Along the Trinity & Klamath Rivers

On September 24th we looked at the calendar and realized we had a string of days with no promises to keep. Any woulda, coulda, shoulda, or hadto lists were conveniently buried where we couldn't find them. It was time for a road trip! 

The rig was packed in record time and we were prepared to camp in warm or cold weather, to fish, photograph and hike, to cook over the campfire and sit on a riverbank or curl up inside and read.

Trinity River along Hwy 299

Headed north along the Redwood Highway (101) and spent our first night out near Trinidad at Patrick's Point on the coast. After breakfast we turned east on Hwy 299 into the Six Rivers National Forest headed for the Trinity River. Late afternoon we turned north on Hwy 3 looking for the Forest Service campgrounds we saw on the map at Trinity Lake. 

We were absolutely slack-jawed flabbergasted to see a dry lake bed, with what I'd called a large puddle of water down near the dam (no global warming here boss). With hopes high we dropped down to Lewiston Lake and were pleased to find the Ackerman campground almost empty and the Trinity River flowing at a good clip below the dam. 

After dinner stretched out on the picnic table and watched the skies. When you get away from snivelization you can see so many stars and galaxies, depth and dimensions you don't see at home.

Trinity River at Ackerman Campground

Evening Walk on the Trinity

Next morning continued east and picked up I5 towards Yreka to turn left onto Hwy 96 to explore the Klamath River on our way home. We stopped a few times so Rod could do a little fishing. I was in the middle of the "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and had my camera so I was happy as a clam whenever we pulled over. 

In the late afternoon stumbled upon the Dillon Creek Campground and decided to stay for a couple of days. The space was up in the trees at the end of the road, no one else was around and the Klamath River was directly across the highway. Fall and Spring are the best times for road trips.

Dillon Creek

A short walk from our campsite was a small sign that said creek access, a bit of a perilous path but worth the trip. There was a huge pond of crystal clear water with small rapids at either end and orange and white rock formations along the edge that looked like dinosaur backbones. 

Now, I'm a woman of varied interests. I love the soothing sounds of water flowing over the rocks, loud cars at the race track and the roar of jets in the sky. Two out of three wasn't bad for a Tuesday afternoon. We were sitting at the creek with our feet in the water chatting and all of a sudden we hear a roar. Directly above us one, two, three fighter jets screamed down the valley just above the tree tops. It was awesome, a wilderness sideshow, totally unexpected. 

After dinner we stretched out in the middle of the campground road to again take in the stars. We saw a number of shooting stars and wondered if there were two other people in another galaxy laying on a campground road watching the stars just as we were and wondering about what was out there?

Rod in his element fishing the Klamath

Last night out we returned to Patrick's Point for a hot shower, and a campfire dinner of grilled pork chops, roasted beets from the garden and Shelley Potatoes (diced potatoes, garlic, onions, Mrs. Dash and a little olive oil wrapped in foil and grilled). Oh, and dark chocolate with raspberries for dessert!

Somewhere on the road we saw a license plate that said "Y Whine" and I have to agree. So much of what sucks up our time, focus and energy in the day to day is trivial. Take account of all that you have and run with it. Now go outside and play!