Resting for the evening

December 13th 2008 57* clear and windy

We are sitting in Needles California at a Marian/Rv park. Nice place and full hookups. This sits on the Colorado river and is not to far from Lake Havasu Arizona, we have about 120 miles to go to get to Quartzsite Arizona. We hit the gammot today. Left the beach at 55 degrees and sunny, ran into some fog near Bakersfield and then into Tehachapi where the temperature continued to fall until bottoming out at 31* and SNOWING! It was no longer fog but snow! Fortunately it was not sticking to the road and it was not slippery. We cleared Tehachapi at 4200 feet and began the ride down hill. The further we got the warmer it got at one point it was 62 degrees! Here it is still pretty nice for late evening.









Deanna heated up the leftover pizza and we had that for dinner and I had some multigrain salsa chips!

Found diesel in California the cheapest yet, $2.09 cash! WOW, I didn't really need any but filled up anyway! Only took about 20 gallons but that ensured we would have enough to make it the rest of the way to Quartzsite without having to refuel. Mileage was 11.5 on the last tank, that is fantastic! We made about 430 miles today and was dark when we arrived. The thing about out west here is there is not an rv park on every exit like back east, prior to this park the last one was over 90 miles back.

Well, anyway we have full hookups for a night and I got all the tanks cleaned and dumped, will fill the fresh water tomorrow before we leave.

Spoke to my uncle Dave last night and told him we were coming to see him end of next week and he told me that my aunt is not doing well back in Ohio. She had gotten alzimers now and has progressed so fast she doesn't even know her daughter. :( She will be going to a nursing home when she leaves the hospital. These are the last brother and sister of my dad. Will be good to see David.

Everyone have a good day tomorrow and I will write more soon.

Time to move on

The Morro Rock at sunset



December 12th, 2008 53* cloudy

We did the laundry today as it has accumulated quite a bit over the last 10 days. Here at the strand on the beach we have no hook ups so Deanna can't use her washer to keep up. So we saved all the real fun till today! Anyways that is caught up and we are good to go till we get to a regular campground. The next week we will be in the desert doing more boondocking. I possibly may have to buy new batteries as mine are showing their age and don't last near as long as they use to.

After finishing the laundry, I ran down and got us a pizza as we haven't had that fix for a while and it sure tasted good! Afterwards we headed to see the Elephant seals and man were they a site! For probably 3-4 miles along the coast you could see them scattered around. There is a particular spot that they hang out in that is all fenced off to keep people from bothering them. Some really huge ones as they get up to 2-1/2 tons and taller than a man when they rear up! Mostly males are on the beach but some females and some pups are there. We did see one that had died and was providing life to the birds. Quite a site to see them all there and they come from thousands of miles away! Now that is a finely tuned GPS system they got! It's funny to hear the males bark and chase the smaller ones away, and once in a while a big one will decide he has the urge and just so charging over to a female and do a little business! :) This all takes place just up the road past a town called San Simeon. Hearst Castle is near there and you drive past the entrance to the castle and go another 4 miles to the spot for the Seals. A site not to be missed in the area.









Well, we said our goodbyes to the ocean tonight :( it was interesting that in the last 2 days we witnessed the lowest and highest tides in the total time we have been here which totals about 20 days. The tide is pulled by the moon and the sun and it just so happens that the moon is closest to the earth right now by 28,000 miles which is causing the tide swings in such great amounts. It's been great hearing the ocean at night and we will miss it but the desert is calling my name. I have waited 2-1/2 years to get back there. So tomorrow morning we will hitch up and move on. Hope to get in about 400 miles tomorrow and that will only leave us about another 125 to our destination of Quartzsite Arizona. I might add that its actually a good time to be leaving as the weather is about to come into play here. Rain and cold temps are predicted for the next 5 days with some snow at the higher elevations. We want to make sure we are out of the range of the snow by afternoon tomorrow. Last time we were here it was 70-80* everyday and the day we left they got a hail storm an hour later! LOL

Tony and Charlotte left this morning and it was sad to see our time end with them but was great just seeing them again. Tony is such a card and always puts the funniest spin on his experiences. He has written a book including a lot of the experiences he had workin here as a camphost and a lot of information for those looking to live on the road. You can check it out here The Firedude! Thanks for the great time buddy! Hope you can make it back East this summer!

So with that I salute the ocean and it's marvels till next time. Adjusting to this time change is a test and tomorrow we will lose an hour on our way east. Till next episode!!!!!!!!!!

Easy Day

December 11th, 2008 Thursday 62* sunny

We just took it easy today. Tony came over and we went to get some lunch, his wife was not feeling well so she stayed at the rv. We went to an authentic Mexican place, authentic enough I didn't know what to order cause I couldn't read the menu! LOL, so that is what it is like to be iliterate, anyways the food was good but the taco's were pretty small. After eating that Tony had to get back to his wife so Deanna and I stayed down in the Harbor and did a little walking around. Had some ice cream for dessert and I had a peanut butter cookie with mine. Then we walked around the shops and picked up a couple of things and I got a new Morro Bay hat and we got a couple of jackets.

After that we drove over to the Rock, which is Morro Bay rock, it is now a preserved monument. From the late 1890's to 1936 a million tons of rock had been removed from the rock by blasting for making eddys and breaks. It is also a breeding spot for Periguin falcons. We saw one flying around. Also saw either a seal or an Otter playing out in the water.

Tony and Charlotte leave tomorrow morning and we leave on Saturday. Sure was fantastic to see them again and it has been too long since the last time. They live about 3 hours from here now but are moving back the first of the year.

Tonight was a beautiful sunset and by far is the lowest tide we have seen ever here between this visit and last. The water was literally a 1/4 mile out from the beach! We went out and took a long walk and picked up some sea shells and Sand Dollars and saw a couple more jelly fish that had washed up. This is a place we will really miss!









Well, Sunday we will be in the desert and I plan to do a little gold hunting with my metal detector and some rock searching, then off to the Phoenix area to visit my Uncle Dave and hopefully a visit to the Heart Attack grill :)

Sightseeing

December 9th, 2008 Temp 66* and sunny

Today Tony and Charlotte took us to a place called Sylvesters in Los Osos, I had the 1/2 pounder and fries and it was very good! They use their own sauce which is thousand Island with some other spices they say. Well worth the visit!


After lunch we hit Montana De Oro State park. What a beautiful place to see. We were here in 2006 and it is still fantastic! Unlike the other beaches this one is all sand stone pebbles rather than sand.

















After that we headed to a coastal town called AvilaBeach, years ago the entire town was destroyed by a 400,000 gallon oil spill. The complete town had to be torn down and the contanimated soil hauled away. So it is like a brand new town that is actually old in history. We walked out on the peir and on the way back I saw a baby seal lounging in the water enjoying hisself.









On the way home we stopped at Avila barn which is a fruit/farm store. Deanna picked up a chocolate and a carmel covered apple and Tony and Charlotte bought an apple pile that must weigh 5 lbs! It was heaped about 5 inches tall~ ~ ! We are having that tomorrow night for dessert after dinner. :)

Our time here is fading quickly as we will be leaving on Saturday morning headed for the desert. We still have yet to go north to see if the Sea lions are in yet in Big Sur. The males are suppose to arrive in November and the females later December and January for molting and giving birth.

Monday after noon, as Tony put it "we were trying to be descrete about collecting firewood from the campground which is a no no, but we figured they wouldn't notice a small piece!









Weather has been nice and quite comfortable. Usually mid to high 60's and sunny almost every day.

Sunshine and waves!

Sunday December 7th, 2008 55* and mostly sunny
Haven't posted for a few days so I better catch up. Our good friends Tony and Charlotte arrived on Friday afternoon to spend the week with us. Was great to see them again we missed them a lot! They can't stay here on the beach as there are no hookups and they are not using their RV but are staying in their sons travel trailer down at the State Park. They invited us down Friday for dinner, Brian (Tony's son) had smoked some TriTips, (hell I didn't know what it was either!) which is a roast type cut of beef. MMMMM was it delicious, he cooked 2 of them with Jalapeno peppers which I didn't try, I stuck with the fail safe smoked :). Brians wife Rena had made some homemade Salsa that was also fantastic! So lots of eating and the guys gathered round the campfire and spoke of only serious true stuff as we always do and the women I am sure were telling stories! :)

The one thing we noticed is that the State park in Morro Bay which is a mile or so inland is one hell of a lot colder than been here on the Strand Beach. The ocean must work like a geotherma heater as the water was reported at 52* and the temp so far has not fallen below that by much. While at the park the other night for dinner it got well down into the 40's.

Tony was a camphost here at Morro Bay for 6 years and just recently decided to give it up as it was consuming too much of his time. So him and his wife moved into the valley to take care of his dad. He and Charlotte will be moving back here to Morro Bay in January though with a view of the ocean but not as a host.
































Saturday was spent doing some odd jobs I have been to lazy to do cause it was too cool. But being here on the beach and the temps in the high 60's it motivated me to get them done. So I went to the hardware store picked up some goodies and had at it! Also did a little straightening in the bay to make it a little less messy.

One of my projects was to add a new switch to my auxillary fuel pump on the truck. In almost 2 years I have never had a problem but going through Arizona the valve failed to shut the pump off and it continued to pump fuel which eventually leaked out and covered the bottom of the truck and the rv with diesel. WHAT A MESS! Hence the couple of hours spent in Winslow Arizona on the way here to get the pair of them powerwashed. Now I have installed a momentary switch that will only pump fuel as long as I have my finger on it. If I let off it shuts off the pump. Much safer and cleaner :).

Saturday night we went and had Chinese for dinner down in the bay area, a lot of restaurants down there of all types and shops. We went back later on that evening to watch their annual xmas boat parade, where these folks full of (spirit probably both kinds ) decorate their boats and parade them thru the harbor for an hour or so. Obviously a big deal as it was CROWDED! We had parked in a lot that seemed like a good idea at the time, but when we came back and saw how stupidily people will park in a frenzy to get a spot. Well I knew we were in trouble when I saw a guy parked 2 spots away in a short bed pickup have to maneuver multiple times to get out! He finally did and I had to have Deanna get out and watch all sides of the truck as I tried to get us out sometimes with only inches to spare. After a few backups I was able to get it out but it was the tightest I have ever been parked and if not for Deanna watching I am sure I would have had to wait till the lot emptied out.

We got their early before dark so had plenty of time to kill so we did some shopping in the stores there and we ended up buying Deanna a sterling silver ring with a blue shell type stone. Really cool and reflects the light kind of like a mother of pearl thing. (By the way, those are MY dirty fingers displaying the ring in cause you were wondering :) )
















I took some photos of the boats but a lot did not come out due to it being so dark and the speed some of them were going. There were only a few that were really cool, the others I think were decorated while they were drinking and one didn't seem to have anything to do with xmas as it was a green alien and some kind of crazy music! Californian's! Go figure! We pass a kid leaving the bay area that can't EVEN be described in words! Wearin all black with chains and crap, a stupid type of hat that had one of those curtains that hangs off the back to protect the back of your neck and waking like a spastic sumo wrestler! And that doesn't even begin to describe how it actually look!

















SO today Tony and Charlotte are coming over and we will find something to get into so I'm closing for now! Enjoy the snow back home!
Here is a video I took the other day.

Later in the day edit:

We went with Tony and Charlotte down to the bay to eat, we had fish and chips and was eating outside on the deck. There were some seals swimming around barking a and some pelicans that came to visit!





















I also shot some of the setting sun this evening.

AHHHH AT LAST, THE BEACH!

December 3rd, 2008 Wednesday 65* Sunny!

Aerial view of where we are!

Our first sunset back on the beach!

Nice trip today and a short jaunt. Only 130 miles. Yesterday we drove 400 miles to make Bakersfield and had a campground picked out but had not called them previous. I don't know what happened but the gps took us to the right address but we never found it, so we picked another nearby, NADA not there! So back on the highway and decided we would drive till we saw another sign for a campground, within 5 miles there it was ! So we take the exit and drive to the campground, pull in only to see a sign on the door that says OUT OF BUSINESS! So we are trying to decided where to go now, it was getting later in the evening and the fog was terrible, so while sitting there a guy pulls up and says "Looking for a place for the night?" We said YEP! HE said well they went out of business 2 weeks ago but the power is still on! Your welcome to stay, there are quite a few folks here and you don't wanna drive in this fog! So with hesitation we decided to pull in. We packed up early and left by 7 in the morning. It was a koa and gotta say after paying $40 the previous night at a KOA, I didn't feel to bad about using it.

So we went for our first walk on the beach and the first thing we come across is this giant blob of jello! I said " Could that be a Jellyfish?" Hell we didn't know cause we never saw one. So I stopped 3 girls walking by and asked them. "YEP! You can touch the top but don't mess with the bottom." I told them they could take it home to put in their aquarium and save it's life but no go!













Took the Metal detector out around the campground and so far I have $3.61 and a 1929S wheatie penny along with a Hot wheels rolls royce car!












Interesting yesterday when we reached a town we stayed in last time out this way called Tehatachapi, elevation is 4000', when we hit the town the temp was 76*, half way thru and going down in elevation we saw this huge cloud of fog almost like a smoke cloud. Well by the time we left that town the temp was 45* just that quick! We never left the fog till today, and that was just 10 miles from the beach, suddenly the sun broke through and it was beautiful!

Well time to kick back and listen to the ocean! We can hear it roaring even with the windows closed! Its cool out now down in the lower 50's.

Seligman Arizona

December 1st, 2008 Monday 61* sunny

Aerial of where we are

Our Current Location

Didn't make our destination of Kingman today as planned due to an unforseen incident. We had some fuel spill from the tank and coated the underside of the truck and rv WHAT A MESS! We sat in Winslow Arizona (yes there was a song about that place :) The Eagles sang it) waiting at a truck wash to get the bottom powerwashed to get it all off. Thankfully we don't have TOO much smell inside. I think I have some real cleaning to do when I get home!

Anyway we still made 400 miles today and we passed through an area we had been through before where there is a huge lava field from a volcano, its called Bandera volcano and here is a link Bandera Volcana . Lava stretches for over 20 miles and is all pushed up in piles along route 40. Really cool to see.

We attempted to stop at Meteor Crater but was too late in the day, it is only 6 miles off of the highway and we drove back to it, but it costs $15 per person and we didn't want to spend $30 for an hour. So it will be scheduled on our next trip this way and we will also hit the Grand Canyon and the Painted Desert and Petrified Forrest again.

This little town of Seligman is best known for being the Historic birthplace of Route 66. A barber in town hated to see the town and the route die so he started a campaign and got all these owners together to save the historic route. Here is a link There is a restaurant in town called Snowcaps and there are some old cars there. Those old cars are the basis of the cartoon "Cars" as it was this area the movie revolved around apparently. I did not see the movie.

We are slowly getting warmer, today it was in the 60's and suppose to get down to 30 tonight. Back home they got a coating of snow. We did see some mountains again today snow covered and hit an elevation of 7200 feet!


HEY PATTI! We found trees in Arizona! Of all places Flagstaff!! LOL