To the Redwoods ~ June 4th-5th, 2012

We're headed for the Smith River on the north coast of California. Hwy 140 out of Lakeview, OR is another great blue highway that takes us west to Grant's Pass where we turn south onto Hwy 199 and head deep into Redwood country. It's about a 280 mile drive. The weather is continually changing: sunshine to a dusting of snow, periodic showers to heavy rain.  There are large ranches in the valleys of SE Oregon. Juniper, pine, and wildflowers dot the landscape. Once back in Redwood country we breathe in the aroma and marvel at the majesty of our north coast forests.

We're in a day early to the Smith River. We have reservations for the 5th-6th but they find us a space for tonight. It's raining cats and dogs but the sound is magnificent. It's late afternoon and we're curled up drinking green tea and reading ~ Rod with Mark Twain and me with a "bodice ripper" from Harlequin called Operation: Midnight Cowboy. I traded it for one of our paper backs at Junipers Lake. It has a cowboy, a redhead and an international terrorist, what more could you ask for?. Tomorrow is supposed to be only 20% chance of rain so Rod's looking forward to some fishing and I'm looking forward to hiking with my camera.

After dinner we set up for the night and continue to read. The lights start dimming. Say what? The rig battery is failing so the pilot light isn't firing on the propane refrigerator. Rod tries to start the generator, but it wouldn't fire until he starts the rig to give it enough juice. We run the generator for about 10 minutes and that seemed to do the trick. We've had the rig plugged in at all our our camp spots, and this is the first attempt at "dry camping" on the trip. We turn off all the lights and get out the battery lantern for the rest of the evening. Now we're sure there is a short somewhere in the system, perhaps damage from the separated tire treads that beat up the underside of the coach on day 2.

We wake up at 5:30 am and Rod 's ready to throw in the towel and head home. He's disappointed in not being able to spend a couple of days fishing on the Smith River. I mention that if we camp at a place where we can plug in we'll be okay. He sees logic in my suggestion and off we go to Trinidad and Emerald Glen Park where we started the trip. Expecting the usual north coast summer weather of cold fog and drizzle, we are oh so pleasantly surprised to find it clear, sunny and about 70 degrees. Perfect!

After lunch we headed for Trinidad Harbor and walked on the beach. Walked back up into town and down a large number of steep steps to the cove on the harbor side. Our knees were barking like harbor seals by the time we got back up the stairs. After that little workout, we're back to camp for a shower, dinner, a movie and early to bed. Home is calling.

Deja Voodoo Tires ~ June 1-2, 2012

6/1 ~ After breakfast we start the trek West on Hwy 20 towards Mountain Home, ID for the night. Tomorrow we'll head for Bend and turn south on Hwy 395 to Lakeview, OR for a couple of days.

We almost make it to Mountain Home and bang, thwapa, thwapa ~ the outside dually on the driver side loses it's tread. This time, at least, we're not on a major freeway and pull off onto a wide gravel verge with a view. We unhitch the Honda so I can set out to find some cell phone reception. I take one of the walkie-talkies since I don't know how far that'll be. We now have our road handles: Red Ryder and Little Beaver.

Joe's Towing to the rescue within an hour to change the tire. Good Sam Platinum Road Service has been worth it's weight in gold. In spite of the third installment of the Tire Trilogy, it's been a gorgeous day, sunny and breezy. Once the tire is changed we head for Mountain Home RV Park for a hot shower and dinner.

6/2 ~ First stop this morning is Les Schwab to get rig tires assessed. We have them check serial numbers on remaining tires and replaced only the ones in same batch as two tires that lost their tread. Wow we only needed 2 tires not 4.

Breakfast at RJ's truck stop and off we go, west on 20 then south at 395 to Lakeview. This will be our second stay at Juniper Lake Reservoir, a small park in the middle of a working cattle ranch and great place for hiking, photography and birdwatching. We came in from the south last visit, so this is new territory and a gorgeous drive.

Rod's determined to BBQ once we get settled and that sounds like a winner to me: chicken, corn and Shelley potatoes. We dine outside and enjoy the view and the weather. Against all odds we haven't yet lost our sense of humor about this and have decided to dub this trip the:

Re-TIRE-ment Tour

or

2-4-6-8 who do we appreciate

Les Schwab for being everywhere!



Stair Master to the Sky ~ May 31, 2012

After breakfast we asked the park host for a suggestion on a good place to explore that's only a short drive, especially after yesterday's 200 mile jaunt. He told us to just turn right out of the park driveway and head for the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. It's about 25 miles north on a gravel road. Though we're camped in Idaho, somewhere along the way we cross into the Centennial Valley and Lakeview, Montana.  The drive is spectacular and we see only a couple of other cars on the road the entire journey ~ our kind of place!

Off to a promising start

Yellow Bellied Marmot  ~ Roadside Patrol

 Short pause for lunch

Just before we get to the Refuge we came upon what appears to be ghost town, like a movie set right out of an old Western. We find out it's the home base for the Center for Earth Concerns, headed by lifelong naturalists and philanthropists Melody and John Taft. The organization works around the world, dedicated to enhancing and expanding education for the protection of wildlife. You can find out more about their vision and work at http://www.earthconcerns.org/

The historical buildings, which date back to the early settlers, are being restored and recreated. Also in development is a museum to showcase the history of the Centennial Valley. The facility hosts environmental researchers, artists, students and volunteers to study and fulfill common goals. "The heart of the Center is held by the people who continually dream a vision into being - the founders, directors, staff and volunteers who welcome and care for all who are fortunate enough to visit this oasis for the soul".

Our next stop is the small Visitor's Center at the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge where we find more information on the area and local wildlife. We ask about the fire lookout tower on the property and find it's been retired for some time. We're delighted when the host hands us the keys and lets us to climb up and take a look. You want to talk Stairmaster ~ this was much more fun than the one at the gym and the view from the top was amazing!

Late afternoon we head back to camp to relax and fix some dinner. Starting to feel the thigh and calf muscles from our climb! Tomorrow we start the journey home and will hatch our game plan as we go.

A Day Off - Sorta - May 21st

After our birding adventure yesterday with Ken, Betty, Trisha and Leland we decide it might be good to take a day off and relax, we have another adventure planned for tomorrow.

Rod and I decide on a short walk. We've got a hand drawn map of the reservoir and ranch trails and take off about 9:30am. It's threatening rain, so along with binoculars, my camera, peanut butter sandwiches and water we bring light weight rain gear (smart move it turns out).

There are wildflowers everywhere. The leaves on this purple one look a little like our California lupine, but the flowers grow at the base (perhaps to protect blooms from extreme weather). There are bright yellow, pink, orange and white ones at every turn.

The ground is damp and cushions our footsteps. The aroma of pine is in the air and creek sounds and birdsong are all we hear. Very serene. The sky keeps changing, it's warm when the sun is out and cold when the wind shifts and comes right at you. Enchanted by our surroundings we keep on walking, making note of the land marks cited on the map. Then we come to a sign with an arrow that points in both directions. Back to the park is 2.7 miles and to continue the rest of the walk is 3.8 miles. 

Okay, we're game, the altitude isn't bothering us, the legs seem to be pretty happy, and we've just had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Life is good, westward ho!

We pass large outcroppings of white rock, a field of rock with bright orange lichen, ponds, small footbridges and several flumes directing water in different directions, no doubt for irrigation of the upper pastures we are traversing. We turn a corner and the valley begins to stretch out below us. The skies darken and we're suddenly being pelted with hail and burst out laughing as we scramble to get into our raincoats. It breaks in about 5 minutes and we're back in the sun. Rod calls it a freshet. Around the last turn before we reach the lakeside path back to camp we spy a welcome site.

Kidding! We're totally amazed at the distance we've travelled today, almost 7 miles. It was a great excursion, but now it's time to relax, we again join the camp chair brigade and do a little bird watching with our feet up while we contemplate dinner.