Category Archives: Historic Landmark

Historic Landmark

Grand Canyon NP South Rim, part 1, APR 24, 2019

The week after Easter we visited the South Rim of Grand Canyon National Park for five days. We didn’t realize it when we made the reservation, but the week before and the week after Easter are very busy in the park. We knew that to be true by the long line of cars waiting at the entrance gate to enter the park. We last visited Grand Canyon in 2015 and this time we stayed at the same campground inside the park. I was delighted to see elk roaming free throughout the campground, just like last time. These Rocky Mountain elk were brought to the park from 1913-1928 from Yellowstone National Park. They appear to be tame and unafraid of people or cars. Regardless of how tame they are, we obeyed the rules and kept our distance and didn’t feed them.

We couldn’t wait to get to popular Mather Point for our first view of the Canyon. One of the Seven Wonders of the World, there are no words to adequately describe the Grand Canyon. Amazing, vast, awe inspiring, beautiful are words that do not do it justice. It is hard to comprehend that the Colorado River carved this magnificent canyon. The canyon is 277 miles long, four to 18 miles in width and one mile deep.

The Colorado River flows below at an average speed of four miles per hour. The river averages 300 feet wide and 100 feet deep. It flows through the Canyon and eventually empties into the Gulf of California in Mexico. From the rim of the Canyon the Colorado River is small and hard to see. However there are whitewater areas that make rafting on the river challenging and dangerous. The depth of the Canyon erodes about the width of a sheet of paper each year, so the Canyon is continually changing.

The Grand Canyon became a national park in 1919 so this is the 100th anniversary of the 1.2 million acre park. Recently there have been three deaths in the park due to people falling to their death. The day after we arrived we heard a 70 year old woman fell to her death. Some people ask why the park rangers can’t do more to prevent this from happening. The park is huge and with over six million visitors a year, there is no way the park service can prevent accidents from happening. There are warnings everywhere about not getting close to the edge. The Grand Canyon can be a dangerous place and people have to accept responsibility for their actions. In the five days we were there we observed people doing crazy, dangerous things. And in all cases it was because of picture taking. A few times I had to walk away for fear of seeing a tragedy I wouldn’t be able to forget. No picture is worth risking your life.

Most of the areas of the park can be reached by their free shuttle buses. But Desert View Watchtower has to be driven to by car. So one day we made the 25 mile trip to the eastern most developed section of the park to see the tower and the beautiful views of the Canyon. The four story 70 foot stone tower was built in 1932 and designed by architect Mary Elizabeth Jane Colter.

We climbed to one of the lookout points in the tower and then had a picnic lunch.

We really enjoyed the drive there and back because there are scenic viewpoints along the way. As we started home, heavy clouds began to form which can dramatically change the lighting and appearance of the Canyon. No two days there are the same.

Next up: part two of our visit to Grand Canyon National Park

Boulder City, NV APR 12, 2019

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Leaving Lake Havasu City we drove to Boulder City, Utah for a six night stay. Boulder City (pop 15,600) is a lovely city which was built in 1931 to house workers contracted to build Hoover Dam, formerly called Boulder Dam. Previously, men who hoped to work on the Dam were living with their families in tents and shacks on land chosen as the site of the Dam. The town was built by the Bureau of Reclamation as the “Boulder Canyon Project Federal Reservation”. Federal rangers maintained law and order on the “reservation”. Boulder City is very rare in that it was fully planned under government supervision. The town was designed to house around 5,000 workers and the status of the workers was reflected by the size and location of their house. Commercial development was restricted and severely limited by a stern, iron fisted city manager. There was no provision for schools at first because it was assumed only single men would be working on the Dam. No hospital was built for years with injured workers taken to nearby Las Vegas. When a hospital was eventually built, it was a number of years before females were allowed to be admitted. Visitors to Boulder City had to go through a gatehouse, and gambling was prohibited. Today, Boulder City is one of only two Nevada cities which prohibit gambling. Alcohol was prohibited until 1969. Las Vegas had campaigned to have the workers housed in Las Vegas but because of its rowdy, risqué reputation, it was passed over in favor of Boulder City. Today Boulder City is very proud of its nickname “Home of Hoover Dam”. The federal government gave up control of Boulder City in 1959 when it was incorporated.

We visited the Boulder City-Hoover Dam Museum located inside the historic Boulder Dam Hotel. The hotel, built in 1933, is on the National Register of Historic Places.

In the 1930’s and 1940’s the hotel was the accommodation for Shirley Temple, Betts Davis, Howard Hughes, Will Rogers, Boris Karloff and other celebrities who came to see the Dam being built. The museum had an excellent movie and exhibits on life in Boulder City in the 1930’s as well as the construction of the Dam. Working conditions were hard and treacherous to say the least. Because of a fine of $3,000 for every day the construction ran over deadline, the men were pushed to the limit and often competitions were used to push the men even harder. Occurring in the days immediately after the Great Depression, men were afraid to complain of unbearable heat and working conditions for fear of being fired. Only American citizens could work on the Dam which essentially meant whites only. In 1932 only a few African Americans were hired but were not allowed to live in Boulder City. This changed after Franklin Roosevelt was elected.

We enjoyed walking around the town doing some geocaching. Evidence of the town’s history was everywhere.

34 Ton Water Runner Converts Water Power To One Generator

One day we drove to the nearby Lake Mead National Recreation Area. This is the nation’s first national recreation area and the largest reservoir in the country. It was formed by the Hoover Dam in 1935 and provides water to twenty million people and farmland in Arizona, California and Nevada as well as some to Mexico. The Lake has not reached full capacity since 1983 due to water demands and drought. In August, 2017 it was only at 40%.

Our main reason for going there was to hike the Historic Railroad Trail. This trail is a portion of the former railroad route that carried supplies from Boulder City to Hoover Dam during construction of the Dam. The trail is no longer a railroad but has been replaced with crushed rock. Along the trail are panoramic views of Lake Mead. Hikers pass through five tunnels approximately 300 feet in length and 25 feet in diameter. The trail can take you all the way to Hoover Dam but on this day we had to stop at tunnel three because the tunnel was closed due to unstable conditions. Since it was a hot sunny day with no shade on the trail, we were okay with turning around at that point. We had walked 10,000 steps by the time we returned to the car.

We then drove to Hoover Dam. Back in Jan, 2015 we visited Hoover Dam and took a tour of the facility. This time we wanted to stop at the visitor area at the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge which is the first concrete-steel composite bridge in the United States and the widest concrete arch in the Western Hemisphere. At 880 feet above the Colorado River it is the second highest bridge in the United States and the world’s highest concrete arch bridge. The bridge connects Arizona and Nevada. The visitor’s area, in Nevada was super busy with limited parking. I did the musical chairs game with all the other cars trying to find a parking spot. In the meantime Bill walked up the steep trail to the top of the Bridge. It was a very windy day and when he walked out onto the bridge he took his sunglasses off because he was afraid they would blow off his face! He took some great shots of Hoover Dam from the top of the bridge.

We then drove from Nevada over the dam to the Arizona side to have another look at this marvelous structure.

Hoover Dam from the Arizona Side With Memorial Bridge in the Distance

Another day we hiked around the Nature Discovery Trail and Rock Garden. We loved the beautiful rocks, desert flora and giant statues of desert animals. Plaques gave interesting facts about the animals and flora. Did you know jackrabbits can run up to forty miles an hour or that the roadrunner can survive its entire life without drinking water but receives moisture from its prey?

We finished the day by finding a geocache at the Nevada State Railroad Museum. We not only found a geocache but some great old trains too.

Railway Post Offices (RPO) were used to transport and sort mail using the hanging mail bag system. RPO were started in the 1830’s and ended in 1950’s.

We had a wonderful time in Boulder City.

Here is the link to our previous visit to Hoover Dam where we took the inside tour January 27, 2015 Boulder City, Nevada

Next up : Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada

Catching Up & Lake Havasu, AZ Apr 8, 2019

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Yes, it has been a long time since our last blog posting. We spent the winter in Yuma, AZ, one of our favorite winter destinations. It was cooler with more rain than past winters there, but still better than cold and snow.

A Saturday Sunrise In Yuma AZ

In February we took a two week break from Yuma and attended the amateur radio Quartzsfest in Quartzsite, AZ. This year the amateur radio gathering broke a record with over one thousand people attending. Bill spent the time at seminars on all things related to amateur radio and we both attended the daily happy hour gathering where hundreds of prizes were given away. We didn’t win anything but the daily anticipation of possibly winning was fun.

March found us back in Yuma and Bill helped out with the three day Yuma Amateur Radio Hamfest. One day was cool and rainy and unfortunately that was the day Bill had to be outside all day helping park RVs attending the event.

Waiting To Win A Super Radio At Yuma Hamfest

By the end of March there was a mass exodus of snowbirds since Yuma was getting way too hot. It was time to move on with our spring travels.

First stop was Lake Havasu City, best known for their London Bridge and water sports. Lake Havasu is a large reservoir formed by Parker Dam and provides lots of opportunities for boating and fishing. The city website advertises 400 miles of coastline, 300 days of sunshine and 60 miles of navigable waterways.

In 1968 Businessman Robert McCulloch bought the London Bridge from England for $2.5 million. The bridge was being replaced in England and McCulloch hoped bringing the London Bridge to Lake Havasu City would attract tourists and encourage people to select the city as their home. The Bridge was disassembled and shipped stone by stone for another $7 million and it took three years to complete putting it back together. The Lake Havasu City website says it is the second largest tourist attraction in Arizona after the Grand Canyon. I question whether that is really true.

One day we rode over to see Parker Dam located on the Colorado River, 155 miles downstream from Hoover Dam. Parker Dam is known as the deepest dam in the world. Engineers digging for bedrock to build the dam upon had to excavate very deep beneath the Colorado River. 73% of Parker Dam’s 320 foot structural height is not visible.

Construction began in 1934 and was completed in 1938. Located on the border of Arizona and California, arguments over water rights began almost immediately with the Arizona Governor calling out the National Guard in 1934 to take possession of the land around the dam site. He was angry that water stored behind the Dam was going to be pumped to California. Continuing arguments and litigation stopped construction at times and contributed to the long completion time.

We drove across the Dam into California and looked for the burros that were supposed to roam freely along the roadway. We saw many signs cautioning us to watch for them but had a very difficult time finding any.

We saw evidence of them by the burro poop on and alongside the road. It was a very hot day and we decided they were resting in the shady trees out of sight. Someone decorated this large rock to appear like a alien head.

We turned around and headed home and suddenly Bill spotted several burros yards from the roadway. Seeing the Dam and the burros made for a fun day.

The Colorado River is enjoyed by all.

Next stop: Boulder City, home of Hoover Dam

Los Angeles, CA Part 3, Nov 16, 2018

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Continuing with our Los Angeles adventures, on Thursday we drove to nearby Castaic and had a nice visit with Bill’s cousin George and his wife Cindy.

Friday was a very busy day. We drove back into LA to tour Griffith Observatory. Even on a weekday the Observatory parking lot was full and we had to park at the bottom of the hill and ride a shuttle bus back and forth.

On the road to the top is this tunnel. It has been used in many Hollywood films.

Between the traffic getting into the city and waiting twenty minutes for the bus each way, we didn’t have time for a planetarium show. But we really did enjoy walking around inside, seeing all the exhibits and watching a movie about the Observatory narrated by Leonard Nimoy.

A large rotating Moon and a Moon rock exhibit

The outside views were pretty amazing too even though it was a hazy day. No doubt all the wildfires didn’t help. We had views of the Los Angeles area, the Hollywood sign and the Pacific Ocean far in the distance.

The afternoon sun reflecting off the Pacific Ocean

The Observatory first opened in 1935 and has free admission in accordance with the will of Griffith J. Griffith who was the Observatory’s benefactor.

Mural on the ceiling in the main entrance

The planetarium was used to train pilots in celestial navigation during WWII. In the 1960’s it was used to train Apollo astronauts for the first lunar missions. In 2002 the Observatory underwent a four year $93 million renovation in which the building was actually jacked up so an underground floor could be added.

In 1955 the Observatory became an emblem of Los Angeles when scenes from the James Dean movie “Rebel Without A Cause” was filmed there. A bust of Dean is located on the Observatory grounds. Many many films and TV shows have been filmed here as well.

We really enjoyed our visit and it is definitely on our must return list.

The reason we couldn’t stay longer at the Griffith Observatory is because we had tickets to see the taping of “The Conners”, formerly “Roseanne” at the Warner Brothers Studio. We actually had tickets for the previous Friday and even though we arrived two hours early with general admission tickets, we were turned away after waiting an hour and a half. They had a lot of VIP guests and the seats filled up quickly. They always way over book to ensure a full audience. We were disappointed, aggravated but would not be deterred. I emailed my high school friend and asked if she could use her contacts and get us VIP tickets for the following Friday. It seems VIP tickets is the only way to be sure to get in. She said she would see what she could do. A few days later we had VIP tickets and a pass for VIP parking right on the studio lot. We could see the signs where Sara Gilbert and others parked right near us! Unfortunately just like “Last Man Standing “, absolutely no pictures are allowed. We didn’t even want to chance taking our phones out in the studio parking lot to take pictures. No sense getting thrown off the lot after getting this far! But we did manage to snap this picture from the street before we passed through security.

Whereas “Last Man Standing “ took two and a half hours to tape, “The Conners” took three and a half hours. Since they took us into the studio an hour before taping, it was a long evening. But just like the other taping, they gave us pizza and candy. Katey Sagal had a guest appearance on the show. It was all a great experience and I am glad we were able to get in this time with VIP treatment. Thanks again, Miriam!

Our last day in the area we drove a short distance from our campground to Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park. We were attracted to the area because of all the movies and TV shows filmed here beginning in 1935 and including movies such as “Planets of the Apes, Star Trek IV, The Lone Ranger Rides Again, Conquest of Cochise, One Million B.C., The Flintstones, and The Ten Commandments”, as well as TV shows such as “The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, Battlestar Galactica, Big Bang Theory, Bonanza, Gunsmoke” and the list goes on and on.

A prominent rock formation is nicknamed “Kirk’s Rock” since so many Star Trek movies and TV shows have been filmed here. Also commercials for Taco Bell, Nike, Pepsi and Bank of America were shot here as well.

While we were there some young adults were filming some kind of crazy scenes. They appeared to most likely be some college kids working on a group project.

The rock formations formed about 25 million years ago due to uplift along the San Andreas Fault and rapid erosion. The area was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972 because it was a prehistoric site for the Shoshone and Tataviam peoples around 450 B.C. The Homesteading Act of 1862 made the land available to homesteaders and many of them made money renting the area out as filming locations and they put up tourist cabins to capitalize on the star power. Some of the landowners used lumber and nails from old movie sets to build homes. California’s first gold rush began less than fifteen miles from here. And yet it wasn’t gold, but the discovery of borax which provided wealth to the area.

This area is so rich in filming history. One day as we were driving back from LA one of the roads near our campground was closed due to filming being done. We could see all the filming equipment and trucks as we drove by.

Despite the scary wildfires and wind, we had a great time while in this area. There is so much to do in the Los Angeles area we have a long list of places to go and things to see next time.

Next up: we move further south to Jojoba Hills near Temecula to see friends

Day Trip to Santa Barbara, OCT 31, 2018

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Continuing our stay at the Ventura County beach park, on Wednesday we drove to Santa Barbara to look around the town. Our first stop was at the Reagan Ranch Center.

The Center, called the “schoolhouse for Reaganism, is a Young America’s Foundation Center dedicated to Ronald Reagan.

There are exhibits about Reagan as well as rooms for lectures, conferences, events related to the conservative movement and a replica of his library at the ranch.

The Center is free and we were given a tour by a Center docent. We saw a movie about President Reagan’s presidency, policies and life at his nearby ranch. The Reagan ranch, Rancho del Cielo (Ranch of Heaven) is not open to the public.

During his presidency the ranch became the Western White House. He loved spending time there chopping wood, clearing brush, chopping up telephone poles for fences, riding horses and reading in the evenings by the hearth. Reagan loved the ranch, the land and all it represented.

The Center has a chapel room with President Reagan’s favorite verse printed on the wall. This was was his mother’s favorite verse, the verse he mentioned during his inaugural address in 1981, and the family Bible was open to this verse when he took his oath of office. His mother, Nelle, had written in the Bible beside the verse, ‘A wonderful verse for the healing of a nation”.

We saw Reagan’s riding boots, a piece of the Berlin Wall, his jeep given by Mrs. Reagan for his birthday in 1983 and one of his saddles.

It was hard to get pictures at the Center because of glare from the museum lights. (An example is the picture of his boots where it looks like the top of one boot is missing due to bad glare).

Next up was the Moreton Bay Fig tree, the largest fig tree in the United States. A seaman visiting Santa Barbara in 1876 gave an Australian Moreton Bay fig tree seedling to a local girl who planted it.

Last we toured the Santa Barbara County Courthouse, without a doubt the most beautiful courthouse we have ever visited. It was completed in 1929 after the first courthouse was destroyed by an earthquake. It is a Spanish Colonial Revival style architecture and the Spanish influence is everywhere.

The courthouse is composed of four buildings with red tile roofs, a four faced clock tower, beautiful arches and a sunken garden. On the grounds are plants and trees from 25 countries. You enter the main building and see wrought iron chandeliers and railings and colorfully tiled floors. Even the walls around the water fountains are tiled as well as the elevator doors.

Our favorite room was the mural room with hand-painted murals.

Bill did a panoramic shot of the room. If you click on the image and then again the arrow and move the picture (up/down/left/right) with your fingers, hopefully you can see around the room. Click this link to see panorama interactive image

In the clock tower we had gorgeous views of Santa Barbara. At each of the four corners was a display showing us what we were looking at.

On the way back down the stairs we passed the Bisno Schall Clock Gallery where we could see the mechanism of the huge clock installed in 1929 and still keeping time on the four faces outside.

What a great day, and we were pleased that none of the places we visited today charged a fee and Santa Barbara provides plenty of free parking. The only annoying part of the day was the rush hour traffic jam we got in on US 101 on the way home.

We really enjoyed our time on the beach in Ventura watching the surfers, viewing the amazing sunsets and going to sleep each night to the sound of crashing waves.

Next up: lots of fun things in the Los Angeles area

UPDATED: Petaluma, CA OCT 6, 2018

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I drove the car and we started out slowly with Bill listening for any beeps on the tire monitor system signaling a problem. We backtracked on SR 1 to SR 128. So far, so good. Then came SR 253 which was recommended for us to take to US 101. The southern end of SR 128 is also not advised for large vehicles. Highway SR 253 was the scariest drive of the day with descents of 8% and 10% grades. Really steep, but at least they were not uphill. Not good on the best of days and downright nerve wracking with a potential tire problem. Reaching US 101 never felt so good.

When we had a good phone signal Bill was on the phone with several tire companies. Of course none of them had the RV tire in stock and certainly would not recommend removing the screw without a tire to replace it. We continued on, and after almost six hours of driving with rest stops and lunch we arrived at the Petaluma Elks Lodge, a wonderful lodge with full hookups. Jeff, the friendly camp host, was extremely helpful in getting us set up there. Amazingly the tire had not lost air even though Bill noticed a disturbing crack in the tire in addition to the screw. We were definitely blessed to have made it safely. We knew we would have to wait it out until at least Monday.

On Sunday Bill went to sit in on a taping of TWIT (This Week In Tech), one of his favorite tech podcasts which is taped right in a studio in Petaluma. We were last in Petaluma in 2014 and he also sat in on a taping then. After a stressful day on Saturday, he certainly enjoyed the diversion and had lots of fun.

Back on the phone Monday morning Bill found a tire company who could order us the tire. And since the tires were over five years old with almost 44,000 miles on them, we decided to replace all four back tires. We had replaced the two front tires last year. A definite bright spot was the screw was not in one of our new tires.

The tires came in on Wednesday and that day was spent getting the new tires installed and then settling back in at the Elks Lodge.

Before the tire drama our original plan was to stay at a RV park in Pacifica outside of San Francisco for four days. With the delay for the tires to be ordered and installed, we had to cancel our Pacifica plans. I explained the tire situation to the lady at Pacifica and she graciously refunded all our money since we had prepaid the full amount. We were disappointed but we had visited San Francisco in 2014 and done all the touristy things including riding the cable cars, visiting Pier 39 and Alcatraz and driving on Lombard Street, aka “The Crookedest Street in the World”. Over the past couple weeks we have been watching the San Francisco local news. While it is without a doubt located in a beautiful area, it definitely appears to be a city in crisis. With garbage in the streets, rising crime rate (especially car break-ins) , homeless population as well as drug use, it is a city in deep trouble.

One thing we had looked forward to doing again was walking on the beautiful Golden Gate Bridge. Since Petaluma was a 35 minute drive to the north end of the 1.7 mile long Bridge, we decided to drive there on Thursday. We drove to the north vista point and parked the car in a free visitor parking area. We were nervous about leaving the car because of all the news reports of recent break-ins in broad daylight throughout the San Francisco area. Signs in the parking lot warned of break-ins. From there it was a quick walk to the Bridge.

Alcatraz Island

We walked to the halfway point, enjoying the spectacular views of San Francisco, Alcatraz and the San Francisco Bay. There were lots of tourists walking and bike riding on the Bridge. In the water we saw sea lions, including this one with a big fish in his mouth. Several sea gulls were diving down fighting him for the fish. On the other side of the Bridge we could see the Pacific Ocean and a viewpoint which we later drove to with the most magnificent views of the Bridge and city.

Looking toward the bridge viewpoint

As World War II approached, the Army made further improvements to the Harbor Defenses of San Francisco. They had plans to install a 16-inch gun high on the hill but when the gun arrived the decision was made to abandon the plan. Thus leaving this concrete mount and tunnels. It had been an easy quick 35 minute drive to the Bridge that morning but later that afternoon it was a slow stop and go, hour and fifteen minute drive back home.

After getting new tires we were ready to get back on the road and continue our travels. While heavy traffic doesn’t bother Bill, I wasn’t looking forward to the drive around San Francisco and through San Jose. We had three route options and after asking for advice from locals we chose the route which took us furthest around San Francisco rather than over the Golden Gate Bridge or through the bay area. Leaving the Elks Lodge we meandered through some vineyards and eventually on the interstate. The worst traffic was around Walnut Creek. We continued around the bay to San Jose, the center of the Silicon Valley. All in all the traffic wasn’t nearly as bad as I had feared. We reached Morgan Hill and were almost at our campground destination when we were stopped by a sign saying the road had a bridge ahead which was restricted to traffic under seven tons. Oops! I called the campground to get their advice only to have no one answer at either number. Not willing to take a chance, we had to find an alternate route nineteen miles out of our way and many narrow passages. When we arrived at the campground and asked about the bridge restriction they told us that was just something the locals put up to keep big trucks off the road. Grrrrr…..

We are now safely at Morgan Hill, California for four days.

Next up: Back to the coast

Petaluma, CA OCT 6, 2018

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In the last blog post we left off with the dilemma of a screw in one of our four back tires. Since it was inadvisable to continue down the coastal road, we were headed from California SR 1 to US 101 in the hope of making it to a tire repair center before the tire went flat. We sure didn’t want a blow out on one of the narrow curvy and coastal steep roads. I drove the car and we started out slowly with Bill listening for any beeps on the tire monitor system signaling a problem. We backtracked on SR 1 to SR 128. So far, so good. Then came SR 253 which was recommended for us to take to US 101. The southern end of SR 128 is also inadvised for large vehicles. Highway SR 253 was the scariest drive of the day with descents of 8% and 10% grades. Really steep, but at least they were not uphill. Not good on the best of days and downright nerve wracking with a potential tire problem. Reaching US 101 never felt so good. When we had a good phone signal Bill was on the phone with several tire companies. Of course none of them had the RV tire in stock and certainly would not recommend removing the screw without a tire to replace it. We continued on, and after almost six hours of driving with rest stops and lunch we arrived at the Petaluma Elks Lodge, a wonderful lodge with full hookups. Jeff, the friendly camp host, was extremely helpful in getting us set up there. Amazingly the tire had not lost air even though Bill noticed a disturbing crack in the tire in addition to the screw. We were definitely blessed to have made it safely. We knew we would have to wait it out until at least Monday.

The tires came in on Wednesday and that day was spent getting the new tires installed and then settling back in at the Elks Lodge.

Alcatraz Island

We walked to the halfway point, enjoying the spectacular views of San Francisco, Alcatraz and the San Francisco Bay. There were lots of tourists walking and bike riding on the Bridge.

In the water we saw sea lions, including this one with a big fish in his mouth. Several sea gulls were diving down fighting him for the fish.

On the other side of the Bridge we could see the Pacific Ocean and a viewpoint which we later drove to with the most magnificent views of the Bridge and city.

Looking toward the bridge viewpoint

It had been an easy quick 35 minute drive to the Bridge that morning but later that afternoon it was a slow stop and go, hour and fifteen minute drive back home.

The worst traffic was around Walnut Creek. We continued around the bay to San Jose, the center of the Silicon Valley. All in all the traffic wasn’t nearly as bad as I had feared.

We reached Morgan Hill and were almost at our campground destination when we were stopped by a sign saying the road had a bridge ahead which was restricted to traffic under seven tons. Oops! I called the campground to get their advice only to have no one answer at either number. Not willing to take a chance, we had to find an alternate route nineteen miles out of our way and many narrow passages. When we arrived at the campground and asked about the bridge restriction they told us that was just something the locals put up to keep big trucks off the road. Grrrrr…..

We are now safely at Morgan Hill, California for four days.

Next up: Back to the coast

Redcrest, CA SEPT 27, 2018

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While in Eureka on the California coast we ran the heat in the mornings and evenings and usually wore a jacket. We left Eureka and headed inland. Remember when we talked about how chilly it was on the Oregon coast but if we had moved just an hour inland we would have been too hot? We followed U. S. Highway 101 south as it curved inland away from the coast. Our destination was Redcrest to spend several days seeing the majestic redwood trees. When we were outside preparing to leave Eureka we had on jackets. By the time we moved inland and reached Redcrest it was 88 degrees. Whew! What a difference. Time to switch from heat to AC. (Yes, we know our family and friends in Florida are laughing at our complaining about 88 degrees!)

We were last here in May, 2014 and pulled into the same RV park as before in tiny Redcrest, pop 112. It is a nice park but has absolutely no Verizon service.

Here we traded the beauty of the Pacific coastline with the magnificence of the redwoods. And magnificent they are!

We spent our time driving along a road called “The Avenue of the Giants“ and hiked several trails in Humboldt Redwoods State Park, California’s third largest park and containing Rockefeller Forest, the world’s largest remaining contiguous old-growth forest of coast redwoods.

Our first hike was on the Greig-French-Bell Trail. This trail is located in the fog prone northern edge of the park and therefore has a lush ground cover. This particular area is so visually striking it is often used as the setting for movies and TV commercials.

The most well known landmark on the trail is the Girdled Tree where in 1901 the bark was mostly removed and sent to San Francisco so the people there could see what redwoods looked like.

We hiked for well over an hour along the many meandering paths along the trail. Of the trails we hiked it was the least well marked and most overgrown. This was also a great time of year to visit the park since none of the trails were crowded. This is the very end of their tourist season.

This is not a trail, it is a large fallen tree!

Next up was the most famous trail in the park, Founders Grove. It is described as an ancient forest and one of the greatest forests on earth.

One highlight was the Dyerville Giant, a redwood that once stood here for as long as 1,600 years. At the time it was taller, larger and older than any other tree around it. It was 370 feet tall which is two feet taller than Niagara Falls, was seventeen feet in diameter, fifty-two feet in circumference and weighed over one million pounds. When it fell in 1991 it registered on the seismograph and the locals said it sounded like a train wreck.

Along this trail we also walked the Mahan Plaque Loop.

Some giant redwood trees shatter when they fall

Our final trail was the Rockefeller Loop Trail. This forest grove is dark and very dense. It had started to lightly rain while we were walking on this trail and we hardly felt any raindrops thanks to the redwoods being our natural umbrellas.

We had a wonderful time among these majestic giants. But now it is time to return to the coast.

Interesting facts:

Due to climate change and other factors, Coast Redwoods now only grow naturally in a narrow 40 miles wide and 450 mile long strip from southern Oregon to southern Monterey County in California.
Initially, J.D. Rockefeller did not want the forest named after his family, he donated millions of dollars to save these trees. Until 1951 it was known as the Bull Creek-Dyerville Forest.
Redwoods are so immense they live simultaneously in three climatic zones. The base, the stem and the crown are in three separate zones.
Redwoods need great amounts of moisture. This area of California has 65 inches per year average rainfall plus moisture from summer fog.
A very large redwood can release up to 500 gallons of water into the air each day. The redwoods are being affected by the ongoing California drought.
It may take 400 years or more for a decaying tree to become integrated into the forest floor.
Redwood roots grow only a few feet down into the soil but can grow laterally a hundred feet or more. Their roots can intertwine, helping each other stand up.
Redwoods live a long time because they have few enemies. They have a thick fire resistant bark and lack resin.
The scientific name for Coast Redwood is Sequoia sempervirens which means “ever living”.

Bandon, OR SEPT 9, 2018

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We decided to leave Florence two days early because in our sightseeing travels we stumbled across a really great place to camp right near the beach. The price was certainly right at $12.50 a night with our America the Beautiful senior pass.

Horsfall Beach Campground, a national recreation area campground, was a great place with tall sand dunes. Only problem was they blocked the view of the ocean. We didn’t mind too much since great views of the beach was easily accessible just a short walk from our door. It is also a favorite place for ATV enthusiasts who enjoy racing up and down the dunes.

While we were there we drove thirty miles to the Dean Creek Elk Viewing Area to see beautiful elk grazing in the meadows.

We certainly enjoyed our two days camping near the sand dunes!

On Sunday we moved further south to Bullards Beach State Park in Bandon, Oregon. We crossed over the beautiful Conde McCullough Memorial Bridge, built in 1936 and once the longest bridge along the coast. We can certainly see why Highway 101 is also called “The Pacific Coast Scenic Byway”.

We were last at Bullards Beach in 2014 and we enjoyed exploring the Bandon area once again. Located in the state park is Coquille River Lighthouse built in 1896. Located adjacent to the river and lighthouse, it is only forty feet tall and was last operable in 1939.

We enjoyed visiting Old Town Bandon again where Bill returned to the same Bandon Fish Market from 2014 and had some fish and chips. Back in 2014 there was a wonderful bakery owned by an elderly couple and I was really looking forward to going back there. Sadly, it is now out of business.

Bandon is known as the “Cranberry Capital of Oregon” and its main export is cranberries. There is an Ocean Spray plant in Bandon that receives, cleans and ships from 300,000 to 400,000 pounds of cranberries per day during the peak of the harvest season which is September through November. One interesting tidbit is that when some of the workers work in the bogs they walk on stilts to keep from crushing the berries. The whole process of planting to harvesting is quite fascinating but too detailed to go into on the blog. We remembered seeing the cranberry bogs last time we were here in June, 2014 and they looked like this.

Don’t know whether it is the very dry weather or time of year, but this time they looked like this.

The beaches here are very popular with rock-hounds since they are strewn with agates, jasper and other semiprecious stones. In recent years shifting sands have revealed the remains of sunken ships. More than hundred ships, including a 1918 steamship, have shipwrecked in this area. In fact this area is known as the “Storm Watching Capital of the World”. The beaches with their amazing rock formation sometimes experience winds at hurricane force speed, hurtling sprays of water upon the rocks and shore, sometimes 200 yards straight up. We could see the power of the ocean with the huge amount of driftwood that lay on the beaches. We read an article where a woman described how people go to the beach and build forts and structures out of the driftwood to be enjoyed during the spring, summer and fall, knowing it will all be destroyed by the winter storms.

One day we drove the scenic Beach Loop Drive, stopping at one of our favorite places we remembered from our last visit called Face Rock State Scenic Viewpoint. Here you can see a rock in the shape of a woman’s face. There is a legend to go with Face Rock which was first told by Old Indian Mary, a member of the Coquille Native American tribe. Legend has it that Seatka, an evil spirit of the ocean, caused all the storms that blew up and down the coast. If Seatka could cause a person to gaze into his eyes, he would possess their soul forever. Chief Siskiyou and his tribe came to the ocean to feast on the great quantities of seafood. His daughter, Princess Ewauna, failed to heed her father’s warning to stay away from the sea. Seatka captured her and carried her away. She turned her face away so he would not possess her soul and she turned to rock, with her face forever turned northward toward the moon. If you look closely at the picture you can see her face turned with her hair to the left and her nose and mouth visible to the right.

Speaking of Native American legends, we read that the town had almost been destroyed twice by fire, once in 1914 and 1936. The second fire in 1936 devastated the town, destroying the entire business district and most of the residences. They do not know how the fires started, but the surrounding shrubs, dead leaves and trees quickly fueled the fire. The people headed to the nearby beaches to escape the fire, with some people burying themselves in the sand to escape the flames. Legend has it when the white men took the land from the Native Americans, they put a curse on the town and that is why the town has almost been destroyed twice.

Another day we drove to Cape Blanco Lighthouse which is the most western point in Oregon. This lighthouse built in 1870 is still an operational lighthouse and is the oldest operating lighthouse in Oregon. It is 256 feet high and can be seen for more than twenty miles out to sea.

Next we drove to Port Orford which is geographically the westernmost incorporated city in the contiguous United States. Established in 1851, it is the oldest platted town site on the Oregon coast. By the time we got to Port Orford the sea mist was rapidly moving in and we were unable to get good pictures.

Next up: Brookings, Oregon, our last stop in Oregon before returning to California.

Florence, OR AUG 26, 2018

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On August 26th we headed south to Florence, Oregon (pop 8,000) for a two week stay. We wanted to enjoy the Oregon coast and wait out the Labor Day holiday and all the traffic it brings. On the day after Labor Day all the full time RVers start singing “it is the most wonderful time of the year” because all schools are in session, the campgrounds empty out and things really get quiet. No more dodging kids on bikes or fighting for campground spaces. Nine months of peace and quiet. Ahhhh.

In spite of the holiday traffic and crowds, we did get in a little sightseeing. Florence is a great place to visit the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area, a forty square mile park and the largest expanse of coastal dunes in North America with peaks up to 300 feet. The area was busy with dune buggies and ATVs which are allowed on the dunes.

US-101 Siuslaw River Bridge, Florence OR

Since Florence is a river town along the Siuslaw River, we rode to both the North Jetty and South Jetty where the mouth of the Siuslaw River meets the Pacific Ocean. During our time in Florence it was both chilly and windy; we could certainly feel the cold wind at the jetties.

Another day we drove south to see the Umpqua Lighthouse. Built in 1894, it is the only lighthouse on the Oregon coast that emits a red and white light. There are eleven lighthouses on the Oregon coast.

The day after Labor Day we drove north to Heceta Head Lighthouse, also built in 1894 and located 206 feet above the Pacific Ocean. This area of the Oregon coast is especially scenic and beautiful. We never tire of seeing this view! The sea mist, which has annoyed our picture taking all summer, persisted.

Heceta Head Lighthouse in the Distance

At the scenic viewpoint where these pictures were taken, we saw down on the rocks hundreds of sea lions barking at each other and frolicking in the icy cold water.

It was a blustery chilly day and I shivered at the thought of being in the water. We could not only see and hear the sea lions, we could smell them too. Certainly not a fragrance anyone would want to bottle!

On the way home we stopped at the very unusual Darlingtonia State Natural Site. Located here is an unusual plant which traps and digests insects. It is also known as the cobra lily and pitcher plant.

Native to the bog areas of Northern California and Southwestern Oregon, insects are lured into the leaf opening under the hood by nectar on the edges of the openings. Once inside the insects are confused and unable to find their way out. They fall into a pool of liquid at the base of the leaf where the insect is digested and absorbed.

Bill and I agreed the plants reminded us of something you would see on Outer Limits or Twilight Zone TV shows. Really creepy. As we stood there we saw a butterfly, moth and fly buzz around the plants. We found ourselves holding our breath and then saying, “No! Don’t land there! Danger, danger! “

And with that, it was time to head a little further south. Oregonians told us Oregon has one day of summer a year. We thought they were kidding. They weren’t. It has been cloudy much of the time, chilly and windy (mid sixties for highs and 50 at night). Now, not all of Washington and Oregon is this cool. If we had gone inland toward Seattle or Portland, we would have had plenty of heat. Since we will be hugging the coast as we drive south it probably won’t get much warmer. But there is something psychological about heading south in the fall that at least makes you feel warmer.

Next up: Southern Oregon and our last days before hitting California

Through the Eyes of the Selphs

Bill and Diane's travel notes and pictures

Category Archives: Historic Landmark

Grand Canyon NP South Rim, part 1, APR 24, 2019

Boulder City, NV APR 12, 2019

Catching Up & Lake Havasu, AZ Apr 8, 2019

Los Angeles, CA Part 3, Nov 16, 2018

Day Trip to Santa Barbara, OCT 31, 2018

UPDATED: Petaluma, CA OCT 6, 2018

Petaluma, CA OCT 6, 2018

Redcrest, CA SEPT 27, 2018

Bandon, OR SEPT 9, 2018

Florence, OR AUG 26, 2018