Blog Instructions

Just a few quick notes to those of you new to blogs:

1. Blog entries are posted (by default) latest at the top, older going down the page. That's the nature of the beast. Our goal is to post once per day, and we're numbering them by day (not by date because date sometimes is not the day since we can't always get on the Internet each day). Day 1 = 6/24, FYI.

2. You can leave comments about a particular post OR send an email in response. At the bottom of each post, you can click on "0 Comments" (or 1 Comment or however many comments there are) and a new window will appear and you can leave a comment. There's also an email icon you can click on too.

Hope that helps!

Day 7: Montana, It Really Is Big Sky Country

Well, we have made it a week on the road. Only 30 days left! In honor of George Carlin--a major influence on me as a child (many of you have heard me recite his bits word for word), I'll just do what he called "brain droppings" today:

--Idaho is the place to be for cheap gas. $3.79.

--Motel 6 is interesting. People drag their cheap room chairs outside and chat with others. I used to joke that I my idea of camping was "Motel 6"--and it's true. It's just like camping--everyone is outside chatting.

--Glacier National Park is nice, but (and maybe we're just not seeing the best parts) it's not our favorite park. Going-to-the-Sun Road is still closed at the pass for a few more days and, we learned kinda late in the game, that we're too wide to go all the way on it anyway. Yosemite and Crater Lake are still favorites. Can't wait to see Yellowstone and Grand Tetons in a few days.....




--The notion about limits (see Day 6) keeps unfolding and getting deeper. Both of us are facing a life right now without too very many limits; we're actually looking for what kinds of limits to choose. It is very clear that the whole conversation around "limits" is what makes them empowering or disempowering. That is, if we say that limits are "restrictive" or that they restrict our "freedom" or some such, then that's what we get. But if we embrace the limits, then they are fun challenges--sort of like how doing a crossword puzzle with its limits is fun. So limits can be a burden or a game; it's simply a choice.

--Usually, I want to live everywhere I visit. I am just a sucker for the grass being greener, and I get all enthusiastic about places--what if I lived HERE? How cool would that be? etc., etc. Well, I have to say that it's pretty clear that Idaho and Montana are not places we would want to live. (Walla Walla was a contender, though ;-) These states are beautiful, but are just full of different kinds of conversations. We have seen more Ron Paul for President posters than anywhere else (and no ads for any other candidates). Gunsmithing and taxidermy--very big occupations out here. Libertarian (which does appeal to me sometimes) and macho (which does not appeal--we passed on the opportunity to have "swinging steak" (i.e., bull testicles) the other day....) So, it's good to know that I don't have to want to live here!

--There's the law and then there's the letter of the law. We needed to find a place to exercise Nick today and we just kept getting thwarted. So, we turned off a state road to a marked fishing spot. What a great find. Public restroom, nice parking lot, along the water, and no one around. We put Nick on his long line leash and then ran him ragged chasing balls. Of course, no one was actually HOLDING the leash, but he was "on leash"....



--I forgot to note the other day that my new favorite sign (and I couldn't pull over to get a photo of it) is this, from Crater Lake:
WARNING:
Falling will cause injury or death. Stay away from cliff edges!
(Nice, obvious lesson in cause and effect.)

Day 6: Heat Brings Contemplation

One good thing about a heat wave--it is predictable. Mornings are cooler than afternoons, so we seized the morning and walked around the Lake Coeur d'Alene at 7AM. We realized that our only opportunity to have a real meal in a restaurant today would be breakfast (since Nick couldn't be in the car during the heat of the day), so we asked a local for a recommendation--always a good idea. The Blue Plate Cafe did not disappoint. Truly delicious breakfast. So then we tooled up the road to Sandpoint and found a lovely state park, Round Lake, to set up camp in for the day in the shade.

Used the time and space to read and make some phone calls. Favorite odd moment of the day was calling Susan Andrews (former HR director of Hampton-Brown). Talked with her for a good five minutes before she said, "I never worked at Hampton-Brown" in response to something I said. Turns out she is Susan Andrews, but is a retiree from Phoenix, not Carmel, CA. Such a weird conversation. I never did find HB Susan, unfortunately.

But sitting in the woods on a hot day, watching great blue herons circle over the deep blue lake, allows for a certain amount of contemplation. Today's riff was on the importance of limits, of restrictions, in creating satisfaction and, possibly, happiness. Many people recommended that we leave the dog at home on this extended journey. And we would really have preferred to leave him at home, but we couldn't. So, we have a trip with a lot of limits and challenges. And the realization is: that's not a bad thing. It actually creates coherence and focus in the kind of trip we create each day. And creating what we do, where we go every day takes a lot of energy. It's actually a bit of a relief to have a certain pool of choices, rather than unlimited choice. We made the analogy to our recent house remodel project. If everything was possible, then any kind of coherence would be very difficult. That is, we like Craftsman architecture, rustic style, modern style, lots of different colors and textures, but wanted a low-maintenance, relaxing home. Choices had to be made from within one style, rather than all styles, or we wouldn't achieve our primary goal of low-maintenance and relaxation. (Nothing like a mix of styles to create interest, but not relaxation, usually.)

It's like that with our trip. We could do something different every day and end up with a hodge-podge of a trip that might be notable for its eclecticism, but wouldn't be a satisfying road trip with the dog, our primary goal. What is satisfying is finding all kinds of interesting places to walk and just being out in such beautiful places. Just being. If we didn't have the dog with us, we'd be doing this, trying that, and missing out on the opportunity we have now. Something to ponder.

Off to Montana tomorrow!

Day 5: Into Each Life a Heat Wave Must Fall

So, as great as yesterday was, today was its inverse. It started off great, with a 2-mile walk along the Walla Walla River at our state park campsite. Mixed in a little jogging, even, to give Nick some run time (he misses his daily ball-chasing run at home). Beautiful morning segued into a very scenic drive. We have now completed approximately 1200 miles of our trip, for those of you who are into data.

Boy, are we becoming fans of US highways (not interstates). Today we took US 12 to US 95 all the way up to Coeur d’Alene. Gorgeous Lewis and Clark country. The whole way was a designated scenic route, and it was clear why. Besides the big rivers and mountains, the rest of the scenery was gorgeous: wildflowers in 2 shades of purple, pink, white, yellow, and red. Rolling fields of barley, lentils, and peas, of all things. I had no idea that there were so many inland ports on these rivers to move all the grains and legumes to the Pacific.

Got to Coeur d’Alene in early afternoon, but it is TOO HOT to do anything here. For any of us. ;-( Pavement is scorching, RV is heating up too quickly to leave Nick inside. We left him in the van for 10 minutes to pick up maps at the visitor center and the vehicle got quite warm in that short time. No big shade trees here, like in Walla Walla yesterday, which made walking around there bearable for everyone. It’s the first hot day of the year, here, and apparently very unusual. The city and the lake are beautiful, though—the whole town looks to be out on it or next to it. But we’re out on I-90 at a Motel 6—yee haw. Well, there’s free HBO and A/C.

We ventured out in late afternoon and tried putting on the generator in the RV so we could run into Hudson's Hamburgers (100+year old place written up in Wall Street Journal, Sunset magazine, USA Today, and our favorite, Jane and Michael Stern's Roadfood column in Gourmet magazine). The place was a real throwback to another era, but I'll stick with Quincy Maid-Rites --another almost 100-year old recipe, mentioned favorably by our hero, Alton Brown, in last year's Feasting on Asphalt show.

When we got back to the RV (after an elapsed 15 minutes), Nick was cowering in the front seat, afraid of the LOUD and vibrating generator that was keeping him cool. So much for that option! So we traveled around the lake for a bit, found a fairly shady path, and strolled in the 98 degree heat. We are now hunkered down in the Motel 6 with Safeway salads. Such is life.

Tomorrow and Monday are expected to be as hot. We're debating our strategy. Stay tuned.
Think we'll sleep maybe OK tonight, since almost every room in this motel has a dog or two in it. I won't be so worried that he'll bark and disturb anyone. We met our neighbors and they have 5-month old lab puppies, so we've all agreed to have lots of tolerance for each other. Nick is just beautifully behaved in the campgrounds and not so much in the motels, and we finally figured out why. He is completely entertained with bugs and nature at the campground. A motel room is b-o-r-i-n-g, so he has to cause some trouble to be entertained. Ahh. So that's it. Another mystery solved.

Day 4: Serendipity

No sign of thwartation today, even though last night was quite a poor night. We went to sleep (well, one of us did) to the dire warnings of Fox News about the impending heat wave and the most irritating loud noises from the A/C as it cycled every 20 minutes. I ended up sleeping barely 3 hours, with thoughts of doom and gloom about the trip in my head. (We’ll boil Nick to death! We won’t be able to do anything fun! Etc., etc.)

So, given that night, the day did not seem as if it would be spectacular. We began it as we always do—gas up and add air to the incredible leaking tires. (Don’t get me started on the squeaky brakes. Our 1999 steed has creaky joints.)

Here’s how it went down.

Check out of hotel. Wander around the hills/cliffs of The Dalles, OR, enjoying the views of the Columbia River and Mt. Hood. Get on I-84 East, thinking that we’d cross over to the WA side of the river to get off the interstate. Ignore that thought and enjoy the beautiful views of mountains, vineyards, trains, desert, and water till we turn off (again, unexpectedly) to a side road to take us to Walla Walla. Enjoy another gorgeous ride past all of the Walla Walla Sweet Onion fields, which are “popping” now. The onions—which can only be grown successfully here—are literally popping out of the dirt now. Amazing.

We get to the town and stop at the local Chamber of Commerce (always a good idea). A lovely retired woman gives us every tip we’d ever want to have, and then we propose an afternoon to her (from her tips), which she pronounces “lovely.” So off we go.

2-mile, 1-hour architectural walking tour, with Nick in tow. What a great thing to do, combining all of the things we like to do: walk, look at great architecture, be with our VERY GREAT dog, and talk to people. Perfect.

Then we pick up salads at what looks like a local great place (converted gas station) and head to a winery that the retired lady recommended. WOW. Basel Vineyards was wonderful—gorgeous architecture and yummy wines. We highly recommend the Claret. But even better than the wine—we got a tip on where to camp tonight.


I am sitting here in Harris State Park in Milton Freewater, OR, listening to the Walla Walla River rush by over white-water rapids, in a fairly secluded camp spot, with a yellow finch trying to get in our RV (it likes our side view mirrors) and singing to us when it can’t, being delighted by the lovely cool temperatures in the midst of this “killer heat wave,” the fear of which kept me awake last night. It got to 87 degrees today (not bad—it’s predicted to be 108 on Sunday), but we’ll stay in a motel Sat/Sun to use the A/C in the afternoon/evening. So, again, all is well. I think Lisa had a nice nap:




Nick is turning into The Best Dog. Ever. He’s totally at home in the RV now. Instead of sleeping on the floor of the RV on his bed as we drive, he now makes his place on one of the people beds in the back. He has a great time—very comfy.



Then, in camp (which he loves), we put him on a long line and he chases bugs to his heart’s content. Not to say that he doesn’t like motels—he loves putting his ball in the shower for a game. So, he’s just a happy boy. Very mellow and accepting of all circumstances—how we’ve always hoped he’d be.

So, today—a great drive, an architectural walking tour that all 3 of us loved, a winery visit, and a spectacular campsite. It does not get any better than this.

Here’s our campsite. That's the setting sun on the steep cliffs. You can't see the gorgeous river, but we sure could hear it. Lovely sound to sleep by.

Day 3: Eastern Washington, From Bottom to Top

LC is writing today’s post, with some editing (and requested embellishment) from JC. Our first night spent in the RV was cold, but wonderful. The snow on the ground is still there for a reason – it gets cold at night. So we went to sleep early—right after the bathrooms closed for the night at 8PM, and then we were up and at ‘em at 5:30AM, right at sunrise. We packed up and drive up to the crater rim for sunrise photos. Then we bagged another historic national park hotel for our collection by having breakfast at the Crater Lake Lodge.



We then had our first experience with coin-op showers: $.75 for 4 minutes. JC had nothing but scalding hot water, and I didn’t have water at all so it was a sponge bath for me. Bathed, fed, and fueled up, we headed north up the entire eastern side of Oregon. It was a drive through the high desert of Oregon with beautiful vistas of snow-covered mountains the whole way. We were getting frustrated by not knowing which mountain was which, when on US 97 we came across a pullout called “Mountain Indicator.” It was a way to identify 7 of them, and we could see all 7 of them from our 3300-foot plateau: Broken Top, Three Sisters, Three-Fingered Jack, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Mt. Hood, and Mt. Adams up in Washington. Very, very cool. JC didn’t take photos; too big of a panorama to capture, but it was breath-taking.

We made it to The Dalles after a long stop for wifi, lunch, and Target shopping in Bend. Given the hour when we arrived (and our need to learn how to hookup), we decided to make tonight a motel night. And what a quaint motel this is: Cousins Country Inn, er Motel. They call all the staff AND the guests, “cousins.” After a “home-cooked” dinner, I headed to the hot tub to relax my tight shoulder muscles from the drive. I’m getting the hang of driving this rig. I did run over my first curb, and now I get the value of the side view mirrors. ;-)

Tomorrow we are going to explore the Columbia Gorge by traveling on the Washington state side on scenic highway 14. Our destination will be a campground in Milton-Freeman, OR, and a dinner at a Roadfood-recommended steak house we have heard is very good. Let’s hope Nick is as good tonight as he was last night and all-day today. He’s getting the hang of things (and we’re remembering to exercise him enough). We had two, count ‘em two, meals in restaurants today and he was just fine. Yay! Think he’s getting used to the drill.

Day 2: PM Holy Toledo, We’re Boondocking!



OK, we did away with thwartation. This was a lovely day once we escaped the horrific wildfire smoke. We drove to Weed, CA, up and around Mt. Shasta, and the air cleared, so we did indeed make the detour to the Lavender Farms.

What a treat. Up a very steep dirt road (Lisa did a lovely job driving, as she mustered the nerve to drive the steed) was this woman’s dream—a field of English and French lavender overlooking Mt. Shasta and the valley below. All kinds of ladies had wicker baskets over their arms and scissors in another hand and were harvesting lavender. The proprietess said that 4000 people did that last year, and you’d never know the lavender had been touched. We tested lavender oils and spritzes and bought some cards and a sachet to make our camp clothes smell good. This stop was Nick’s test, and he sorta failed. He got at least a D, at any rate. We left him in the RV while we strolled amongst the lavender and looked at the things in the shop, and he yipped and howled the whole time. Sigh. But he’s great right now.


Right now, we’re in the Crater Lake National Park Mazama Campground, surrounded by snow, slush, mosquitoes, and no one else. We are boondocking. Here's Nick enjoying a rest on the snow. He loved eating it.



It’s day 2 and we are actually bloomin’ camping. No water, bathrooms only till 8PM (and again at 8AM), no electricity. And of course no Wi-Fi. We’re writing this on Mac battery power in the moment, cause we promised we would.

We’re just all in this camper. Of course, the store sells wine and we have Deet. So, all is right with the world. After having so little sleep the last 2 nights, we are delighted to listen to the wind in the trees (and hopefully not to bears). We realized last night how very spoiled we are living in Carmel Valley—land of starlight and that’s it at night. No noise, no light, no nothing. Just peace. It’s clear the rest of the world doesn’t operate that way. Trains must travel. Trucks must idle to warm up. People must party. Etc.

But here in the Mazama Campground at Crater Lake, it is quiet and peaceful. Here's a shot just looking straight up from our campsite. No editing has been done to this.



We haven’t even seen the lake yet, because we were so tired when we got here at 4:15 PM, we just parked. Our plan is to arise early schmerly and see the lake at sunrise (and photograph it, too). Then it’s on to Bend for shopping—a real water bowl for Nick (sorry, Renee, the collapsible keeps getting stepped in by human and dog alike), sweat pants for Julie to sleep in (because you can’t take the dog out at night in real jimmies), and a hotspot to post this in. (Plus our reflections on the night’s adventures.)

Signing off for day 2---

Day 2: A Bit Thwarted

Morning
Today sure didn’t start the way we intended. Only 2 hours of sleep last night, between the trains, trucks starting up in motel parking lot, and Nick. Yawn. But we got up and at ‘em early after we saw the news about all the roads to Lassen being closed by wildfires and went outside and experience the worst smoke yet. There’s just no wind and lots of fires. So, we decided to get out of Dodge (Chico and the Central Valley) as quickly as possible. We did make a stop at Redding to walk Nick across the really beautiful Sundial Bridge.

Here's the eerie smoke-filled light at 10 o'clock in the morning:








We also stopped at a Starbucks to check email. 30 minutes later, connected. Am declaring that the last thwarting of the day. The workers in that park are wearing masks and the newspeople say the air quality is “very unhealthy, approaching hazardous.” Must get Lisa and her asthsma to Oregon. Northward bound we go.

Day 1: The Odyssey Begins

Yes, a Homerian reference from the English lit major. But nothing poetic about today. We were hot and our eyes were burning from Monterey County all the way up to Chico from the rampant wildfires. The Central Valley is one giant cloud of smoke. On a brighter note, the three of us are figuring out the RV. After a 2-hour orientation in the sweltering sun and smoky air of Cameron Park, we took off up CA 49—the Gold Rush route—instead of making a beeline for the freeway. Given our late start from the RV place (2 hours??), the scenic route took a long time—many 15 mph curves—but we drove right through Marshall State Park, where gold was first discovered in 1849, stopped in lovely historic (and reminiscent of old Midwest towns) Marysville, before landing in a motel in Chico, smack dab in the middle of the cute downtown and across the street from a health food market where we grabbed dinner. A propitious beginning to the road trip—a healthy meal! No wi-fi, though.

The 3 of us are exhausted, however, and not up to organizing the RV tonight. After Sara’s passing yesterday, we didn’t sleep too well last night so we must head to bed for an early start tomorrow through Lassen and up to Redding, where we had thought we’d be tonight. But…another propitious sign—we’re deviating from the general itinerary already! Yay!

Here's night 1 in smoke-filled Chico motel room. Nick is, as always, trying to help.

Rest in Peace, Sara Jane


Today, we had to make a very difficult decision and we did. We put our beloved Sara Jane, age 14 3/4 years old, down, as she was failing rapidly and we just couldn't leave on our trip knowing she was suffering and not be with her at the end. So, LC, JC, and Nick were all present when she went to her better place--a place where she could once again run and chase birds. Rest in Peace, Miss Sara Jane.

It's Now Called "The Honeymoon"


What a week! Our long-planned RV trip has now been re-christened "The Honeymoon" because we were able to legally get married in the state of California this week. Here we are at the courthouse swearing that we told the truth on our application. It made one of us, at least, get all teary. Legal things do that. It's really, really great when it's real. . . to lots of people. It's always been real to us, but now it's on the books. Cool.

Read the Salinas Californian article.

View the Salinas Californian photo gallery. Note that there are typos (e.g., we're really not from Prunedale!).

If you're a California resident, Vow to Vote NO on the proposition this November that will change the California constitution to enshrine marriage inequality. And please note: it only takes 51% of the vote to change our constitution.

The Itinerary, We Think.














This shall be our steed and our home for the 6744 mile adventure!

6/24: Pick up rental RV and load. And how do you plan/pack ahead of time for a vehicle you've never seen? That's the Zen koan of the moment. Looking at floor plan PDFs for 1999 Rialtas is the best we've come up with.

Head north to Redding, CA. See the bridge and then while in the area visit:

Lassen National Park Use up that National Parks Annual Pass!

Mt. Shasta Lavendar Farm

Crater Lake National Park, Oregon

Walla Walla, Washington area (just because it's fun to say) and our first Roadfood destinations

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho and our second Roadfood destination and third Roadfood destinations

Whitefish and Glacier National Park

Great Falls, Montana, with a big dose of Lewis and Clark

Yellowstone National Park

Grand Tetons National Park

Jackson, Wyoming, with friends for 4th of July

South Dakota Tour through the Badlands, Crazy Horse Memorial, Mt. Rushmore, Deadwood and Lead

Theodore Roosevelt National Park, North Dakota

Williston, North Dakota to visit our friend and sorority sister, who is pastor of the Episcopal Church in Williston

Passing through Fargo, ND for our fourth Roadfood destination

Collegeville, Minnesota to visit a friend who is now a monk here

Minneapolis, MN and St. Paul to go to a bunch of recommended restaurants and see The Fitzgerald Theater (too bad the show is traveling for the summer and not in town!)

From the Food Network TV Show "Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives"

1. Psycho Suzie's Motor Lounge

2. The Nook to have a Jucy Lucy

And 2 more Roadfood destinations

1. Mickey's Dining Car

2. Hell's Kitchen

And perhaps the museums in Minneapolis

Then via scenic byways to explore Minnesota and Paul Bunyan on our way south

Plus stop and see a few Frank Lloyd Wright homes on the way south in Mason City, Iowa
Wright on the Park
Stockman House

Kansas City, Missouri just to sample the famous BBQ and see the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, the American Jazz Museum, and another Frank Lloyd Wright, the Community Christian Church. There are also a few additional recommendations from Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. And they must be good because they don't have web sites: Grinders and 39th Street Mama's.

Omaha, Nebraska to visit friends and family. One dinner will be at Warren Buffett's favorite restaurant and probably another Roadfood destination or two

And onto the west side of Nebraska to Chimney Rock and Scottsbluff National Monument to contemplate what those pioneers accomplished in their Conestoga wagons

Boulder, Colorado, to hoist a pint with good friends

Colorado Springs to see more folks

Alamosa, Colorado and Great Sand Dunes National Park because of the children's picture book, The Bunyans

Pagosa Springs, Colorado to experience all that there is to experience there

450 miles to Salt Lake, Utah. Sleep!

617 miles to Gold Country (around Auburn)

Get up, wash and clean the RV, drop it off, and (gulp) drive 224 MORE miles HOME!

It's Time

OK, we have never taken an RV trip (much less camped), nor have we ever blogged. Time to learn new things!