Jacqueline’s Jaunts

Monday, September 18, 2023

2023-09-11 Oregon Trip to Visit Family and Friends

Crater Lake, Oregon

Diamond Lake RV Park

Jeeps - 6

Steps - 8,015

W30 was the space we had. Great spot. We were surrounded
by a circle of pine trees.

Today was our first day to explore Crater Lake. Weather was in the 70's, and the sky was clear and bluer at 7,000 feet. It was a 20-minute drive to the North entrance. I wondered why the flag was at half-staff....duh, today is 9/11. Along the roadside were piles of brush and wood in a tee-pee shape. We asked the ranger at the gate, and she said they are small burn piles the rangers will burn when it snows.

Tee-Pee Burn Piles

It was a six-mile drive to the lake, pretty pine trees, flat and rolling pumice meadows that were a different landscape than we had experienced before. We came in from the North entrance and took the West Rim Drive. Views of the lake are spectacular. We stopped at Watchman Lookout for our first good look at the lake. I was stunned at how gorgeous it was, and B I G. I was not sure what I was expecting, but it was breathtaking.

One of the Pumice Meadows. See the cabin in
the middle? Not really; it is a huge rock. I had to
get the binoculars to check.

View from Watchman Lookout

From Watchman, we headed to Rim Village or the lake's Southern end. The first stop was the visitor center to get my Passport Stamp and stickers. We purchased stickers for my two passport books, a tee shirt, and a keychain to make into an ornament. I did not like their Christmas ornaments, so I will make my own from the keychain.

We decided to have lunch at the lodge. It is a fantastic old building, built in 1909, and has had many renovations over the years. One unique thing was the entrance wall into the bar and restaurant. The wall was made of whole pine tree bark (See the photos to the side and below). The window seals were trimmed with the same total pieces of pine bark. We had a great view of the lake as we ate. We had nothing exciting to eat: Caesar Salad for me and Burger for Barry. The waiter informed us they would shut down for the winter in 40 days.

Does watching the bubbles make you thirsty?

After lunch, we hiked the Garfield Trail for about a mile. The last stretch was vertical, and I decided not to push myself. We returned because I did not want to irritate my hips and bursitis. Crazy views, tons of bees, and grasshoppers. The grasshoppers were so loud. A lot of the time, we were the only ones on the trail and stopped to listen to the grasshoppers. It was the most incredible sound. Then, a squirrel would chime in every now and then. There were a few wildflowers still in bloom to photograph. The hike was great, and I am proud I made it as far as I did.

We drove the East Rim Road on the way back to camp, but you can only go so far. The park has been working on this part of the road this year. We found the trail you must hike down to get the boat tour to Wizard Island. It is almost a vertical hike and switchbacks down to the shore; then, you load into a boat with no shade cover. We might have considered it, but the hike down was too much for my hips. We turned around, headed back, and stopped at another turnout for one last look at the lake for the night. We watched a Clark's Nutcracker try to steal nuts that stupid humans were feeding the ground squirrels; it was very entertaining.

The photo in the lower right corner is the ramp
to the lake once you hike almost straight down

Clark's Nutcracker

Clark's Nutcracker

Trying to act shy

We decided to drive to Diamond Lake Resort for dinner but made a wrong turn and drove for fifteen minutes. We could not get any reliable GPS signal, so we turned around and headed back. We took the correct road to the lodge. It was only 3 miles from our campground...LOL! It is a funky little place. Lots of little cabins right on the water, paddleboats, fishing boats, kayaks. They have a beer garden on the lawn next to the dining room during the summer.

Fascinating History of the Resort

Barry playing in the icy water

Enjoying the sunset on Diamond Lake

The restaurant was busy, but we got a great table with a view. Our dinner was fried calamari, Barry had chili, and I had French Onion soup. Barry's beer was an IPA from Bend, Crux Brewery, and my drink of choice tonight was a strawberry margarita.

Back to the RV for showers and bed. My hips did great today. My PT is working.

Good Night, All.

Friday, September 15, 2023

2023-09-10 Oregon Trip to Visit Family and Friend

Diamond Lake RV Park

Jeeps - Hips hurt too much to walk the RV Park

Steps - 1,778 - Drive day, so not much walking

Miles - 225 miles

We left Red Bluff around 10:15 AM and

headed to Crater Lake. We took I5 to US97.

It was a beautiful four-hour drive.

The mountains were steep, so

it was forty miles per hour.

Mt. Shasta still has a little snow.

Shasta Lake is 100% full compared to the last time we were through this area in February 2022. We saw a few houseboat and ski boats. Shasta is such a gorgeous lake.

There is significant road construction on I5 before Mt. Shasta City. The freeway is down to two lanes. It looks like they are building a brand-new freeway. It went on for miles. It was scary having to drive so close to the temporary concrete rails.

I wish we could have stopped in Weed and visited the downtown area. It looked fun and had a beautiful archway over the entrance to the downtown area. We picked up US97 outside of Weed. US97 is a lovely drive. There is so much open land. The highway is called Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway because it has five volcanos.

Klamath River is full. Again, it is a beautiful site to see. The water is rushing so fast it has created small white rapids as it flows over the river rocks. This would be a great city to explore. We saw a sign for a logging museum that would be cool to visit. Older homes along the river in Klamath Falls were picturesque to see. We passed a logging mill next to the river that had logs floating as they waited for their turn in the mill.

Next on the road was Upper Klamath Lake. Unbelievable! I have never seen a lake this large. It is 25 miles long, 8 miles wide, and only 65 feet deep. It is a natural lake and so pristine. We were amazed at how long it took us to drive until we could no longer see it.

I had plenty of time to ask Siri questions since we were on the road for about four hours.

What is the population of Anderson?
What is the primary industry in Weed, CA?
How big is Indian Tom Lake in Butte Valley, CA?
How many Casinos are in the state of Oregon?
What is the Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway? (look this up; it is interesting about all the volcanos along this route.)
How large is Upper Klamath Lake? It is huge!
What is the population of Klamath Falls?
How old is Crater Lake?
How many miles of shore does Crater Lake have?

We made it to Diamond Lake RV Park around 4:15 PM. The elevation here is 5,200 feet above sea level. We checked in and were led to our site by a camp host, site W30—a fantastic location surrounded by Pine Trees. The sites have plenty of room and are not too close to neighbors. We set up and sat outside with a cider for me and a beer for Barry. We also had ahi poke as an appetizer. We loved watching the Golden-Mantled Ground Squirrels dart about. They are quick little creatures. We even had a tiny baby come close to our table. A Steller’s Jay also visited us and hopped beside our table with a peanut in his beak. I think he wanted to use our picnic table to crack his peanut.

Our neighbors came to say hi and gave us so much information about the area. They have been here often. This helped us plan our day for tomorrow. It will be a busy day.

Barry set up his BBQ and cooked chicken. We had a salad, and I sliced one of the tomatoes Lisa gave us before we left, which was yummy. They were from her vegetable garden. Great dinner. Off to bed in a bit.

By the way, we do not have internet or cell service for the next few days so these posts will wait until we head north again.

Sweet Dreams

Saturday, September 9, 2023

2023-09-09 Oregon Trip to Visit Family and Friends

Red Bluff, California

Jeeps - 11

Steps - 6063

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

Oregon is our destination to visit Ryan, Amanda, Addison, Tucker, and all the animals. Also, to visit Roma and Dennis and see their new place. They were part of the group that went to the Grand Canyon and the five parks in Utah this past May. R&D moved to Coos Bay (on the Oregon coast) from Rocklin (above Sacramento) about a year ago.

We thought we would only be gone a few weeks when we first discussed this trip. Not so! Once I researched the National Parks in Oregon, our trip expanded. We will visit three Oregon National Parks: Crater Lake, John Day Fossil Beds, and the Oregon Caves. There are six, but I could not fit them into our schedule. This means we must return, which will be fine since we love Oregon.

The only thing about driving to Oregon is the long ride on I5. Acres and acres of almond, olive, walnut trees, sunflower fields, grapes, and I’m sure I missed one. No wonder we are the almond capital of the world. Most of the almond trees have been shaken, and the nuts are on the ground drying. I did see one orchard already in Windrows. This is harvest season for almonds. This link below is great if you want to learn about harvesting almonds. It’s from 2018, but the process is the same. One of my aunts is an almond grower for Blue Diamond, so I am familiar with this process. I’ve spent many days at her ranch watching the process, which is fascinating.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ql9NIPilcPI

And these are the questions I asked Siri while driving today.

How many pounds of almonds does California produce?

How many acres of almond orchards are there in California?

What are the top things to do in Red Bluff?

Who is the largest producer of sunflower seeds?

How long until we reach Red Bluff?

What is the population of Red Bluff?

How many casinos along I5?

Our home for the night is Red Bluff KOA Journey on the Sacramento River. What a great park - clean, grass between sites, large pull-through sites, huge pool area, and we do not hear the freeway. Most KOA Journeys are right off the freeway. The weather is excellent. I sat outside and worked on this blog while the chef cooked dinner. We bought Hagen Daz ice cream for dessert at the KOA store earlier. Yummy!

The person at the front desk told us to go over to the pond and check out the two ducks they raised here in the park. There were eight total, but the others had flown away. She doesn’t think the two are going to leave. They know where the food comes from.

After dinner, we walked over to the pond to see the two ducks, and sure enough, they were swimming around and not scared of us. Pretty ducks. The pond area has water shooting up from the middle, so I can see how they like it. There are three separate ponds next to each other—a lovely area to walk around.

We then walked down to the River and around the park to the front gate. There was a sign about how the elderberry longhorn beetle is listed as a federally threatened species and not to bother it, not that I would want too. Due to mosquitos, we did not want to stay by the river too long. We walked around the outside of the park to the front gate. The gate code we were given did not work on the small gate, but a truck came in, and we walked through the big gate.

We left the air conditioner on, so the RV was very comfortable. I finished my blog, and Barry checked the current standings of the US Open. A cup of chamomile tea is in my future.

Barry enjoying the firepit

Club House at Sunset

Me enjoying the weather

Red Bluff KOA Journey Park map

Saturday, July 1, 2023

June 26 through June 30, 2023 Pismo Beach

Pacific Coast Village

Site #382

JEEPS - 5 (Tuesday), 22 (Thursday)

We left home on Monday, June 26th, for Pismo Beach. We are staying at Pismo Coast Village RV Resort for the first time. They have 400 sites. We made the reservations six months ago. We normally stay at Oceano State Beach RV Park, but we wanted to try this place. We are here with Jan & Ken Reynolds. This place does not let you choose a site; they will only tell you your site number the morning you check-in. This is also a place you can join for $50,000, and you get the first pick of sites...ridiculous. You can store your RV at the resort storage across the street. If you are a member, they will bring your RV to your site for you, one perk for the fifty grand. We checked in around 4:30 PM on Monday. The Reynolds are two sites from us and checked in about thirty minutes before us. Check-in time is 4:00 PM. We hooked up and headed to Old Juan's Cantina in Oceanside. We love this place, especially its huge margaritas. The Reynolds joined us later.

Tuesday, the 27th, was an uneventful day. We walked half of the RV park, walked the beach, watched the sunset, BBQ'd chicken for dinner, and made s'mores by the fire with Ken, Jan, and Chance. Nice relaxing day. I like these kind of days.

Wednesday, the 28th, we had Little Debbie's chocolate donuts, bananas, coffee for breakfast, breakfast of champions. Visited the park next door to check out the RV sites. This park was a state park and boon-docking only. From there, we went to the RV sales lot down the street. We looked at the Newmar class A motorhomes and a few of the trailers they had on the lot. We discovered they also have a great parts store. We've been here before but didn't know about the parts store. Went back to the RV, made sammies for lunch, and spent the afternoon on the beach. Watched Ken, Chance, and Jason fly kites. We walked the beach collecting a few shells. Headed back to the RV around 4:30 PM and made pizzas for dinner. A great day.

Thursday, the 29th, I slept in until 10:00 AM. My hip hurt last night, and I was having a hard time. Didn't want anything for breakfast because, by the time I got up and going, it was almost lunchtime. We decided to walk over to the cafe for lunch, and we each had a clam chowder bowl. Talk about yummy. Barry agreed that it was some of the best chowders I have had. We sat outside in the back, just the two of us. It was nice because we had a great conversation about who knows what. After lunch, we walked back to our RV, put our kite and drinks into our beach chair on wheels, and went off to the beach. We found the Reynolds easy and broke out my kite. The weather was still foggy, with a slight breeze that barely kept my kite flying. After a while, I let Penny (Ken & Jan's four-year-old granddaughter) fly my kite...with my help. She loved it, but after a bit, she was bored, and off she went to gather more shells. There was a lagoon behind us, and I saw this guy wakeboarding. It was the weirdest thing. After a while, Barry figured out a group of people had a wench hooked to a tree stump that was on some kind of thing that pulled a rope in as the wakeboarder got close to it. I've posted a video below and on Facebook. By the time we remembered to take a video, he could only go a little way because the pulley battery ran out; one of the guys running the pulley yelled at the wakeboarder to let him know. It was entertaining to watch. After that, we packed up and walked back to the RV. We were getting hungry. Today is Chance's (Ken & Jan's grandson) 18th birthday, and the Reynolds family had dinner plans. We returned, and Barry heated up the leftover Pizza and made a Caesar salad. I think the Pizza was better today. After dinner and dishes, we drove the campground and counted 22 jeeps tonight. Back at the RV, I worked on this blog, and Barry journaled about the last few days. The Reynolds returned at 9:00 PM, and we went over for birthday cake. Jason, Amanda, and Penny left for their hotel. Ken and Jan came over for a nightcap. Finished this blog, and I'm off to bed. Wonderful day.

Friday, the 30th, Today is a true hangout day. I slept in, which felt really good. We did not go to the beach. It is foggy and cool today. I watched a video on how to use Airtable. Check-in time is 4:00 in this place, and it was entertaining around this time. So many RVs moving in and out, kids everywhere, and watching people park their trailers was entertaining. We had leftover pizza and Caesar Salad for dinner. Barry built a fire, and the Reynolds came over after their dinner, for s'mores. After, we went to the Reynold's RV and watched the new episode of Outlander. OMG...what a great one. Cannot wait for next week.

Sea Sponge

The Best Clam Chowder

Pelican Stink Eye

From Costco-Beach Lounger Combo Cart-Great Invention

Beach Sunsets Never Get Old

Sunday, June 4, 2023

05-05-23 Grand Canyon South Rim (Day 2) 27°/62° Windy

Beginning of Kaibab Trail

Jeeps-7

“There are many paths to a meaningful sense of the natural world.” (Blackfoot Proverb)

We left for the visitor center around 10:00 AM. The main goal was to get our Passport cancellation stamps and stickers. We also bought sammies for our hike down Kaibab Trail. It is a steep downward hike with three levels .9 miles to Ooh Aah Point, .6 miles to Cedar Ridge, and 1.5 miles to Skeleton Point...then another four miles to the Colorado River. We only went to Ooh Aah Point., well...almost. The rest of the group went to Cedar Ridge. This was a challenging hike, serious stuff at 7,000 feet.

This is what the trail looks like
from the top

I was worried about how far I would make it, but I would do my best. Unfortunately, my damn hips were giving me problems again. We almost made it to Ooh Aah, but it was starting to get warm, and I do not hike well when it is warm. I also had to use my inhaler, and it helped. The walk back up was uphill with switchbacks, and lots of people, so we took it slow and steady. Finally, we made it back up, and my hips were on fire, and Barry’s knee hurt a bit, BUT we did it.

We ate lunch outside the gift shop and were entertained by the marmots. I have never seen one, and they look like a giant squirrel. One would circle me and try to steal lettuce from my sandwich—bold little guys. One almost got on Barry’s lap. We did not feed them, but they sure are cute when begging.

Sculpture outside the Gift Shop

Close up

On the trail

Once we finished our lunch, we walked to the gift shop, bought T-shirts, stickers, and got my Passport cancellation stamps. We then walked to Mather Point. It is about a quarter of a mile from the visitor center and FLAT! This point has some beautiful views, and we took lots of photos. We had a great time at our own pace. Finally, around 2:30 PM, we made it back to the RV. It gave us time to relax, shower and get ready for dinner. We had dinner reservations at the El Tovar Hotel with Roma and Dennis. The Reynolds decided to have dinner at their RV.

Dennis and Roma piled into our Jeep, and off we went. All four of us looked forward to dinner. We could not find parking, so we drove to the train station and parked. We had to walk up a bunch of stairs...AGAIN, and over to the hotel. The décor was so cool. The inside of the restaurant looked like an old log cabin. Our reservation was at 5:30 PM, and the place was already packed. Roma and I ordered Prickly Pear Margaritas. Neither of us had one before. I can see that this will become a favorite in the future. We all loved our meals and tasted each other’s. I had shrimp and scallops, Barry ate Lamp Shanks, Roma ordered Duck, and Dennis had the special ground veal with pasta. We also ordered dessert; Roma and Dennis had Crème Brule, Barry had an Apple Crisp, and I had the Flourless Chocolate Cake with a raspberry sauce. YUMMY!

All cleaned up for dinner.

Prawns and Scallops

Lamb Shank

Part of the dining room decor

After dinner, we went into the gift shop, took care of our Passport cancellations, and bought stickers for our passport books. Then, we walked behind the Kachina and Thunderbird Lodges to view the Grand Canyon again. It was cloudy, so unfortunately, we couldn’t see the sunset. Once back to our RV, I changed into PJs and relaxed for the night. Early rising again tomorrow.