Camping at the Fairgrounds

September 23, 2009
On Monday, September 21st, I hit the road for my first RV trip of any length. I plan on being gone for three weeks and my first days distance was 400 miles from Portland, OR to Eureka, CA. It was a long day but I wanted to arrive here before dark so I could set up camp. I'm staying at the fairgrounds in Eureka; it's only 2 miles from where my daughter lives and close proximity to town so I can walk anywhere.

Yesterday afternoon her roommate had a company picnic at a park in Arcata and we were able to join in. She works at a local restaurant called "The Looking Glass" and the head chef did some barbequeing at the park. We had chicken, sausages, BBQ pork, barley, spinach, potato and broccoli salads which were very good and to wash it down, a keg of beer. This place knows how to throw a great party.

I took Cooper with me and he met a 4 year old little boy and a 4 month old Akita pup, both of whom he played with for a long time. I think all of them were worn out by the end of the day. Cooper slept very well last night.

I'm staying at Redwood Acres Fairgrounds RV Park in Eureka and for the most part it's just a strip of hookups that looks more like a parking lot. One nice amenity is that you can back up to the redwood trees which affords shade and privacy. They have a seperate bathroom and two showers which are old and without much appeal but there isn't a fee to use the shower and the bathrooms are locked and only accessable by code. This weekend they have a few functions at the fairgrounds. Friday night is soap box derby and Saturday night is Roller Derby. I'd like to see the Roller Derby if we have time!

Today we plan on hiking Skunk Cabbage Trail in Orick, CA. There are so many hiking trails in Redwood National Park that the hardest thing is deciding which one to go on. It's only supposed to reach mid 70's today so it should be perfect hiking weather.

Soul Food

On Saturday my daughter-in-law and I went kayaking on the Tualatin River. It was a picture perfect day with the temperature in the 80's, the water serene. We leisurly paddled up river to the bridge and then back to Cook Park where we started. It was calming to the soul and just what I needed.

Make a Smilebox postcard

New Things

I'm excited because I'm learning all sorts of new ways to improve my blog but because it takes time I'm getting nothing else done. I sit in front of this computer all day long! This morning I woke up, totally intending to take my dogs for a walk and now it's three hours later and I'm still here and they're barking in the back yard! In the meantime it's getting hotter and hotter outside!

Lately I've learned how to embed slideshows on my blog and how to add a map with places I'm at or plan to travel to. One adventure leads to another and I find there's this whole new web world out there designed to make my life easier (or more complicated?) Either way, I'm having a great time learning and trying to apply what I've learned.

I'm hoping that by the time I go on my adventure trip to Alaska I'll have most of this figured out!! ha, ha!! It will be a nice way for friends and family to keep in touch with us as we journey through the United States, Canada, The Yukon, and Alaska.

My next trip is going to be to California where I'll visit my daughter for a week and meet up with my parents and then we're going to travel north along the coast. I'll map it out and blog about it - just to give me practice!!

Until then....take a step toward living the life you LOVE!!

Shakespeare and Wine

Last weekend I went to see "As You Like It" presented by the Willamette Shakespeare players at the picturesque Stoller Vineyards in Dayton, Oregon. I went to the 2pm showing on Sunday afternoon and it was sunny and warm with a view of the vineyards and the valley below....a truly inspirational place for Shakespeare!

DG and I brought our lawn chairs, sunscreen, cooler stocked with food and then we bought a bottle of Stoller cabernet to share while we sat back and enjoyed it all. We were not disappointed in either the wine or the play!

Ryan, my son Justin's good friend, headed the cast as Orlando, son of Sir Rowland de Boys. The play was clever and funny and the cast very talented and entertaining.

They're presenting this play at a few other venues in the area during the month of August and I'm hoping to go again, this time at night. I think it's well worth another round.

Happiest Place on Earth

Recently I went to Disneyland. For me, it's always been a land of creativity & magic...a place where dreams come true, a place where you can always feel like a child with all the wonderment and excitement that comes with being in such a magical place. I've never even considered that someone would actually hate Disneyland. Does it depend on how and where you were raised as a child? Does it depend on whether or not you had a happy childhood? Maybe it does. After all, my memories of Sunday night with Disney and Disneyland are filled with the magic, the romanticism, the creativity, the dreams of childhood. If I grew up without all that, would I still feel the same about Disneyland? I really hope I would. I hope it's the core of who I am inside and not my background and how I was raised.

To me, it's not just about your past....it's about all that can be in the future. It's about believing in magic & innocence & fairytales and that life is a good place. For a time, while walking the streets of Disneyland, I can believe in all that. Don't we need a magical & happy place we can go to from time to time?

I know that Disneyland is crowded and that there can be cranky children (and adults) all around me. I know that Disneyland can be an expensive place. I know that I can stand in line 60 minutes for a 3 minute ride. I know all that. But for me, right in the middle of Aneheim, outside of Los Angeles, California sits a few acres of "magic" and "wonder" and "fantasy" and for a little piece of time, Disneyland transports me to a place of innocence, fairytales, wide-eyed wonder, and most importantly, childlike laughter.

California

It's too bad that California has so many people and high taxes because the state is beautiful and the weather isn't too bad either.

I just returned from a week of traveling through the state and sorry to say it was not in the motorhome, it was in the car. Gas mileage was great at 26 mpg but the lodging was very high, maybe because I was traveling on a high volume holiday week. In my mind, if you pay even $50 per night for a campsite it's better than the $200 per night for a hotel, and not some grand hotel either....try Best Western, Holiday Inn. Okay, maybe it's the fact that I was in San Francisco and Monterey - that might have something to do with it but still. I could afford to pay for more gas if my lodging was less AND I would be able to sleep in my own bed every night, eat my own cooking. Next time maybe I'll plan ahead and make a few campsite reservations or better yet, I think September might be a fabulous time to view the lovely state of California. There are a lot of places still unexplored. Hum....the wheels are turning.....

Drift Creek Falls

Yesterday, in honor of my birthday, Cooper and I went to Drift Creek Falls. The turnoff is about 8 miles east of Lincoln City, Or on Hwy 18, then south up a narrow winding road another 9 miles to the trail head parking lot. It's an easy 1-1/4 mile hike and the grand finale is an awesome suspension bridge. I've been told that it's the largest suspension bridge in Oregon or Washington. The walkway is 2-1/2 feet wide and looking down 100 feet to the creek and the 75 foot waterfall cascading down the cliff into the pool below is a spectacular sight to behold.

After crossing the bridge you can walk another 1/4 mile down to the river, which we did. We sat on some boulders overlooking the waterfall and shared a peanut butter sandwich. Cooper couldn't help but get his feet wet in the water. He slipped and fell once and you could see the fear on his puppy face, thinking he was going to drown! But he made it out, getting us both muddy in the process!

I'm really glad we made the trip. Afterward we drove into Lincoln City with the intent to walk on the beach but by then the weather had changed to cool and windy with a heavy mist in the air. We did walk down to the water's edge but then I wimped out and headed back to the warm car! We drove home after that.

It was a grand birthday!