Crater Lake-Florence Or.-Coos Bay-Newport-Devil,s Punchbowl

Thur. Another early start.  We drove to Union Creek to get homemade pies at Beckie's Cafe(top middle picture) then to welcome center at Crater Lake. There was wild life but not much, they say the bigger animals just past through.  There was still snow on all sides of the lake(bottom left two).  We walked to two water falls( middle and bottom right). The middle picture is the Pinnacles which was made by steam when the river was covered by lava and the steam escaped and made the tall figures.  The middle left is what they call Pumice Castle the only rocks that has color in the area.

The pictures below are of Crater Lake.  There was an island called Wizard Island(middle picture). They have a Phantom Ship(2nd bottom).  The water was very blue, the lake is 6.1miles by 4.7 miles and it takes 33 miles to drive around it.  The deepest points 1,943 feet(7th deepest in the world). The surface  temp. is 32 to 66 degrees(records show only froze once).  The bottom is 38 degrees year round.  What a wonderful experience we had to see God's handy work. 

Fri.  We had a great morning with walking, breakfast, bible study and getting things ready for moving tomorrow.  We evan played a game of cards.  We watched a movie and played more cards.

Sat. Up at  5:30 did devo, got the rig ready to leave,  hooked up car, left by 6:30.  Here we went again up and down Mt. over 2500 feet.  The last 60 miles which the map showed curvy were not as bad as the roads that the map showed straight.  Top left we saw a flock of turkeys then down the road we saw two elk grasing.  We got to the park and it is first come first to get your sight.  We were happy we got a great spot(Thank-you God) After we got set up we drove into Florence and found they were having a farmers market at the marina.  But first we are told about the wonderful donut shop.  We went and they sell out every day and they had about 8 left.  He said we could have two on him.  We were not disappointed they tasted great.  We found our church building and the times then went to the farmers market.  As we walked along we saw folks going to one of the fishing boats.  We walked down there and found they were sellingAlbacore Tuna.  Linda asked folks how they were going to prepare the fresh tuna.  I walked down the dock a little further and found the best clam chowder.  We walked the old town shopping area stopping for pictures, ice cream, and coffee.  We went back to the dock and got a large clam chowder.  As we were waiting to see about getting a tuna a man asked if anyone wanted to share one and Linda quickly said yes.  Our's weighted 15 pounds and the man on the boat cleaned it in five min.  It is truly wonderful when someone knows his craft. It was totally awesome experience. When we got home we grilled some with Italian dressing and some wrapped with bacon.  We had two large pieces one grilled each way.  Had left overs for tomorrow and only used about ten percent of the tuna.  We played some cards then to bed.

Sun.  We got up and had a casual morning.  Coffee in bed then breakfast, and Devo.  We went to church and met a lot of nice folks.  Came home and Linda made tuna sandwiches. Yes the tuna was just as good as last night.  We drove to a dune buggy place to find out info and ended up getting tickets. Our driver was the best he made the trip daring and fun but safe.  We had a half hour of fun and screams.  We were airborne in the front and at times as he come over the dunes in the rear.  When we got done we drove down the jetty road to the ocean(bottom right).  We past three staging areas for the dunes.  When we got home we went for a walk, did the blog, talked to Dan's aunt who lives here, and grilled( or as they say here BBQED).  After dinner played out  things to do tomorrow then to bed. Hi today is 62 far cry from104 where we came from!

Mon. After our breakfast we drove to Coos Bay Or. The picture below with all the flower is Shore Acres State Park and Botanical Gardens. Which was in the middle of our walk.  The pictures just do not capture the beauty of these flowers

 As we entered Charleston we stopped at a info center(charlie the tuna outside 2nd picture below top 2nd picture).  Then off to Cranberry Sweets the same Co. we saw last week in Bandon but this one makes the sweets(top right two pictures). We stopped at a "Human Bean" for coffee then back on the trail. Middle picture is the Cape Arago Lighthouse. Bottom right is a grey whale.  The rest of the pictures below are of our mile walk along a path on the coast.

Tues.  After breakfast and bible study I got to wash the car and rig.  It is so nice to get them washed not all campgrounds let you do that.  The car looked like a dust mobile.  After lunch we drove to Heceta Head Lighthouse(bottom middle).  We found out that they closed at 3 and we did not get there till then. The bridge is at the base of the light house(middle right). The rest are of the shore line near the lighthouse. When we got home put the bikes on the car and got the rig ready to move.

Wed.  We drove to South Beach and found a great camp site.  After lunch we drove up to Yaquina Bay and Saw the Yaquina Head Lighthouse(top left). Then to Devil’s Punchbowl top right and middle left.  The view from there as the rest of the coast breathtaking. The middle picture the view on the corner heading to the beach(middle right).  Bottom left is of Depoe Bay(the world’s smallest navigable harbor). Then off to Boiler Bay where we saw two whales. The bottom right 2 pictures the Or. coastline.

After church in Toledo we drove back to Newport.  It was cold and windy.  We walked along the Old Town and found these seals resting. Then as we walked there were many murals.  The bottom left is the opening to the harbor and the next two pictures of the harbor.

To Or.-Ashland-Bedford-Grants Pass-Redwoods S and SW Or.

Thur.  We called the insurance Co. about the broken windshield and I got the rig to leave.  We went to  Costco for lunch and got two new wheel nuts for the rear tire stems.  We grilled out and played some games.

Fri.  We got up emptied the tanks and got gas.  We started north on I-5. We were planing on stopping half way at Redding.  We got there it was 11:30 so were going to get through the mountains.  The next thing we knew we were in Or.(First 5 pictures below lakes, snow cap mountains, and bare Mt.).  We stopped in Talent and got things set up, rested, then went to Ashland.  It is where they have the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. It is one of the largest repertory theaters in the nation. It was started there in 1935.  It has presented all 37 Shakespeare's plays a total of 303 times and 335 other plays for a total of some 29,000 performances to an audience of aprox15 million.  After finding a parking place we walked around town.  At the festival welcome center the folks told us about a sandwich wrap place to eat. The wraps were big and delicious.  We also got a brownie and later found a Starbucks for coffee.  We looked around the festival area and they have a free lawn area at 6:30 to 7:30(middle bottom)where they do different entertainment.  Then as we walked around one of the three theaters we were told that folks that had group tickets and have extras they give them away.  God is good, a lady came by and asked if we needed tickets and gave us two( bottom right).  They were in the middle balcony about two rows up.   they were selling for $45 a person!  Some of the seats in the 3 theaters go for over $100.The play was Hamlet and the music was Doom Metal.  We did not think we would like the music but he did a great job and it went right along with the play.  The play ended over three hours later and as tired as we were the time went fast.

Sat. We got up and moved to Gold Hill Or.  After we got set up they were having a pot luck so we enjoyed fried chicken and the fixes.  They also told us that not all the food was eaten and they were going to have left overs at five.  This place is amazingly beautiful.  They have several big Maple trees that is in front where they had the pot luck. It was 90 out and it was so shaded you didn't even know it. A couple took us shopping to Fred Meyer store which we had never been in.  Wow  its huge, has clothes jewelry, toys, guns, groceries.  You name it, it has it.  On the way home he took us the back roads home to see the country side.

Sun.  We drove to Grants Pass for church.  The towns theme was bears, as you can see from the picture below we found several of them.

We went to Ma Mosa for lunch.  We shared a plate with kale, fried potatoes, corn beef, poached eggs and special sauce along with biscuit and homemade jam(top left).This restaurant is organic and only makes food from local farmers.  The town also had murals(top middle), statues(top right) and fountains(middle left).  The flowers are from there and Jacksonville which is the town we drove to next. Jacksonville was founded in 1852 and it was here that the Pacific NW first gold discovery occurred.

We then drove to a lavender field.  Wow the aroma was wonderful and calming.  2nd picture they hang them upside down to dry.  Bottom picture is the machines to make the oils middle bottom is the dried flowers you can put in sachet which we did and boy does our car smell nice! Bottom right  picture is bunches of lavender already picked. We also bought some Lemon Lavender Shortbread cookies which was very good.

Mon.  We drove to Grants Pass to go on a jet boat ride through Hell's Gate on the Rogue River. The first 5 picture is the boat ride. We saw butterflies, deer, eagles, osprey, and egret.  The boat pilot did several 360's and splashed us as we went up and down the river.   There were 5 boats with 60 some folks each.  We went through Hellgate Canyon(a narrowing in the river).  As we went through he told us John Wayne, Gun Smoke, and River Wild were filmed there.  Bottom middle picture is the lodge we had lunch at.  We tried some Dutch Brothers coffee and for the afternoon it was good.  When we got home we relaxed.

Tues.   We got up and drove to Cave Junction.  0ur first stop was Taylors Sausage Country Store that had cheeses and sausages.  We ate there and had potatoes, onions, peppers,mixed with 3 different sausages.  We also had one of their homemade biscuits.  We brought in our cooler and they filled it with ice and the meats we bought.  Then off to Jedediah Smith Redwood State Park, to see the giant Sequoia and coast Redwoods. Below are some of the pictures we took.  It is hard to capture how tall and big around the trees are. They say some could be 3,200 years old and 380 feet in height.

From there we drove up the coast to Bandon.  Stopping many times at the coast line to take pictures and see the shoreline.

We stopped at Brookings at the wonderful welcome center, had pancakes at Mattie's Pancake House, and we were going to the only place that a plane bombed  the USA.  They had dropped four bombes trying to catch the woods on fire but it did not work the woods were to wet.  We then drove to Port Orford which is the only port that fishing fleet is hoisted from the water onto the dock and stored on rolling cradles to escape the rough seas caused by sever winds. Put in the morning and taken out as they return with catch(bottom left 2 pictures). We then drove to Old Town Bandon.  where we sampled A LOT of many popcorn and chocolates at Cranberry Sweets!! We then walked over to the Face Rock Creamery where a child size homemade ice-cream had 2 huge scoops of ice-cream for $2. It was sooo good. Then we walked around and sampled all the cheeses and choose 3 kinds to bring home.  We then headed home which was a long drive.  We drove around 367 miles today.

Wed. This is a slow day.  We got up walked, had breakfast, did some bills, and the blog.  

After lunch we drove to Medford, where "Harry and David" Store is.  We took a tour and enjoyed seeing them make and package things.  Top left some of the pear trees where they got there start.  Middle is the marble Pear on the floor of the packing building. Four pictures on right where they are packaging. Bottom left two they were making there moose track popcorn.

We then drove to Central Point where they have a creamery(1st picture top and bottom) which is known for there bleu cheese and A chocolate  place(middle top and bottom.  The flowers were in town on several polls and the snow on the Mountain was taken just outside town.

Yosemite National Park- Manteca Ca.

Thur.  We did some shopping and went to the bakery one more time!!!  This time we got the two lemon bars along with lemon cake and molasses cookies.  We spent the afternoon with Richard and Shirley.  We got the rig ready to leave and went to bed early.

Fri.  We got up at five did our Bible study and went to the dump station.  We had problems with the gray tank, we got going and drove four hours to Yosemite National Park.  The last forty miles were the worst we traveled because of the winding road.  At 25 mph. It took awhile to get here(bottom left). The camp site is wonderful.  It has 50amp. water, and sewer.  We are on a creek which is very relaxing.  

Sat.  We washed the rig then went for a boat ride.  When we got back we ate and drove to the valley to Yosemite.  On the way we saw two bears(top left) and Linda saw some deers. The sunset on the flat rock mountains were beautiful.  We stopped at the village and got some coffee.  It was dark on the way home , the moon being almost full helped us see.

Sun.  We got up to go back to the park.  We heard a hum and found it was the transfer switch.  We turned it off then on which made the hum less but still have us worried.  We drove to Glacier Point 7214 feet.  We took lots of pictures along the way.  When we got there we were able to see a hand glider take off from there.  We walked around to see the different views.  When we left we found a place that we could do our bible study.  We then drove back down to the valley 4214 feet and took pictures of El Capitan(bottom right), Bridalveil Falls(middle right) and Yosemites Falls(middle picture).   We were so glad that we went to the see the park at night and in the day.  The sun on the mountain at different times made it seem like a different mountain.  We  drove home and relaxed for a while then had dinner and went on another boat ride.

Mon. We relaxed, did some work on the rig, and got things ready to leave, played putt putt.

Tues. I thought we were slow going up the mountain we only drove 20 mph on the way down the mountain.  Linda even drove the car so we would not have the push from the car.  I was so happy to get to the park in Manteca Ca.  After we got here we drove to the mall to get our computer.  We had the wrong destination in our gps and we went 52 miles out of our way.  We did get to see some of Ca. that we had not decided to see.  We did pick up the computer and it works without losing any info.  We went to the rig and crashed what a stressful day.

Wed.  We went out to the lodge and planned our future and caught up on the blog.

Santa Barber-Hearst Castle-Monteerey Bay-Morgan Hill Ca.

Wed.  We got up ate, did our bible study, and started to drive to President Reagan Library.  As we stopped at the beach in Santa Barber we decided to see this area instead.  Our first stop the welcome center.  We drove to the courthouse for the guided tour. When we got there we went up the 85 foot tower to enjoy the views.  Top left the courthouse which is earthquake proof and was built in 1929 without wood.  Most of the walls hollow built with lave and mortar.  Middle right picture inside the clock tower. Middle top shows the arch between the courthouse and jail. Bottom left the lawyers entrance which has a small door to humble the lawyers.

As we drove around we found a Sojourner cafe(2nd row left) and  Crushcakes and Cafe(bottom left picture).  We went to Reagan Ranch Center(top left).  Top right his chair he used at the ranch to read and conduct his Presidents speeches while at the ranch. Middle top picture is a piece of the Berlin wall which in his speech there he said “Mr. Gorivachev tear down this wall. Bottom right is a picture of the ranch a two bedroom home which they have their bedroom and 2nd bedroom for their cook(Nancy did not cook). Bottom middle two pictures the second largest fig tree in US.

The flowers below are in Alice Keck Park Memorial Gardens. A 4.5 acre botanical gardens.  They had a pond and 10 speakers which told about the flowers and trees in that area. 

Thur.  We got up did a bible study and hit the road.  We drove over 200 miles the last 50 were the worst.  It took over 1 1/2 hours.  We got to the campground got set up and ate lunch.  I took a nap and Linda made plans for Sat.  We played games,  grilled a salmon dinner, and took a bike ride.

Fri.  We got up and drove to Hearst Castle.  We went to the welcome center and they drove us up to the castle.  It is so hard to describe the beauty and splender of the castle.  The middle is the main castle the two towers are filled with water that they had piped in when it was built and is still used today. The top left is the outside pool which is going to take two more years to refinish. They worked two years already.  The top middle two pictures are of the ceiling of the rooms which he bought from European churches in the early 1900's.  Top right is the big dinning room where his guests would have dinner with everyone that came as his guest. Middle right is the billiard and pool room.  Bottom right is the room the guest would come before dinner and have drinks and appetizers.  Bottom left is the indoor swimming pool with the tennis courts above it(2nd bottom picture). The 3rd bottom picture is one of the three guest houses.  The castle has 115 rooms which 50 rooms are in the main house. It was not finished and took from 1919 to 1947 when ill health forced him to abandon the project.

When we left the castle we drove up Rt 1.  Top let a lighthouse the rest are coves, bridges on the windee roads, tunnels and trees.

As we got close to Monterey Bay we drove on Pebble Beaches 17 mile road.  It gave us a good overview of the area.  We stopped at the club house and saw some of the golf holes and trophies that have been given out over the years for different tournaments.  Top right there is four seals on the rocks.  The middle is a pictures of the trees and the ocean.  Bottom right Pacific Grove as we drove down the main street and the picture above it is Monterey Bay. We also went to Carmel by the Sea. We drove home by many fields of produce.

Sun We got up and went to church then out to eat.  We did some shopping and drove around town.  We went home then back to church.

Mon.  We drove to Morgan Hill to a Thousand Trails and met our sojourning friends, Richard and Shirley Hames.  We got set up then had a nice visit with them.  We went out to dinner then came home and went to bed.Best thing is Linda got her homemade bread pudding there!!!  We have no TV service but do have internet.

Tues.  We went to get on the blog and our computer was blank.  We called Apple and they could not get it working so we got an appointment in San Jose.  They were going to Camping World so we went along.  Later the Hames drove us to the mall and the Apple folks looked at the computer and are sending it off to be fixed.  We are hopping that the pictures of this month have not been erased.  We left the mall and went to a great hamburger place.  We got home and went to bed.

Wed.  Since we are  using the Hames computer the blog will be put on hold till we got our computer back.  We are going to Yosemite for four days starting Fri.  When we got back we hope the computer is fixed.  There is no TV service or Phone service there.  We will be going to church tonight in San Joes.

Los Angles Ca.

Thur. We drove to Los Angles. As we got to Hollywood and parked the car.  We walked around Hollywood Blvd.  The stars go for blocks and blocks on both sides of the street. In Front of Chinese theater(picture right side) we find stars putting there hand and foot prints in the sidewalk(below Chinese Theater).  Top right is the steps Dolby Theater (formerly Kodak)on each side they have the winners of the best picture from when they started the awards till now. When the Oscars awards are given they have a red carpet from the street to the theatre. Bottom right is out  side Madame Tussauds where you can capture your Hollywood Moment.  Bottom left one of the murals in town.

We went on a bus tour which took us  to many sights in Hollywood.  Top left the first theater next to it one of the picture studios, 3rd picture one of the recording studios,  2 pictures on top right place that were used for films Sister Act and Ghost Busters.  As we went past many stars homes bottom left on top is house you see the window of home behind it is Justin Beavers. 2nd picture is home Michael Jackson died in. 4th bottom picture on Rodeo Drive, the dress shop where Pretty Women was not welcome.  Bottom right picture Rolls Royce with its own yellow parking meter.  We enjoyed our trip going to Mulholland Drive, Hollywood sign Sunset Strip, Melrose, Beverly Hills, Bel Air, Rodeo Drive, and movie stars homes.

Now what I thought was the best part of Los Angles and it was free.  Forest Lawn Memorial Park. They have what they call there Trilogy Collection.  Middle picture is the stain glass of Leonardo da Vinci’s The Last Supper. Bottom middle picture is the resurrection 50 by 80 feet.  Bottom right is the crucifixion which is 45 by 195 feet.  Till you see it you can’t fathom the size of these pictures.They have video presentation with each.  The grounds is 300 landscaped beautiful acres with collection of marble statuary that reflect s some of the worlds greatest art,and a collection of stain-glass windows.  Dr. Hubert Eaton had them made or refinished and made a building to show them in.

Fri.  We took a morning walk then fried bacon, potatoes, onions, and eggs on the outside grill.  We drove to a honey place and tasted around 10 different types(top left picture below).  We were in a valley so it was nice to see trees and scrubs.  We stopped at Starbucks and enjoyed a smores bar and coffee. When we got home we grilled chicken and salmon.  

Sat.  We got up and took a walk and later went to town for they had a person at the grocery story grilling but decided to have the cook out at the campground.  We got a hot dog, hamburger, potato salad, bake beans, large piece of apple pie, ice cream and drink for $4!!!(top middle). It was so much we had part for lunch and dinner.  The apple pie we had two other nights.  We took the ice cream and had root beer floats.  We got the rig ready to leave.

Sun.  We got up early had a cup of coffee and our bible study.  As we left we stopped for gas which we had trouble and it took a hour to get 35 gal.  We drove to Santa Barbara(top right picture notice the motorhomes on the ocean) and got another 35 gal. As we left there we started into the mountains.  They were so steep I drove 30 to 35 MPH up and down very windy no guardrails!. (This is on the NEVER to do place ) I remember following folks that went slow up and down the mountains and could not figure out why they were so slow.  We got here and got set up two hours latter than we planned.  We took a walk and saw this turkey and woodpecker. The pictures below shows the stone lodge and family center. 

As we continue on our walk we saw the horses and look at the mountains behind the horses.  The NW side no trees and the SE side  has trees and scrubs.  They have had a six year drought.  As we walked on they have different places for folks to sleep(bottom three pictures). When we got back and played card and board games.  

Mon. July 4th.  Have a wonderful birthday America.  We got up and Linda made french toast and our bible study.  We went on a walk and stopped to play putt putt.  We came back and played four different games.  Linda won 3 out of 4. I did 4 out of 4 in the afternoon.

Tues.  We got up and drove to Solvang.  It is a Little Denmark in Ca.  They have four bakery's and we went to all four.  Bottom right is  Aebleskiver with raspberry jam and powered sugar (round ball pancakes) yummy.  Top right is one of the danish we ate with coffee.  Top middle is the little mermaid(we saw the real one in Denmark last year).

From here we went to Lompoc.  Top left is the grape vines, I was amazed the rows were so thin.  Top right they were picking broccoli.  The town is known for it's murals and flowers.  Top Middle are Italian Stone Pines(largest grove outside the Mediterranean) which were planted by mistake in 1940 and are now worth 3 million. When we drove home we ate dinner and played games again.

Wed. On Next week no internet