Beach Fun in Brookings

Today we drove from Eureka, CA to Brookings, OR. We're staying at the Beachfront RV Park which is right on the ocean. The site I'm in has electric and water hookup but no sewer. It's very close to my neighbor's site and has a small view of the ocean but no matter....I'm not really in the motorhome much during the daytime and it's quiet at night. I'm looking forward to falling asleep to the sound of the ocean. It was a beautiful, warm day at the beach and we took some nice walks.....Cooper played in the sand and water and had a great time rolling around with Lucy, my parent's Puggle. The sunset this evening was beautiful and so I was out on the spit snapping as many pictures as I could before it dipped below the horizon. We'll be here one more night before traveling north and I'm hoping tomorrow will be as spectacular as today was.

Last night we took a cruise around Humbolt Bay in Eureka and then I said good-bye to my daughter for awhile - until I can get down this way again. I really miss her and wished she were closer but she's happy where she's at now and plans to stay there for a few more years. There is so much to do in that part of the country that I'm sure it will be a great excuse to go back and spend even more time exploring.

When I got back from the bay cruise I ended up going to a Roller Derby bout at the fairgrounds. I'd bought the ticket earlier in the afternoon and thought it would be fun entertainment. It was, except that I don't know anything about roller derby and couldn't understand the announcer so I was lost as to what was happening. I stayed and watched for about an hour and then went back to "Ellie" and hit the sack for the night. I think I need to do a little research on roller derby before my next bout.

Back to today at the beach......we decided to grill for dinner and so I grilled my marinated chicken breast, some fish fillets and marinated zucchini that I bought at the Farmer's Market in Arcata yesterday. It was so yummy and I saved most of the zucchini and the chicken to eat later. The others had hot dogs and hamburgers. I felt like I was the gormet grilling queen!

Here are a few pictures of the beach, Cooper and sunset:

Sequoia Park

September 25, 2009

Today Cooper and I hiked in Sequoia Park which is a little over 1/4 mile from the RV park at the fairgrounds. We entered the park from Dolbeer, right past the Zoo, but there are many places you can catch the trail from the streets.There are many trails, both paved and unpaved in the park along with a duck pond, meadows, gardens, a big stone fireplace, old growth trees. We had a really nice walk and I was able to take a few pictures along the way.

 

Strawberry Rock

September 24, 2009
On this day we hiked an unposted trail called Strawberry Rock that's well known to the locals but hard to find for others. Alex & Mike, who'd been up the trail in the past, were our well-equiped guides. The first thing I noticed at the trailhead was the "No Tresspassing" sign posted on the gate, but this didn't seem to be a problem with Alex, who said that no one pays attention to it anyway! We hiked uphill until we came to a rock quary, where we could view our destination, Stawberry Rock, in the distance. I'm glad Alex was with us, as there were some forks in the road along the way with no clear indication which way to go. Along the trail were many kinds of ripe berries....blackberries and some that looked like wild blueberries. We followed a gravel road for a short distance before hiking uphill once again to face of Strawberry Rock.The first thing I noticed was that I had to climb (scale?) the very vertical (for me, a NON climber) face of that rock. I was last and had a lot of trepidation about whether I could make it up there but since I REALLY wanted to see the view from the top I persevered and finally made it up. It was worth it! Even though the day wasn't perfectly clear it was still an awesome view. Quiet. Peaceful. Serene. Now and then you could hear cars on Hwy 101 but you couldn't see them...they were well hidden in the trees. We stayed up there for awhile but all too soon it was time to hike back. I was nervous about climbing back down the rock but it proved easier than going up. Someday it would be worth a trip back at sunset!

Skunk Cabbage Trail

September 23, 2009

Today Mindi, Dena and I took a hike on the Skunk Cabbage portion of the Coastal Trail in the Redwood National Forest. We didn't start out until 1:30pm when the fog was finally beginning to lift and therefore we didn't make it the 5 miles to the ocean. The hike was lush and pretty and the weather was perfect for hiking - a cool breeze, the sun peaking out among the trees. We ended up turning around about 1-1/2 hours into the trip and it wasn't until we go back to the trailhead that we looked at the map and saw that we were almost to the overlook, which has a wonderful view of the ocean. The trail then continues along the bluff where the trees are replaced by grass and wildflowers. I was so dissappointed that we didn't make it that far. I guess it's a good reason to hike this trail again in the future only this time starting earlier in the day and bringing more water for us and the dogs. I think a good idea, if you don't want to make the 10 mile round trip, would be to park a car at the trailhead and another at the beach.

After leaving the trail we were all hungry and so we stopped in Orick at the Hawg Wild bar, which is a local Harley hangout. I've been there before so I knew what a great bar it was with a vast array of ecclectic odds and ends decorating the place....the bathroom alone is worth the visit by the artwork on the walls. We each had a IPA and a buffalo burger with fries. The trek through the woods made us all hungry and we ate every bite! The bartender was selling little plastic Harley Ducks to benefit "Relay for Life" so Dena bought us all one! Mine has a red bandana around his head and a black leather jacket!

Another great day in Northern California!

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.