JANUARY 2018 - MARCH 2018

TRAVEL TO QUARTZSITE, AZ - then returning through CA, OR and WA

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TRAVELOGUE # 1 - ON THE ROAD AGAIN!
Getting from home to Quartzsite, AZ

January 2, 2018 - January 16, 2018

Published February 8, 2018

On the road again! I left Lopez on the early ferry on January 2nd, after a very busy New Year's Day - finishing packing the RPod, turning off the water and draining the pipes in the house, etc. Sunna and I slept in the Pod so we could catch that early ferry. Whew! I had an appointment with my orthopedic surgeon** in Mt. Vernon and some other errands, and we made it to Millersylvania state park, just south of Olympia. Only 4 RVs in the campground! I was really exhausted, so we ended up staying there two nights so we could get ourselves settled and catch up on sleep. It's a beautiful park. [**NOTE: I have knee replacement surgery scheduled for April 10, so I plan to return to Lopez in early March to get ready!]

Jan 4: Next, we headed to Portland and spent a night there hanging out with Gail Foster, an OR-LOW (Oregon chapter of LOWS) and also an Escapee Solo. We had a great time last year at Death Valley, but she wasn't going south this year. So we went out to dinner, talked a lot, then spent an hour or so making music together. We both love to sing and make harmony.

Jan 5-7: Ran into a lot of traffic south of Portland, so didn't get far. The next day we headed over to the coast, to Florence. Florence is in the middle of the Oregon Dunes and I know Sunna loves to run in the dunes. So we stopped and walked over the dunes to the beach. Spent the night at a neat RV park just south of Coos Bay, it was on a wonderful beach. Our next stop was in Crescent City. It was starting to get a little warmer, but was very rainy. We had some breaks in the rain and walked on the beach, got to watch the lighthouse.

Jan 8: We got to drive down 101 in California, thru some redwoods, and made it to the fairgrounds in Ferndale, which is a sweet little town with lots of old houses, well off the main road. We were parked next to two big class A motorhomes, and it was just the three of us. It poured all evening and all night. Thankfully, the Pod is snug and warm!

Jan 9-10: The next night I tried to get to a park in Napa Valley, but my truck's navigation system kept trying to get me to take this winding steep road, instead of going around on the main roads. I started up the hill, realized it was going to be bad for 10 miles, so I turned around and got out. Nav system kept wanting me to go back, so I finally turned it off! It was dark by the time we got to our destination. Our next stop was at Anthony Chabot Recreational Area in the East Bay district, so I would be near to John Adams and Carol Tanenbaum who live in Oakland. Spent the afternoon and evening with them, went out to dinner, helped Carol with her website. It's a long 10 mile road back into the park, but otherwise a lovely camping spot!

Jan 11-12: The next night I planned to stop in Salinas, but couldn't find a campground, and ended up at a Veterans Memorial park in Monterey. It was after dark when we got there, but the park was nice. I'm still learning how the RPod operates and I was almost out of battery power because I was running on battery while driving. Turns out the truck doesn't put out enough of a charge to keep up with the refrigerator, so I learned DON'T DO THAT! We headed south on 101 and made it to Pismo Beach. It was Friday afternoon and we got the last unreserved campsite! It's a state park right next to the beach, so of course we walked out there as soon as we got settled..

Jan 13-15: Because 101 was still closed in places around Santa Barbara (due to mudslides in December) and traffic in general was bad in that area, I decided to head east on Rt. 166 and made it to an RV park I've stayed at before just south of Bakersfield. Next day, we headed to Needles and paid for 2 nights at the KOA, so I could empty/fill my tanks, do laundry, etc. before heading into the desert for almost 2 weeks of boondocking.

Jan 16; We headed south from Needles and arrived at Quartzsite AZ a little after 3pm (It's on Mountain time). Got parked and set up, then joined some folks around a campfire. NOW I can relax!

It may seem like traveling by RV is really relaxing, but when you have to cover a certain number of miles each day, and you avoid freeways, and have to stop for dog walks, lunch, gas, etc., it's not easy to get anywhere fast! Plus stops to visit friends! I figured I went about 2000 miles from home to Quartzsite, about 150 miles per day! For me, this was pushing it!

Enjoy!

Ann

Sunna in Millersylvania park. She has the jacket on because it was COLD!

Above and below: Millersylvania. Like I said, not many people around! Below, a historic building.

Here is Sunna on the beach at the Oregon Dunes.

You can see it was getting late in the day!!

Above: Beach from top of dunes. Below, parking lot (can't even see my truck!)

This was the Bastendorf Beach, south of Coos Bay. Below, this rocky spine looks like a dinosaur spine and tail!!

Crescent City, CA, Battery Point lighthouse.

Lots of beach time in Crescent City!

View from beach at Crescent City - notice the Toyota motorhome on the left! I'm still drawn to Toyotas! Below, parked at a fairgrounds in Ferndale CA.

Our campsite in the Eucalyptus at Anthony Chabot East Bay Regional Park.

Sunset on our way into Monterey.

Pismo Beach - shorebirds and tire tracks. These tracks were HUGE, it's OK for vehicles to drive and even camp on the beach. Our campground was just over the dunes.

Heading into Quartzsite. This is what many two lane roads look like in the desert. The dips are washes that allow flash flood waters to move across the land. It goes without saying: don't drive into water across the road - it can sweep you away!