traffic safety zone. Cal.99 is a busy expressway with bad pavement. It is the only state that tells you don't have to go 25 or 35 or 45 after you go through a city, but doesn't tell you how fast you can go. An endless sea of strip development makes all these mysterious cities look the same, and, strangely, being back in American civilization felt oddly comforting.

We stopped at a gas station in Sonoma and asked where there was a Walmart where I could get a battery. I figured that the Tundra HD battery would be hard to find. But the attendant, who I thought was an elderly man, spoke in a feminine way with a raspy voice, and I wasn't sure whether I was talking to a man or a woman. She turned out to be Elizabeth and very friendly. The owner found a battery at a parts store nearby and we were back on the road in a hour. This was the first OEM battery that hasn't lasted me the life of the vehicle in decades. Charged up, we got back into the endless traffic, a plethora of highway signs and made it to Fresno at dusk. I only missed 3 turns to get to an RV park selected for its proximity to Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. We set up fast and went shopping, returning weary and hungry.

A long day—tough driving, battery issue and too much to do. 158 miles to Kernville tomorrow and then catching up on the years with an old friend.

Less humidity is welcome. Paper is starting to be crisp again.

Gene

[Gene]

We are in Mesquite, Nev., at the Sun Resorts RV Park. It is hard to find the entrance and we drove around a subdivision looking for it until we saw a little sign saying to go through the Smith’s parking lot. If it were dark, we would never have seen the sign. This is a very new place and caters to long timers and condo owners. They have lots of rules and want you to sign that you will obey them. It is nicely put together, but I never go back to unfriendly places like this. The rates on the internet do not reflect the real prices.

Our drive to Kernville was uneventful. 14 miles through the Kern River Canyon were interesting, but after the coast highway, a piece of cake. This part of Cal. is very dry desert with rocky hills. Kernville became known when an international kayak competition was held there about 20 years ago. Lake Isabella is a recreational draw south of the town. It appears lots of retires have settled here. Pleasant little town with a nice plaza. Our friends took us to the brewery and the food was good, though I thought the IPA had too much of a citrus flavor. We drove up into the Sierra and all the trees, bushes and grasses are different to us. Mountain forests are all good though. Our friends live on the river and have settled in to the town, gotten involved in local affairs and have a comfortable life. The husband only theoretically retires, but manages to find another way to work at 80 and his wife really wants him to stop that. I admire a guy who loves what he does so much he can’t stop, but maybe he should.

We spent 2 days catching up, comparing our medications, throwing sticks for the dog Aussie and eating. It was great to see them again after 8 years. Hopefully they now feel guilty enough so they visit us.

Today, Thursday, we drove to Mesquite—lots of miles, but pretty easy and fast driving. Las Vegas is still there and traffic can be worse, but not so bad today. Vegas always seems like some strange alien place planted in the middle of a stark desert. Even if it were a normal city, what is a city of almost 600,000 doing in the middle of such a dry place? I guess you could say that about Phoenix too. Of course, Vegas is not a normal city and that is why it is there.

Tomorrow we get closer to home and stop in Green River, Utah, to flush the tanks for the last time before winterizing. The combination of water softener, laundry detergent and the enzyme have worked great. Instead of having to flush the black tank 7 or more times, it cleans out in 3 or 4 flushes. What a relief! The weather looks good with a small chance of showers and no snow.

I’ll get to photos later. Dinner time.

Gene

[Gene]

Photos—

1. Pleasant to sit on the patio with friends and look at the river and then the dry brown and grey hills beyond—many contrasts.

2. Kern River

3, 4. I think these are Sequoias—the reddish brown ones in the center. I think they re related to redwoods, but redwoods seem to need much more precipitation and less cold. First one the bottoms, second one the tops. This was north of Kernville in the Sierra Nevada at around 7,000'.

Gene

[Gene]

We left the unfriendly campground and did the interstate all day. This is when it is hard to concentrate after a while because the highway is so boring and when I'm driving, I can't enjoy the scenery as much. So we switched off every 100 miles or so as we always do on long days of interstates.

We crossed more desert north of Mesquite. The Virgin River Canyon is spectacular, especially the south end. Since I was driving, I didn't get to appreciate it more. We live in the high desert, but yesterday and this morning is more like the real genuine desert (except few sand dunes here)—strange plants like the Joshua Tree, rocky, bare landscapes, sage and a few grasses and lots of dirt. A surprising number of people live there. It is too stark for us.

A short 20-some miles through Arizona and into Utah. It gets greener, or less brown, and we gain elevation as we pass through a broad valley on I-15 with mountains on both sides. They remain stark and bare for a while, but we also see snow on the tops of the highest ridges and trees start to appear. it looks like the piñon forest we are used to. The highway keeps rising and we start to see a small patches of snow alongside the road and taller conifers. Then we turn onto I-70 and cross 3 mountain ranges. The first has the most snow—an inch or two past the shoulders—and the most tall conifers. The second one has half the snow and somewhat fewer trees. The third is dry, rocky, some small piñon. But then we see the red rocks and various bands of color Utah is famous for—great rocks on the way to Green River.

Glad to be close to home.

Gene

[Fly at Night]

Hi Gene!

Holy smokes, how did I miss this? Loved your vintage airplane photos.

What you referred to as "more planes" - many would consider this to be the ultimate airplane - the Corsair.


Thanks for taking us along for the ride. I always enjoy these voyeuristic excursions!

[Bill M.]

We found the musem a couple of years ago when on an Airstream caravan. The building is what captured my main attention. I am not really a airplane guy. The Corsair was nice. I wanted to see the P 38 but it was off at a show when we were there. I worked in the forest products industry and the idea of a clear span building that large out of wood (Douglas fir) is difficult to grasp. The war effort covered many things. One of the things the war did was brought some science and engineering into the forest products industry. Not many of the hangers left, partially because when you make a large structure out of relatively small wood and then coat it with asphalt and then store aircraft fuel in it it can burn. And one of the buildings had straw stored in it when it burned. I think there were a dozen of these buildings around the country at one time spotting the coasts.

[Gene]

A real voyeuristic excursion would take us to nude beaches, but dream on.

We got home about an hour and a half ago, unpacking, tired, clocks need changing to standard time and finished Chinese take out lunch (bland, nearest Chinese restaurant has gone downhill this year; why didn't we get Chinese in Cal.?).

The house is so big! I can't wait to take a shower with lots of hot water and walls 6' apart. A nap looks even better. Good trip, more later. Snow level on the mountains down to 8,500', 1,800 more feet and it is here.

Gene

[Mike Leary]

Welcome home! Nice to read your posts. Assume the planning for the next epic is already in works?

[Gene]

Mike,

No planning except that I always have 10 trips in my head. Trying to sell the house is very limiting and it will be back on major websites soon.

But there's Newfoundland and Labrador, the River Road, Mexican border desert trip (north side), Vancouver Is. and Puget Sound, Northeast Leaf Peeping, Hawaii (when the causeway is finished), wandering around the middle of the country, and many more.

All drains and faucets open, trailer parked in its spot, mostly unloaded and furnace on at 40˚.

Tomorrow winterize and wash salt and grime off trailer and truck. Wood cutting soon though my left elbow seems to be permanently damaged. Eventually I'll run out of joints to mess up and the rest of life is easy street (in traction).

Gene

[Mike Leary]

If you can't stand it, come on down to Ajo, we have some pull here, can arrange for you to park next door.

[Gene]

Thanks Mike, but there's a lot to do over the winter here. The trailer is parked 'til spring. I have to check the fridge. Three times we got a error code indicating the propane wasn't firing. Most of the time it worked. I will clean everything I can get to and hope for the best. The tongue repainting has been put off an entire season, but I have to get to it. The steps and battery box need it too by now. In the spring, repack the bearings.

But right now I'm thinking about replacing the front steps (house, not trailer) with redwood. They are Doug Fir and while that is an excellent structural wood, redwood looks a lot better. After firewood cutting of course.

About that nap….

Gene

[Gene]

The last photos:

1. We have seen these out in the desert around the west for years. They seem to be in the most remote areas generally, though this was along I-15 in Nevada. Earlier on the trip we saw one in the northwest and it wasn't desert, but that was the only one we've seen with a lot of vegetation around that wasn't sagebrush. There is a small, square one story building with these white towers on top. It looks like there's a fence round it. I didn't have the big telephoto ready when I saw this one and have blown it up, but definition would be lost if I did more. There are square things on the building roof facing the tower—lights perhaps. The ground around it seems white, but that may be the fence.

Anyone know what it is?

2. After leaving Mesquite, we crossed into Utah and soon entered the Virgin River Canyon. It is just about all rock of varying colors. It is quite impressive and must have been even more so before they blasted a 4 lane highway through.

3. Leaving the Canyon. The blue at the top is the windshield tint.

Gene

[Ag&Au]

Originally Posted by CrawfordGene

The last photos:

1. We have seen these out in the desert around the west for years. They seem to be in the most remote areas generally, though this was along I-15 in Nevada. Earlier on the trip we saw one in the northwest and it wasn't desert, but that was the only one we've seen with a lot of vegetation around that wasn't sagebrush. There is a small, square one story building with these white towers on top. It looks like there's a fence round it. I didn't have the big telephoto ready when I saw this one and have blown it up, but definition would be lost if I did more. There are square things on the building roof facing the tower—lights perhaps. The ground around it seems white, but that may be the fence.

Anyone know what it is?


Gene

That is a VORTAC. That particular one is the Mormon Mesa VORTAC. The identifier is MMM. VORTACs are radio aids for air navigation.

Ken