Slogging to a finish

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Sparky

It rained over 3″ last night in Redding. It was relentless. At times it sounded like Patience was being run through a car wash, complete with rotating brushes that rocked it from side to side. Today we will try to limp/slog/float our way 280 miles south to San Jose, to sit and lick our wounds for a week before making the last 8-mile hop to our winter campground. We will try to get the ailing slide repaired sometime during the week.

We did laundry yesterday, which is never fun, but was less fun than usual because the only laundromat we could find outside the park (the RV park’s laundry was too small) was dirty, crowded and expensive. After laundry we used the GPS to find a restaurant. We would have taken any option above the level of Burger King, but after finding one place with “rotisserie” in the name that was defunct and another with a promising name (“Country Kitchen”) that was part of a dark convention center, we got a base hit with our third swing of the bat: the Old School Restaurant in downtown Redding. It was housed in a beautifully renovated 19th century school building and was populated by the most attentive and courteous staff that we have experienced in a long time. The food was terrific, too. I had the spaghetti and meatballs, which doesn’t sound special until you taste it. Jett had a succulent burger that she said was to die for. We met the chef/owner while he was making his rounds among the patrons and gave him our compliments.

California weather has been a disappointment so far, to say the least. It has been nothing but rain, rain and more rain, interrupted only by wind. Not exactly what I envisioned when I thought of “sunny” California.

We have weathered the last two stormy days at the Mountain Gate RV Parkon the northern edge of Redding. It is a very nice park (a “Good Sam Top 100” park, in fact, which is a lofty accolade) but hard to appreciate in a driving rain. The office staff has been very nice and I took the opportunity to replenish our propane supply. So we were warm and cozy in our dry cocoon. Too bad I had to take the dogs out for periodic walks, because I got drenched then.

Patience at Mountain Gate

I hear it snowed a bit yesterday in Massachusetts. That, at least, made us smile. Not much, though.

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GTW Hop 33: Canyonville, OR, to Redding, CA

Posted on December 1, 2012 by Sparky

211 miles via I-5. Cumulative distance: 5,824 miles.

GTW Hop 33: Canyonville OR to Redding CA

This was the reverse of Hop 29, except that we used a different RV park in Redding as a destination. The weather was bad, as usual, but not as bad as I expected. There were some sunny breaks and the wind was tolerable. But once we got to Redding we encountered a problem with slide #2 – the big slide that already has one broken cable. A second cable started to fray and snapping is probably imminent. As a result, we spent the night with a half-deployed living room and considered our options. We have concluded that we need to get the slide repaired ASAP and because it could mean more time in a hotel we would rather do it in the San Francisco area than in Redding. So our current plan is to skip Napa and head straight to San Jose. We will spend the last week of the GTW there, with a final short hop to our winter campground.

So we hope to leave tomorrow (Sunday) and perhaps get Patience in for repair on Monday. However, the weather is a problem, as it has been everywhere we have gone in California and Oregon. The forecast for Sunday is once again for heavy rain and high winds. It is likely that we will be forced to wait out the storm in our crippled RV.

The final leg of the GTW – the trip from Tillamook to San Jose – is turning into a nightmare.

On the trip to Redding we passed by Mount Shasta during one of the sunny breaks. It is a beautiful snow-capped volcano. The top was encased in clouds, but it was a surprise to see it at all as it is on track to break the record for most snowfall from a single storm. I am not talking a Mount Shasta record or even a US record; I am talking about a possible world record. The total snowfall from this current storm is expected to exceed 15 feet, which puts it in world record territory, and may exceed 20 feet, which would shatter the existing record.

Epically bad weather.

Mt Shasta during a brief break in the weather

Just to twist the knife, the person at the counter of the RV park told me that this weather is very unusual. To quote her: “We are usually still in T-shirts and shorts in early December.”

Lucky us.

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A winning day at the casino

Posted on November 30, 2012 by Sparky

Yes, it’s true: I won money yesterday at Seven Feathers! Nine cents. I was up by more than $70 at one point, but I got greedy and kept playing the slots. I love those penny games (which cost much more than a penny – don’t be fooled). I did have the good sense to quit before going negative.

We have to decide shortly whether to travel today. It looks like the heavy rain has subsided, so we will probably try to make it to Redding today.

What was supposed to be a leisurely trip down the coast has become a test of survival.

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GTW Hop 32: North Bend, OR, to Canyonville, OR

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Sparky

100 miles via US 101, OR 42, OR 99 and I-5. Cumulative distance: 5,613 miles.

GTW Hop 32: North Bend OR to Canyonville OR

This was not the hop that I wanted to make. I really wanted to see the Oregon coast south of Coos Bay, which is reportedly very striking. But weather intervened. Yet another “Pineapple Express” weather system is going to dump many inches of rain on Oregon and northern California. That alone would make the coastal trip miserable. But the storm is also forecast to produce hurricane-force gusts along the coast. US 101 was identified specifically in the weather alert as being hazardous to travel.

So, for the second time in 10 days, we are back at Canyonville and the Seven Feathers resort to ride out a storm.

I wish we had kept track of the amount of rain we have endured. Between the heavy rains we got in Tennessee, the steady rain we got in New York and these relentless, pounding rains in Oregon and California, I am guessing that we have seen over 10 inches in less than 80 days. That works out to nearly 50 inches a year – way more than an average year in Massachusetts. And we spent several weeks in the arid southwest!

I think Patience is starting to grow moss.

We will probably hit the casino sometime today, to donate more cash to Indian Nation. But most of the day will be spent paying bills and preparing for resuming work.

And maybe trying to find a way south that isn’t flooded.

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North Bend/Coos Bay, OR

Posted on November 28, 2012 by Sparky

These two towns are interconnected, sharing Coos Bay waterfront and US 101 as the main drag. There is some activity at the docks, mostly ships being loaded up with logs for shipment to some country that is devoid of trees (Japan?), but most of the docks are abandoned, suggesting that the area’s heyday is long past.

The Mill Casino, where we parked Patience for two nights, is built on some of this abandoned bay frontage. The complex includes a hotel and a smallish casino that I liked and Jett didn’t. We both lost small amounts of money, so that wasn’t it. I think it was that I had a good time losing my $35, being up by over $70 at one point, while Jett just blew through her $40. But, as she points out, she is still ahead since Seven Feathers while I am not.

Thanks, Jett. Like I needed to be reminded.

We had lunch yesterday at the Sizzler. I don’t think I have been to a Sizzler in 20 years. It still has the same mediocre steaks and seafood, but the salad bar has improved.

The RV park at the Mill Casino was nice, but was a mere shadow of the Seven Feathers RV park. The pull-through was tight and the extra $3 that I paid to get a view of the bay was wasted as the bay is not very scenic. Residents of the RV park have access to the hotel amenities, so we could have used the indoor heated pool, but we didn’t.

The weather yesterday was mostly cloudy and cool, with a raw feel to it. Today will be worse – rain again – and tomorrow will be worse than today. Hurricane-force winds are possible tomorrow along the coast. Needless to say, we are going to head inland to avoid the wind. That is a shame because I am told that the stretch of US 101 along the south Oregon coast is beautiful. But I probably wouldn’t enjoy is so much if Patience was blown over.

So… yet another adjustment to the GTW itinerary. Back to Seven Feathers.

Gray Coos Bay

Tight site

Nearly empty on Tuesday

Pups at the dog park (Patience and casino in the background)

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GTW Hop 31: Tillamook, OR, to North Bend, OR

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Sparky

169 miles via OR 6 and US 101. Cumulative distance: 5,513 miles.

GTW Hop 31: Tillamook OR to North Bend OR

The OR 6 portion of this hop was the couple of miles from the Wilson River RV Park into downtown Tillamook; the rest was on US 101. It is a very scenic route, but with a lot of curves and turns. Jett did not enjoy it at all as it activated her vertigo. I enjoyed it a lot, except for the sections that went through towns where the lanes were narrow and parked cars lined the street.

We stopped for lunch at a pullout overlooking the Pacific. Beautiful.

Lunch break on the Pacific

Patience on the Pacific

Rocky beach

Clouding up

Surf

Looking north

I am a little tardy with my report on the Wilson River RV Park. It doesn’t have a website, but you can Google it and find some not-very-complimentary comments. I would characterize it as a trashy little park with good fishing. It seems that the park residents are either permanent or weekend fishermen. We did not see another rig come or go in the six days we were there. Most of the rigs look to be over 10 years old, in various states of deterioration and will probably turn to dust before they are removed. Or maybe washed away in the next flood.

It also has a very steep driveway that actually gave me nightmares. I was thinking ahead to what I would do if I couldn’t haul Patience up that 20-degree incline. As it turned out, the truck was up to the task and it wasn’t as difficult as I feared, but don’t even think about going there if your truck has marginal towing capacity.

Bottom line: A good place to fish.

Trashy RVs with steep driveway in the background

Approaching the RV park on OR 6

The RV park from OR 6

Patience at Wilson River

Fishing on the Wilson River

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Tillamook family

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Sparky

My mother and my sister live in Tillamook, which, of course, is why we were here for Thanksgiving. The dinner was hosted by my sister and was attended by Jett, me, my sister Lois, my brother-in-law Chris, my niece Kim, my nephews Michael and Scott, Michael’s wife Taylor, family friend Stephanie, Stephanie’s son David and his wife Joanne and, as guest of honor, my mother. The food was terrific (especially Joann’s craisin and walnut salad) and was followed by a spirited game of Apples to Apples, won by Joann.

Apples to Apples is a game in which nouns are matched to adjectives, best noun winning.  Each time your noun is picked as the best you get to keep the adjective card.  Supposedly your collection of adjectives describes you.  My winning adjectives were “spicy” and “eternal.”  Hmmm…

Me, my sister and Mom

Three generations

I have already mentioned the crabbing adventure and the trip to the Tillamook Cheese Factory. Other highlights:

  • A trip to the Spirit Mountain Casino where Chris and I collectively donated over $100 to the Native American cause.
  • A hike on Lookout Point.  I enjoyed the walk, but Grace had a ball.  She doesn’t often get to walk off the leash and to do it with 5 other dogs and to have a beach at the end was an hour of pure joy for her.  Cha-Cha, with his bad legs, stayed home.
  • Lunch at Brewin’ in the Wind in Oceanside. The weather was miserable but the food was fine.

Grace on the beach

The entire hiking menagerie, plus me

Scott, Lois and Kim on the hike

Coming down from Lookout Point

Kim, Chris and Lois

Brewin’ in the Wind

Oceanside

Between events we spent a lot of time at Lois and Chris’ house, set on a hill overlooking the Tillmook Valley. It had its own kind of beauty, especially in the morning before the fog lifted. We also got to experience the transformation of the Christmas tree from a shapely, fresh-cut evergreen to a misshapen “special needs” tree (thanks to some excessive trimming), back to a holiday beauty.

Morning view from Lois and Chris’ deck

Overly trimmed tree

Trimmed tree

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Tillamook crabs

Posted on November 26, 2012 by Sparky

I went crabbing yesterday on Netarts Bay with my brother-in-law Chris and my niece Kim. It was not my first time crabbing – Chris introduced me to the sport a few years back – but it was my most productive. We caught 9 good-sized Dungeness crabs. Chris cooked them and I now have two of them in my refrigerator. Good snackin’.

Crabbing is a popular sport in the Tillamook area. Netarts Bay, the next bay over from Tillamook Bay, is the favored spot, presumably because there are more crabs there. There were more than a dozen boats out yesterday, but it is a large bay and we didn’t feel crowded.

For those of you who have never crabbed, I will give you some basic instruction. First, you need some crab traps or rings. Rings seem to be favored, but it may be that they are simply more economical. It is actually two concentric rings – one about two feet in diameter and one about 18″ in diameter. Netting connects the two rings, smaller ring on the bottom. Three ropes are strung from the larger ring and are tied together, forming a handle for a very large net basket. A long rope is attached to the handle and a float (empty plastic 1-gallon jugs in our case) is tied to the other end. To use them, each trap is baited and is dropped into the water. After some period of time, the rings are hauled quickly to the surface and, with luck, some crabs will be in the net, feeding on the bait.

Usually a crabber drops 6 or more rings, then proceeds to raise each one in succession and drop it again. We had six rings and we were on the bay for about 2 hours to get 9 legal crabs (legal = males of a certain size).

Fish heads can be used as bait, but the newest innovation is mink carcass. Yes, it is as disgusting as it sounds. Apparently the advantage of mink is that seals don’t eat them. If fish heads are used and seals are around, they steal them from the traps.

The weather doesn’t have to be nice to crab, but it makes the experience more pleasurable. It is best to be out when the tide is slack. Slack tide yesterday was 10:40am and it was a beautiful day, so we were out from 9:30 to 11:30. It was a little chilly – the temperature was 38 degrees at 9:30am – but the sun was bright, the winds were calm and it felt warmer on the water. It was probably 50 degrees when we brought the boat in.

Kim steered the boat while Chris and I took turns setting and retrieving the rings. Kim is an avid environmentalist and was happy every time the ring came up empty. But she was a good sport and resisted the urge to Free Captain Krabs.

Crabbing isn’t free. The main expense is the bait. At $3.50 per mink carcass, it cost $21 in bait alone. Add it gasoline, launch fees, license fees and amortized ring prices and you are getting up there. Probably over $3 per crab.

One of our throw-backs was a pregnant female, about to unleash a million eggs into the waters of Netarts Bay. Apparently it is pretty rare to find a female in this condition. My sister Lois, who has crabbed many more times than I have, said she has never seen one.

Anyway, it was fun. Jett, my mom, my sister and my nephew Scott joined us for lunch at The Schooner Restaurant which is right at the boat launch. I had a very fine rockfish-and-chips lunch. My sister then took Jett and me on a tour of the area, highlighted by dessert at Roseanna’s Cafe in Oceanside. Roseanna’s desserts are legendary and she didn’t disappoint. If you are in the area, try her Marionberry cobbler. Delicious!

Netarts Bay, 9:30am

Happy Camp (really) on Netarts Bay

Pregnant crab

Chris at the helm

Chris and Kim

Lois and Kim at The Schooner

Mom at the Schooner

Scott at the Schooner

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Tillamook cheese

Posted on November 25, 2012 by Sparky

I always marveled that my sister, who grew up in the heart of America’s Dairyland (Wisconsin, in case you didn’t know), managed to settle down in the one place in the United States that claims to produce better cheese: Tillamook, OR. There is no question that Tillamook cheese is good, but I will leave it to you to decide if it is better than Wisconsin cheese. I can, however, attest to the fact that Tillmook has the same aroma as Wisconsin’s best dairy farming areas. You can’t escape the distinctive odor of cows, manure and silage. It is a bit of Wisconsin, but with mountains.

It is kind of amusing, I think, that we bought a 5 lb block of Tillamook sharp cheddar when we were in Phoenix, then carried it all the way back to Tillamook. Coals to Newcastle.

We visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory yesterday after lunch. I am told that this is the second “most visited” attraction in Oregon, after Crater Lake. I don’t think I would travel hundreds of miles to see it, like I would for the Grand Canyon, say, but if you happen to be in the area (which isn’t likely because there is not much else in the vicinity) is is worth an hour of your time. They offer a self-guided tour of the factory. I saw blocks of cheese very similar to the one in my refrigerator being packaged – probably to restock the shelves in Phoenix.

Packaging Tillamook cheese

They also make ice cream. Ben and Jerry have nothing to worry about, but it is pretty good. I give them high marks for originality: I had a scoop of “Grandma’s Cookie Dough” which was very sweet, with chunks of frosting mixed in. And the waffle cone in which it was served was probably the best I have ever had.

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GTW Hop 30: Canyonville, OR, to Tillamook, OR

Posted on November 21, 2012 by Sparky

240 miles via I-5, OR 22 and US 101. Cumulative distance: 5,344 miles.

GTW Hop 30: Canyonville OR to Tillamook OR

The weather broke enough for us to make the long trek to the coast on Monday. It was a long trip – 5 hours total, with a lunch break – but with the exception of one brief downpour, was mostly done in light rain. There were even a few sunny breaks that didn’t last long, but were welcome nonetheless.

Most of the trip was on I-5, but the last 50 miles were on OR 22 – a narrow, twisty 2-lane road, and US 101 (the Oregon Coast Highway) that wasn’t much better. Jett doesn’t like these roads and kept her eyes closed most of the way.

We stopped for lunch at a riverside rest area just south of Salem. There was a beautiful tree there which displayed well in one of the rare sunny breaks. We also got a rainbow.

Rest area tree

Patience and 18-wheel buddies

Rainbow

We arrived at our destination – the Wilson River RV Park – at dusk. The river was still high but had apparently dropped six feet from Monday’s peak. Debris on the shoreline showed that the water level topped out just a few feet below the RV pads.

Dusk and the high-water mark at Wilson River

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