Monday July 30

Slept in till 9. Set out for home, like a horse heading back to the barn. Arrived in Hawthorne at 8:30. Total mileage for the trip: 10,310.

Sunday July 29

Went with David and Lynnae to his mother’s family reunion in Swannanoa. There were about 90 people there. David’s uncle Frank has a farm on the Swannanoa River, the kids had fun riding tubes while most of the adults mingled. Stayed till almost dark, went back to Lynnae and David’s for the night.

Saturday July 28

Still raining. Drove to Marion NC to see David and Lynnae at their new home. Met them at Ashville for lunch at a nice vegetarian restaurant and walked around downtown for the annual street festival there. Had a nice dinner at the Hensley farm. We had fresh vegetables picked from their garden.

Friday July 27

Stopped in Cashiers NC and visited with Ben and Betty, they were up from Gainesville for a few days at their cabin. Started raining that evening.

Thursday July 26

Spent the day touring the area with Jim and Charlotte. Went to High Falls, not far from their farm. Went into Guntersville Lake SP, where the Tennessee River forms a lake behind a dam. Visited a neighbor’s farm at sunset, enjoyed seeing the black swans and farm animals.

Wednesday July 25

Another 500+ mile day. Arrived in Albertville AL about 7:30 to stay with Chris’ high school classmate, Jim Gibson, and his wife Charlotte. When out for dinner at a local Chinese restaurant.

Tuesday July 24

Drove all day, stopped 80 miles west of St Louis. Spent the night in Graham Caves SP. Finally got out of the heat wave, highs in this area are in the upper 80’s. Didn’t take any pictures today.

Monday July 23

Got up early again, took the scenic route through the Badlands NP. Went through a prairie dog community, had to slow down to avoid all the prairie dogs running over the road.

Got back on the Interstate, booked it east. Stopped at the Lewis and Clark SRA outside of Yankton. It was still 100 degrees outside.

The park was swarming with mayflies, they covered the sides of the RV, trees, picnic benches and restrooms. Good thing they don’t bite or sting. They just tickle when they land on you. Birds were gorging themselves eating them.

Rode the bikes on a bike path along the Missouri at sunset.

Sunday July 22

Set the alarm for 5:30, headed up the mountain. It had cooled to 73 in the morning and the RV had no problem climbing the rest of the way to the top of the pass, 9400 ft. It had been a 6000 ft climb in 10 miles.

The top of the mountain was a different world. We had just come out of what was basically desert in the valley. Now there were lush alpine meadows with snow still on the ground. Wildlife was abundant, we saw deer, moose, and elk. The 25 miles over the top passed too quickly, soon we were going back down into the hot, dry valley.

Made it to SD in the afternoon, drove by the Crazy Horse monument, then over to Mt Rushmore. Spent the night in a nice private campsite nearby.

Saturday July 21

Left the campground at 7, headed to the south loop drive. Stopped at the Norris Geyser Basin and hiked about 2 miles while it was still cool. Made Old Faithful for the 10:50 eruption. Stopped at Lake Yellowstone to see some hot springs at the edge of the lake.

Left Yellowstone after 2 PM, RV died again at the pass going out the East Entrance. Took a short nap while it cooled off, then headed out. Got to the west ascent to the pass through the Big Horn Mountains, it was 105 degrees. RV died again halfway up. It was about 6 PM. We pulled into a side road leading to a primitive campground but we couldn’t get there so we decided to spend the night on the side of the road.

Friday July 20

Got up at 5:30 to head out the last 150 miles to Yellowstone. Arrived at Mammoth Hot Springs campground at 9:30, had no trouble getting a site. Took a nap while it was still cool, then drove around the north loop after lunch. Hiked a trail down to the lower falls overlook of the Yellowstone River. Stopped at various falls along the road, then returned to the Mammoth Hot Springs and hiked up to the top of the trails. High was 94 degrees.

Thursday July 19

It was still cloudy and rainy in the morning, we headed out towards Yellowstone. Stopped by the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Great Falls MT. Viewed the falls of the Missouri and the giant springs nearby, it was 105 outside. RV died at the top of the pass at Showboat Ski area, vapor lock. We had to stop and cool off the RV three times before making it over the pass. No problems the rest of the day, we stopped at a private campground in White Sulfur Springs MT.

Wednesday July 18

It was much less hazy this morning, after the night rain. Rode the shuttle back up the mountain and hiked a trail. We saw Sunrift Gorge, then Baring, St Mary’s and Virginia Falls around the north end of St Mary’s lake. About 5 miles out and back over hilly terrain with 90 degree temps. We both were drained by nightfall. Thunderstorm rolled in after dark.

Tuesday July 17

It was only about 30 miles to Glacier NP. We set up camp, rode the bikes around a little, then took the shuttle bus to Logan Pass after lunch. We walked the Hidden Lake trail from there. The trail passed over snow banks and runoff streams. We saw mountain goats and bighorn sheep along the way. Rode the shuttle down to the east end of the park. It is a 50 mile ride each way across the park, we went through a thunderstorm near the east entrance and didn’t get back until 9:30. It was just light enough to see as we rode our bikes back to the campsite in a light drizzle.

Monday July 16

Left Spokane and headed toward Montana. Stopped along the way at the Kootenai River Falls. Spent the night at the Rocky Mountain “Hi” campground in Kalispell. It was 100 degrees again today. It is the hottest summer on record in Montana.

Sunday July 15

Went on a hike late morning along the Little Spokane River. It looked just like a Florida spring run. There were some Indian drawings on the rocks. It was hot again, we were happy to return to the car from the walk and get into the A/C. Went swimming in the pool at the neighbor’s house next door. Had a nice dinner, Karen’s mother, Ellen, came by to visit.

Saturday July 14

Bill and Karen took us to her brother’s lake place on Spirit Lake, about 40 miles from their house. The Nelsons, Jim, Terry, and their son Chris have a cabin on a beautiful, very clear mountain lake. We spent the day on the dock by the lake. Jim took the kids for rides on a tube with his boat. We returned to Spokane near sunset.

Friday July 13

Had the RV serviced in Spokane, then went over to Karen and Bill Cantrell’s house on the south hill in town. Went with them and their three children, Nelson, Amy and James, on a bike ride to a local park. A thunderstorm caught us and we stopped at a house that had an open garage. Bill went to door and asked if we could wait there. The people were very pleasant and we had a nice talk with them while the storm went over.

Thursday July 12

Arrived in Coeur d’Alene at noon, stopped at a private campground next to the Spokane River. Stayed inside most of the afternoon, it was over 100 degrees. Went out at 7 for a bike ride along the river. Went to a nice Mexican restaurant for dinner.

Wednesday July 11

Left Lewiston and headed north. We drove thru miles of rolling farmland with fields of wheat, oats and other grasses. We camped at Heyburn SP, near Plummer ID. It was in the high 90’s again. There is a record heat wave occurring this week. The forecast is for the 100’s in Spokane the next few days. We went down to the lake for a picnic and swimming. Went for a walk along the lake at sunset.

Tuesday July 10

Drove up eastern Oregon to Lewiston ID. It was a scenic, hilly drive. Stopped at the Hell’s Gate SP. It was early afternoon and the temp was 100. Stayed in the RV till dusk and took a ride on the bicycles to town along the Snake River. There was a nice bike path along the rivers edge. There was a little city park along the way where kids were riding blocks of ice with rope handles frozen in down the slope of the river levee. We turned around at the junction of the Snake and Clearwater Rivers. There was a Lewis and Clark display there with a wonderful bronze monument displayed that represented the Indian lore of the Earth Mother and the wildlife in the area. Returned to the park after sunset after a 10 mile ride.

Monday July 9

Decided to stay another day here, took the kayaks out in the morning to the lake. Cloudless sky, the wind was calm, and the water very clear, with a green tint. You could see 30-40 ft down. There were a lot of fish visible and a number of boats were out fishing near where the Wallowa River drains into the south end of the lake. At the other end, powerboats were pulling wakeboards and skiers. Snow capped peaks towered over the south end. This is one of the prettiest campgrounds we have been in.

Rode a shuttle bus 6 miles into the town of Joseph. We ate at a Mexican restaurant for lunch and wandered through the rest of the town for a couple of hours. The town is known for its 2 bronze foundries, there are bronze artwork and statues lining the main road through town. Spent a quite evening in the park, enjoying the rest of a gorgeous day.

Sunday July 8

The road along Hell’s Canyon was very narrow and winding, we could only go about 25 tops. The 40 mile drive to Joseph took about an hour and a ½. Arrived at the Wallowa Lake SP before noon. They had been full all weekend, we could see why. It is a beautiful campground at the south end of a 5 mile glacier formed lake, at the base of the Wallowa Mountains. We rode the bikes 1 ½ miles to the mountain trail head, then walked 1 ¼ miles up to the BC Creek Falls. The trail was pretty rugged, going over several rockslides with steep drops next to the 2-3 ft wide serpentine path. And that was supposed to be the easy trail. It was a relief to get back down to the road.

Saturday July 7

Stopped in La Grande OR, they had closed the main street in town for a town festival. Walked around the festival a little then went on.

Just outside of Baker OR, we visited the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center. In the mid 1800’s, around a ½ million settlers passed through the area on the way to the Willamette valley.

Headed into the Hell’s Canyon NRA, stopped at the featured overlook. It was not as spectacular as we had thought, you could not see the Snake River from there. Stopped at a small campground nearby for the night.

Friday July 6

Crossed over to the Washington State side of the river, stopped at a veteran’s memorial, a full sized replica of Stonehenge. You could see Mt Hood to the west, the air much more clear than the day before.

Left the Columbia River and headed SE towards Hell’s Canyon. Crossed a desert prairie before reaching the Blue Mountains. Spent the night at the Emigrants Springs SP. It was a nice park, but it was right next to I-84, the traffic noise was bad all night.

Thursday July 5

Headed east along the Columbia River. Stopped at Wahkeena Falls which was close to the road then hiked up a 1 ½ mile steep trail to Fairy Falls, 600 ft above the road. A short distance from there was Multnomah Falls, the second tallest falls in the US, a 620 ft drop.

At the town of Hood River, in the Columbia Gorge, we stopped to watch 100’s of windsurfers on the river. It is the most popular and famous windsurfing site in the country. There were so many, you wonder how they avoided running in to each other.

Stopped at the Deschutes River SP for the night. It was hot, even with the wind howling all night long. Ran the A/C at night for the first time this trip.

Wednesday July 4

Drove into Portland, went shopping at GI Joe’s sports store. Ate lunch at a Chinese restaurant. Went looking for a good spot to park along the Columbia River between Portland and Vancouver WA. At 3 PM we found a spot on a nice overlook where parking was allowed, set up a picnic spot for the afternoon. In a hour all the parking spots were full. People kept coming till dark, parking on the side of the road were there was no space. Cops came by ticketing, cars were still blocking the road. The fireworks started at 10:10 and lasted a ½ hour. It was a great view, besides the main fireworks display, they were going off all up and down the river for as far as you could see. We finally were able to leave at 11:30, drove 15 miles along the river and spent the night at another Wal-Mart again.

Tuesday July 3

Went back out to the beach in the morning. Rode the bikes along the water’s edge at low tide. Turned back at the jetty and rode the bike path back, 8 mile ride. Sadly, it will be our last look at the Pacific this trip. Left the park, stopped in town for supplies, then headed east. Stopped in the town of Saint Helens (you can see the mountain from the town) for the night. Used an internet site at a McDonalds, the spent the night at Wal-Mart.

Monday July 2

Took a shuttle bus from the campground to the Ft Clatsop NP where there was a replica of the fort the Corp of Discovery built to spend the winter in. The rangers there were an excellent source for details of the expedition. We spent the whole day there and spent a quiet evening at Ft Stewart.

Sunday July 1

We were able to get a campsite at Ft Stewart SP. They have 475 campsites, but were full Saturday also. Drove out to the point were the Columbia River meets the Pacific, the most northwestern point in Oregon. Got the bikes out and rode to the historic fort site, took a tour of the extensive underground bunkers there. Later we rode out to the beach where there was an old shipwreck onshore. We ended up riding over 12 miles.

Saturday June 30

Arrived the next day at Nehalem Bay SP around noon. 265 campsites, all taken. Went for a long walk along the beach there, about 6 miles. The wind off the water made it a very tiring trip. Watched a couple of kiteboarders along the shore. Drove up the coast a little further to Seaside, the site that Lewis and Clark turned back to go home. Stayed in the Venice RV park, a private campground.

Friday June 29

Tillamook had a morning bridge game at 10:30. Since the rain wasn’t expected to end to later in the afternoon, it was a good time to play bridge. It was held in the local Elks Lodge. It was still raining as we left Tillamook and moved up the coast. We stopped a little further north at the mouth of Tillamook Bay and stayed at the Barview Jetty county park. They had full hookups for RV’s there. Walked along the jetty and the beach that evening, the rain had stopped as predicted.

Thursday June 28

Rained all day, didn’t even take any pictures today. Drove 6 miles into Tillamook for lunch at a nice Mexican restaurant. Did some shopping and returned to Big Spruce. At least the campground had cable TV and internet.

Wednesday June 27

Drove up the coast along the Three Cape Scenic bypass. Stopped in Netarts at the Big Spruce RV campground. Walked along the bay to where it joined the ocean and walked along the beach looking for agates on the shore. Started raining that evening.

Tuesday June 26

Put the kayaks in the river. The tide was coming in, so the water was flowing upstream. Rode up about 4 miles, the tide turned and started flowing downstream. Would have been great except the wind kicked up from the ocean, creating whitecaps in places along the river. We got back to camp after a tiring 5½ hours on the river. Stayed in Coyote Rock another night. Spent a quiet evening watching TV for a change.

Monday June 25

Today we looked at Seal Rock beach. Only a few seals there, but the rock formations were fascinating.

Went to a lighthouse park in Newport, overlooking Yakima Bay. There was a very long jetty protecting the harbor and a large bridge spanning the bay.

At the next overlook, Otter Rock, there was a man snorkeling over a huge school of fish, probably herring. The school looked like a large mass of seaweed until it moved away from the snorkeler. It was neat to watch the cloud of fish, all circling clockwise. They were also jumping on the surface in a frenzy.

We stopped for the night at Coyote Rock RV park, on the Siletz River.

Sunday June 24

Woke up to rain, it had been raining most of the night. Headed up the coast, stopped at a couple of overlooks as the rain continued. Pulled into an overlook called Strawberry Hill as the rain was stopping. There were harbor seals out on the rocks and we saw some gray whales feeding a couple of hundred yards out. We watched them for more than an hour. There were several tidal pools with anemones, starfish, crabs, rockfish, corals, mussels and other marine life. It was hard to get good pictures of them under the water because of the reflections.

We camped at Cape Perpetua SP. There were tidal pools, wave blowholes, a narrow chasm called the Devils Churn, and a 1500 ft overlook of the bay where we watched the sun set.

Saturday June 23

We drove out to the shore to a river jetty where there were some people surfing. It was overcast, windy and cold, so we moved on.

The next stop was the sea lion caves north of Florence. It’s the largest in the world. We rode an elevator 200 feet down to an overlook inside the cave, 50 to 100 feet from the animals. They get their name from their bellowing sound, it was noisy in there. Back on top the cliff, you could look down on another colony with hundreds of them basking in the sun.

Just a little north was the Heceta Head lighthouse. We stopped at a small bay and walked up to lighthouse. They claim it is the most photographed lighthouse in the world.

We camped for the night a little further north at the Rock Creek campsite, just off the ocean. We walked over to the beach, then built a fire for the evening.

Friday June 22

Went for a bike ride on a trail by Eel Lake in the morning. Drove out to the beach and walked over to the jetties at Winchester Bay. There was a clam farm inside the jetty and the since it was low tide, you could see all the cages sticking out of the water, all in rows.

Went 20 miles up the coast to the Lakeshore RV park in Florence. Drove back out to the Oregon Dunes National Seashore to watch sunset, saw a dozen harbor seals in the surf just offshore.

Thursday June 21

Oregon Hwy 138 leads down from Crater Lake following the course of the Umpqua River out of the Cascades to the sea. After we left Diamond Lake, we stopped at 5 waterfalls along the way. They were Clearwater Falls, Whitehorse Falls, Watson Falls, Toketee Falls and Fall Creek Falls. At 275 ft, Watson was the tallest. We walked up and down about 5 miles of creek bed trails to get to all of the falls. With all the moss and ferns covering the rocks and low hanging branches, it was like walking through an enchanted forest. You almost expect to see an elf or fairy appear around the next turn.

Just before the Umpqua reached the coast, we passed a field with a with a large herd of elk. There was a lot of males with large antlers laying in the grass.

We stopped at a state park by the coast located on Eel Lake. Lots of families with children in this park. We were thankful for the 10 pm quiet time.

Wednesday June 20

After we left Lost Creek, we stopped and hiked down to the Mill Creek waterfall. Then we went to the natural bridge on the Rogue River. The river goes underground through the volcano lava tube.

Finally we got up to Crater Lake. The park had just opened a week ago, ½ the rim trail was still closed by snow! Never have we seen such incredible color as in Crater Lake, it’s almost an iridescent deep blue. With snow packs around the rim and a clear day with the sun at our backs, the view was just breathtaking. After walking a nice section of the rim and driving the part that was open, we reluctantly headed north.

Just outside the park border we stopped at Diamond Lake, a National Forest campground. We parked right by the water with a gorgeous view of a snow capped mountain across the lake, still at 5000 ft elevation. The only problem was the mosquitoes were bad, you could not sit still outside for more than a few seconds without being swarmed. We took a 6 mile bike ride on the trail along the shore of the lake, then stayed in the RV for the evening.

Tuesday June 19

Left the coast highway and turned toward Crater Lake. Followed the Jedidiah Smith River from the sea inland. Beautiful turquoise, green and blue water cascading through rock canyons. Later we picked up the Rogue River canyon and stopped for the night at the Lost Creek Reservoir, the Joseph Stewart SP. Great park, water and electric, and free hot showers, $16 a night.

Monday June 18

Took an early morning walk on the Cathedral Trees trail. Drove a short way to the Klamath River RV park. Took the kayaks a couple of miles down river to the ocean. Pulled up on the sand bar on the river side and watched several small whales (pilot?) and seals playing in the surf just off shore. The wind was howling and there were waves up to 15 ft. Even with a nice tailwind, it was tiring paddling back upstream.

Sunday June 17

Moved up to Redwoods NP. Stayed at the Elk Prairie Campground. Yes, there were elk. Went on a 7 mile bike ride along a hilly creek trail and walked along the Elk Prairie.

Saturday June 16

Continued up the coast, the highway turns inland for a while. Stopped at the Humboldt Redwoods SP, home of the largest old growth Redwood forest in the world. Hiked along the Eel river trail. It is impossible to properly describe how big the trees are. Cannot take a picture that does the job. You walk through groves of trees, all as big around as cars and 30 stories tall and a thousand years old.

Friday June 15

Drove into wine country, stopped at a petrified forest site and at the Old Faithful Geyser of California. Went to downtown Healdsburg, did a wine tasting at the Kendall Jackson room. Ate lunch at a wonderful French bakery, Costeaus. Headed back to the coast past many a vineyard. We got the last remaining campsite available that night at a campground on the beach. We had gone 50 miles up the coast, all the campgrounds (public and private) were full for the weekend.

Link to video of geyser

Thursday June 14

Drove up Skyline Blvd and Coast Hwy 1 into San Francisco. Went to Fisherman’s Wharf, got a crab sandwich at a sidewalk café. Bought another camera after looking in a ½ dozen camera shops, same kind. Wandered around a little and decided we didn’t like the crowds. Jumped in the RV and headed out the Golden Gate Bridge. Traffic was bumper to bumper from before the bridge to Santa Rosa, 40 miles to the north. Stopped in the RV campground at the Santa Rosa fairgrounds for the night.

Wednesday June 13

Moved on to another state park, Big Basin, 20 miles up the road. Lots of big redwoods. Walked a couple of trails. Stood up with the camera in my lap, it fell on its lens and broke. Good thing we were going to be in San Fran tomorrow.

Tuesday June 12

Walked out to the beach in the morning, then continued up the coast. Stopped in Monterey and went to the Aquarium. Wonderful place, lots of interesting creatures in various tanks. Traffic got ugly from there to Santa Cruz, bumper to bumper for miles.

Turning up Hwy 9, the road to Skyline Blvd, stopped at a state park near Felton. Road bikes around the park and trails for a little while.

Monday June 11

Went out for a walk on the beach from the campsite to the Pismo Beach pier 2 miles away. Strolled around the main street looking at the shops and the restaurants. Walked back then drove back into town for lunch at a little Mexican café.

Went through San Simeon, stopped at the Hearst Castle. Decided not to take the expensive tour. Just a little past the Castle, there was a beach with hundreds of elephant seals. Some of the bulls weigh nearly 2 tons and were bellowing and jousting with each other. Other seals were just sunbathing, flipping sand over their bodies.

Headed up the coast highway, it was a beautiful sunny day. Life was good.

Then tragedy struck. We were pulling out of an overlook 1000 ft above the Pacific on a curve in the road when a motorcycle came around a blind turn, passing a van at high speed in spite of the double lines. The RV was already in the middle of the road and all we could do was hit the gas to try to get out of the way. The motorcycle braked hard, went into a slide, missing us to the rear. The driver and passenger were thrown off as the bike flipped sideways, just missing going over the edge of the 1000 foot cliff.

The driver appeared to suffer from broken ribs, and was in quite a bit of pain. The woman passenger seemed to just have cuts and bruises. They both laid on the ground until the ambulance came to take them to the hospital. The motorcycle was severely damaged and was leaking gas.

The motorcyclists were part of a tour group of about a dozen bikes led by a guide in the van that had been passed. They were all French, only the guide and his passenger spoke English. They all milled around talking in French while we waited for more than a ½ hour for emergency crews to arrive, we were so far from any town.

After the police were done and everyone had left, we drove on, quite shaken. It was getting near sunset and thankfully we came across a little campsite next to the ocean.

Sunday June 10

Left Las Vegas in the morning and decided to drive straight thru to the California coast.

The Mojave Desert is really barren. Almost no vegetation, hot and hazy.

Had a scare near Tehachapi, the RV conked out at the crest of a long uphill climb, in the middle of nowhere. Acted like it was out of gas. I think it vapor-locked in the heat. Parked for a few minutes on the side of the road, then continued without further symptoms.

Arrived at Pismo Beach at 7:30, just in time to park and ride our bikes to the beach for sunset (58 degrees!). 4014 miles from the start of the trip.

Saturday June 9

Spent a quiet day cleaning and reloading. Visited with our nephew, Keil. We all went to Sweet Tomatoes for lunch. Got the RV serviced and gave it a wash. Finally found a health food store to stock up. Edited and uploaded all the photos from the last few days. Took no pictures today, a first on this trip. It was 100 degrees outside.

Friday June 8

When we awoke, it was 31 degrees outside! Hiked down into the Queen’s Chamber and back, then left for Zion NP. Arrived about noon, all the campsites were taken. Drove in and parked by a shuttle pickup. Hiked 3 trails, took lots of pictures.

Left for Las Vegas to stay at Chris’ brother’s house, arrived just before dark. He had left to go to Sarasota for a week, we just missed him.

Thursday June 7

The drive to Bryce Canyon NP from Capitol Reef NP is through the high mountain forests of the Dixie National Forest, then the dry desert cliffs and washes of the Escalante National Monument and then back into the Dixie NF. Wild changes in scenery.

No problem getting a campsite in Bryce. Drove the 18 mile road through the park and stopped at all the overlooks into the canyon. Hiked a couple of shorter trails.

Went to a ranger talk at 9, and then went out to Sunrise Point to look at the stars. Clear moonless night, the view was spectacular. With binoculars, you could even see some moons of Jupiter! Didn’t linger too long, we were at 8000 feet and it was freezing cold and the wind was blowing.

Wednesday June 6

We were going to visit the Canyonlands NP next, but when we woke up, there was a howling sandstorm. We headed on to the next park, Capitol Reef NP. Fought 50 mph head winds on the drive through the desert, arrived around noon. Set up camp in a grove of tall trees, birds chirping all around. The park is located on an old Mormon farm site, along a creek bed, in an area that was occupied by Freemont natives up until 1300 A.D. We drove up the scenic road along an amazing cliff line that was the main feature of the park. Hiked a trail for a few miles and returned to camp.