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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Arrived at the Arches NP about 11:30. The place was packed, all the campsites were taken. It was hot and windy. Fortunately it was somewhat overcast, otherwise the heat would have been brutal. Drove around and looked at all the sites you didn’t have to hike to. Left around 3 and drove the 30 miles to Dead Horse SP. Nice place with a great view of the Colorado River canyons. Sort of a mini Grand Canyon. The campsite was quiet and dark but the wind howled all night and rocked the camper. Left the windows open and in the morning everything inside was covered with a fine layer of sand.
Drove down to the pueblo ruins. Went to the park Museum, then took a ranger guided tour thru the Cliff House site, the largest of the cliff dwellings in the park. Afterwards, we drove around the park and visited all the remaining sites that were available without a ranger escort. We spent the entire day hiking and taking pictures. Left the park late in the day and went to Cortez to spend the night in Wal-Mart.
The drive from Sante Fe to Durango is really scenic. Snow covered mountains, forests, tidy farms and towns. Arrived at Mesa Verde NP in the afternoon. It was to late to start visiting the ruins, so we set up at the campsite for the night. Took a walk along Knife Edge trail. It led along the rim of the mesa and gave a gorgeous view of the valley below. Went to a ranger show at 9, had to leave before it was finished because it was too cold outside in the wind.
Headed out towards Colorado. Stopped at the Heron Lake SP in northern NM. Nice quiet park built beside a lake that gets it’s water piped from Colorado under the continental divide. Then the water flows out to eventually get to the Rio Grande instead of the Colorado River. Interesting engineering.
Drove from Carlsbad to Sante Fe. Stopped in Roswell on the way and went into a UFO museum. Some interesting facts and lots of hype.
Spent the night in Wally World again. Area campgrounds were full for the weekend.
Rose early, got to Carlsbad Caverns when the park opened. Hiked down the Natural Entrance and then hiked the Big Room. After lunch we took the King’s Palace guided tour. Was able to get good photos in the low light using a mini tripod with no flash. Stayed in the park until sunset and watched the bat flight, ½ million bats flying out of the natural entrance! The bats spiraled like a living tornado out of the cave, into the sky and off towards the rising full moon. They kept coming until it was too dark to watch, an hour later. But you could still hear them, their wings sounding like a rushing waterfall. Truly an amazing sight! Too bad they don’t allow cameras or videos.
Drove into Carlsbad and spent our first night in a Wally World. Had a pleasant talk with the friendly security guard patrolling the parking lot.
Went back to the McDonald Observatory for the 11am tour. Watched a great presentation with a live view of the sun through a filtered telescope. Then the tour took us up to the 107 in. telescope built in 1968, the second largest in the world when built. After that they took us over to the 9.2 meter telescope, 4th largest in the world.
We headed north after that. Just a short way up the road we encountered a semi roaring downhill around a turn in our lane! We both swerved just enough to miss. Too close!
Arrived in Guadaloupe Mountain NP around 5. Went for a 2.5 mile hike into the canyon.
The trail went by 2 springs. Seemed so odd to see those in the desert.
Still in Ft Davis. Went to the Chihuahuan Desert Nature Center and Botanical Gardens. Toured the gardens and greenhouse. Amazing number of cacti and plants in the desert.
There was also a mining heritage exhibit and we talked a while with the “curator”, Joe Mussey. He was a former miner and flew in the Korean War. Joe had collected mining artifacts to preserve the history of the mines in the area. He was eager to share his knowledge and his exhibit was a work of love.
We ate in town at a Mexican lunch buffet, and then moved to the Davis Mountain SP campground. We rode bikes around the park and went up to a scenic overlook near sunset.
At 9:30 the McDonald Observatory held a weekly “star party”. We went and watched an outdoors presentation explaining some of the major constellations, stars and planets. Then the group was able to look through numerous telescopes that were set up. We saw Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and the moon. Also we were able to look at a couple of distance star clusters called M31 and M3.
