De-Liver Me Tour ~ The Fog is Lifting ~ May 17, 2015

The State of Kerfuffle has started to sort itself out. I will be able to have my next TACE done at Interventional Radiology at UCSF. It appears one of my hepatocellular carcinomas, Audrey or Carmine, has attempted a breakout and we need to shut down the escape route. This will be TACE number seven, which also happens to be my favorite number. I've never really looked up its attributes but decided to do a little research.

Morning Fog

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In numerology the #7 is the seeker and not just a lucky number: spiritual, intelligent, focused, intuitive, persevering, contemplative and gracious. In other disciplines #7 represents a natural healer, psychic abilities, inner peace, endurance, wisdom, ability to bear hardships, independent, quick-wit, non-conformist, and writer. I may know her. The number seven is lucky for Cancer and Pisces. Couldn't help but see the irony in this one: I'm a Pisces.

Healing Dream

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Time Out ~ Before the return trip to UCSF we're taking one of our infamous "Do We Turn Right or Left" road trips. We're taking off May 26th, the 34th (3+4=7) anniversary of our meeting at the Fort Ross Volunteer Fire Department Picnic in Cazadero, and will return around June 12th. The only promises to keep are a visit to my 96 year old Aunt in Durham May 26-27 and to be in Canby, OR by June 5-6 to visit family and celebrate our grand niece's graduation.

One stop we want to make on the way north is Oregon Caves National Monument near Cave Junction. The last time we were there in 1998 Rod couldn't explore the caves because he was using a cane. We did however spend an eventful night in the haunted suite on the 3rd floor of the Chateau. Looking forward to another experience and a hike in the caverns. 

Vintage Travel Poster 

Found on Pinterest

Otherwise we are playing it pretty much by ear. Rod wants to do some fishing so that may include the Trinity, Klammath and Smith Rivers.  We have friends to see in Hillsboro and time to toddle south down the Oregon and California coast on the way home. If it's warm enough in Gold Beach we'll do Jerry's Jet Boat trip up the Rogue River to Agnes for the day. An adventure not to be missed.

Hillsboro Heaven

Back to Reality ~ My TACE appointment at UCSF is June 16-17. Our friends Alice and John have graciously offered to let Rod stay in their guest room while I enjoy another overnight at the infamous UCSF Recovery Spa: bad food, a slamming door, alarms and a cranky ice machine. However, the doctors, nurses and staff are the best. A couple of weeks recovery and I should be ready for the Annual 4th of July Pancake Breakfast That Lasts All Day gathering at our place. More from the road once we return.

The Mighty Rogue

07/22/11 - Morning dawned with a couple of robins doing the two step on the roof of the rig (tickita - tickita - tap - tap). We eat a good breakfast and though we'll lunch up at Agnes, we pack a couple of sandwiches, my camera, binoculars and put on layers of clothes.

The jet boat picks us up at the dock at 8am sharp.  We have the same driver as we did 4 years ago. Jeff is the grandson of the man who started the mailboats in 1958. He's a skilled driver, a great storyteller and historian. We'll be venturing 52 miles up river through public lands, national park and wilderness.

One of our first sights is this magnificent bald eagle. Whenever Jeff or one of the passengers spot something worth seeing he'll pull over so we can all see what's up. We did spot the rear end of a small bear heading into the underbrush, but are told we may not see any others. Blackberry season is so late they haven't ventured down to the river.

Our driver knows a lot of the fishing guides and we stop along side of a friend of his who is happy to show us the morning catch. Rod's eyes get as big as saucers.

The Rogue originates at Crater Lake. There are only two dams left on it, but a visible side effect of the dams is it's opaque green color. It's not crystal clear like the Illinois River that merges with it up stream. The Rogue is higher than normal for this time of year and is warming rapidly. Some of the fall run salmon, like this one, are being caught 30 miles up river which is unusual. In a matter of days, a majority of the fish will move down to the cooler waters of the bay.

The Rogue is a magical and spiritual place, around every bend is something unexpected. Herons and ospreys abound, otter families play along the banks. We learned that once pups are born, the male otters take over rearing and educating the youngsters.

One the perks of traveling the Rogue in a jet boat (no props) is that it can navigate in eight inches of water. Though there are miles of smooth water with fast currents, we also experience class 3 and class 4 rapids. Whenever we come upon rafters, or campers along the shore the boat is slowed so as not to create waves. On the other hand we're all giddy with the thrill of knifing through the rapids, some quick stops (the front end drops everyone on the boat gets a shower) and doing 360 donuts which soak everyone. There were about 10 kids on our boat and what we noticed as the trip progressed is that all adults became more childlike: laughing, screaming, requesting more spins. Yeah Baby! Wahoo!

We dock at Agnes and have lunch at the little restaurant on the hill, the finishing touch is sharing a slice of still warm from the oven blackberry pie with vanilla ice cream. It's hard work playing on the river.



The return trip is just as heartstopping and fun as the way up. We are absolute toast by the time we're dropped of at camp about 3:30 in the afternoon. We opt for cereal for dinner, a little reading and early to bed. We head a little way north tomorrow.

Southern Oregon

07/20/11 ~ None of the reports of rain ever materialized for us but we heard a storm rolled through a few days before we got here. Glad we left Tuesday instead of Sunday (Thank you Andrea for scheduling the BBQ for Monday night!). We spent our first night out near Trinidad at Emerald Forest under the redwoods.

Off to the Smith River this morning to see if we can find a spot to camp at Jedediah Smith State Park. We’re used to travelling in fall and winter when the rest of the world is home so we knew we were taking our chances. Sure enough it’s full. If our return trip brings us down 101 perhaps we’ll make reservations for a couple of days stay. It’s a gorgeous place with some great hikes and fishing.

We decide to continue north on 101 into southern Oregon. The wind is screaming on the coast. At several places we spot some fearless surfers kite boarding at Pistol River. I’d rather take my chances with a zip line thank you.

Just outside of Brookings we decide to call ahead to a place we’ve stayed before called Kimball Creek Bend, about 8 miles up the Rogue River from Gold Beach. They had a spot open up due to a last minute cancellation. We end up with a primo spot on the river with full hookups (for the uninitiated that means power, water, and sewer). We be roughing it here boss! View from the site.

After we got set up Rod headed for the river (about 50 yards from our site) to do some fishing.

Dinner is roasted home grown veggies (beets, carrots, zucchini and crooknecks) and Sonoma County corn on the grill. It’s about 65 and breezy. We’ve been watching four turkey vultures peering into the river from rocks just above the waterline. We’re trying to figure out what they’re after so we get out the binoculars and head for the beach. Just below the rocks we spot an otter dragging a huge salmon out of the water onto a postage stamp patch of sand just out of reach of the birds. The otter munches for a bit and then takes off down river about 20 yards to a little beach. All of a sudden there are 4 of them: two adults, a juvenile and a youngster. It’s time for a late afternoon roll in the warm sand. We watch them play for about 10 minutes and then they’re back in the water and disappear behind a small island. The vultures continue their vigil unable to figure out how to reach that salmon.

As we’re walking back to camp we hear an osprey and turn to see it gliding towards the opposite shore. Binoculars up, we watch it land on a huge nest in the top of a tree and feed its chicks. I’d say we had a home run of an afternoon. Tonight: a campfire, stargazing and reading until our eyes close.

07/21/11 ~ Today we are going to read in shade and perhaps walk the river a bit, I mean someone has to do it.

Tomorrow we are headed up the Rogue on a 104 mile round trip on one of the jet boats: layers of clothes, binoculars and camera - wahooo!

D-Day Approaches ~ Right or Left?

The adventure begins at o'dark thirty on Tuesday morning. We've been watching the weather and due to the haze and heat down near Sequoia and Kings Canyon we're going to head north instead of southeast this trip. The parks are still on the top of our list, but think we'll wait until a storm or two has rolled through and cleared the air, perhaps in the Autumn when leaves are changing and the crowds are back home. This trip we could end up at any of these incredible places or somewhere else altogether.

Falls on North Umpqua River

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Today and tomorrow are the preparation trifecta: pack the rig, soak the gardens and clean the house (there's nothing like coming home to fresh sheets on a real bed after a couple of weeks on the road). We don't consider any of these activities chores, the payoff is the freedom to wander for a couple of weeks or more (Rod gets his August schedule in late July, so if he doesn't have time scheduled the first part of the month we can stay out longer - yeah baby!).

 Oregon Coast 

We'll be ready for any kind of weather Mother Nature chooses to throw at us, but it does seem a bit odd to pack rain gear, long johns and swim suits. The beauty of a motorhome is that you can take whatever you might need and you don't have to pack and unpack every day.

Imnaha Nights

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A little side note: After our last trip to SE Oregon in May I did a spreadsheet on actual costs (fuel, camp fees, food, etc.) and created the same hypothetical trip taking the Honda, staying in lodging and eating out. In spite of the cost of fuel we saved about $500 taking the motorhome. The biggest perk and true value is that we were able to stay in the woods, along rivers and at the ocean.

Rogue River

Fishing gear, cameras, walking sticks, hiking boots and binoculars ~ check! Books, books on CD and music ~ check! Next comes clothes, foodstuffs and systems checks. I'll keep you posted as we go. We may be off the grid for periods of time, but that's half the fun. There is a "follow by email" button on right side of blog, sign up you'll get notified of new posts.

Adventure Planning

We've just discovered that the last two weeks of July are open for interpretation: no work scheduled, no commitments, and no promises to keep. You know what that means ~ Road Trip!

We rarely plan more than a general direction which is known as the "shall we turn right or left" school of planning. This time we added a few parameters:

• blue highways
• temperate climate
• fishing
• hiking
• photography
• bird watching

If the weather cooperates (not too hot) we may head towards Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon.

Sky Parlor Meadow

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If it's unseasonably warm in the Sierra's then perhaps we'll head north to the Smith and Rogue Rivers along the coast. We've travelled Hwy 101 to Oregon every year for 30 years and never get tired of exploring or the view.

Smith River Walk, Smith River, CA

Rogue River

Something to add to your bucket list is a Rogue River Jet Boat trip. It's a 104 mile round trip through some of the most beautiful wilderness you've ever seen. Prepare for an experience of a lifetime and prepare to get wet. It's been 4 years for us, so if we decide on the Oregon Coast for our trip we're going to do it again. They even picked us up at our campground. Here's a link to Jerry's Rogue River Jet Boats to learn a little about the company and it's history: http://www.roguejets.com/

Life is short ~ don't waste a minute!