We left the Redwoods a few weeks ago, ready for a big city adventure. Along the way we stopped in a few small California towns and sampled some wine. Most of it was OK, some of it was really bad, and a few bottles were very good. Unfortunately, after so many wine tastings, we really can't remember which was which...
We arrived in our new location, 10 miles north of the Golden Gate bridge on August 28th, excited for our week long stay. We were close to the Larkspur Ferry terminal so that's how we got into the city. We added a 7 day Muni pass for all other transportation and we went almost 'car less' for 9 days!
We rode ferries, buses, street cars, and trains, and still managed to walk an average of 7 miles a day!
During our visit we saw museums, great outdoor spaces, and cheesy tourist things. We ate great food, did lots of people watching, and saw some amazing views.
Interesting things you might NOT know about San Francisco...
The cable car is the only MOVING National Historic Monument in the World.
Marilyn Monroe married baseball star Joe Di Maggio in San Francisco's City Hall in 1954.
The steepest street is not Lombard. Filbert St. between Hyde and Leavenworth Streets is even steeper at 31.5 degrees. We know because we hiked it!
Twain never uttered the quote, “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.”
San Franscisco outlawed burials in 1901. Most of its cemeteries are in Colma, California. There, the dead outnumber the living by over 1000 to 1.
The Chinese fortune cookie was invented by a Japanese resident of San Francisco. You can visit the Fortune Cookie Factory in Chinatown to sample their wares.
When Al Capone was at Alcatraz, he gave regular Sunday concerts with the inmate band, the Rock Islanders. He played the banjo.
Here are some of our random photos from the week - (click on the arrows to the left and right of the image to navigate):
We continued our travels through Oregon by returning to the coast near Florence. South of Florence, Oregon the coast becomes less developed with beautiful cliff views and long undeveloped beaches. We stayed at Jessie M. Honeyman state park for a few days (strange name but a beautiful park) while we explored the dunes, beaches, and attractions along the coastline.
We spent a few hours one morning at the Oregon Coast Aquarium waiting for the fog to lift along the coast. Our favorite exhibit was the seabird aviary where we saw puffins up close and personal. It’s not a large aquarium but it is well laid out and gives you a good idea about sea life along the Oregon coast.
The rest of our time was spent enjoying wide open beaches and visiting the lighthouses that are scattered along the Oregon coastline. From the tallest (Yaquina Head Lighthouse) to the oldest (Cape Blanco Lighthouse), each lighthouse is beautiful and unique.
From Honeyman park we traveled further south to Nesika Beach to explore the rest of the Oregon coast. We enjoyed the laid back atmosphere from Gold Beach to Brookings and took some 'down time' getting haircuts, shopping, and attending a pirate festival at Brookings harbor. After covering 99% of the Oregon coast we were ready to see the redwoods of northern California.
We had booked a week in Klamath, CA to give us time to see the nearby redwood forests and still only barely touched the surface of what there is to do in the area. The owner of RV park gave us maps of things not to miss and Park Service rangers kept us from getting lost. We hiked trails in both the State and National Redwoods parks and saw trees taller (320+ ft) and older (2000+ years) than anything we’ve ever seen before. This is one area we will visit again.
We also managed to squeeze in a side trip back into Oregon to check out the Oregon Caves National Monument. This national park features a wonderful 1.5 hour “walk and crawl” through marble caves in the northern Siskiyou Mountains. A terrific experience unless you’re claustrophobic.
Tomorrow we head 100 miles south to Humboldt Redwoods State Park to visit another ancient forest for a few days.
We took a scenic drive on Friday, April 5th and arrived at the North entrance to Crater Lake National Park around 11am. Of course we headed straight for the first overlook.
Crater Lake is BLUE, incredibly big and BLUE. The road that takes you around the rim of the lake offers beautiful views with interesting facts about the lake and the park. Here are a few cool things we'd like to share:
How Crater Lake came to be -
The basin that eventually became Crater Lake formed when a volcano called Mt Mazama erupted and collapsed 7,700 years ago. The volcanic basin, called a caldera, eventually filled with water and became crater lake. Mt Mazama was estimated to be around 12,000 feet tall, the rim of the caldera now ranges from 7000 - 8000 feet.
It’s Deep -
Bottoming out at over 1,900 feet, Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the Americas. It is the ninth deepest lake in the world. There are no feed rivers or springs, the water level is maintained by precipitation, evaporation, and seepage. This helps to explain the water’s clarity and extremely blue appearance.
Why the surface is so blue -
Pure H2O - Just plain water with no sediments, algae, pesticides or pollution, will absorb all the colors of the spectrum except the blues. These shortest wavelengths will bounce around and back, making the water appear blue. There are 4.6 trillion gallons of water in the lake, so there are a lot of water molecules to bounce off of.
What lives in the lake -
Very little. Fish are not native to the lake. They were introduced in the lake from 1888-1941. Six species were originally stocked, but only two have survived: Rainbow Trout and Kokanee Salmon. Because they are not native to the lake, fishing is not only allowed, it's encouraged. No license is required and there is no limit on how many fish you may catch - the only rule is that you must use artificial bait and you can’t throw fish back (for you catch and release fans). Yes, Robin fished. No, she did not catch anything... it was almost worth the climb (see below).
Snow in July -
The park is snow-covered from October through June, but with an average annual snowfall of 44 feet, snow can stick around through July. The last time the lake's surface was completely frozen was 1949, though it came close to a total freeze in 1985.
Getting to the lake -
The only place you can actually get to the water is by hiking Cleetwood Cove trail. The trail is 700 feet down and the hike is about 1 mile, one way (lots of fun switch backs at up to an 11% drop). The reward is you get to touch the water, swim, and even fish. You can also go on a boat ride to Wizard Island and back. We were surprised to see so many walking the trail. It is an easy walk down but the climb back up is a challenge for most people. A fair bit of shade and benches along the way ease the pain. It’s like climbing 60 flights of stairs.
Other Cool stuff -
Crater lake has a castle (volcanic pumice), a phantom ghost ship (pinnacle rocks in water), a wizard island (named after its "wizard hat" shape, not magical qualities), and an "old man" tree that has been floating around the lake for over 100 years. Lots more cool features described here.
Our first impression of Crater Lake was “Wow! what a beautiful place,” but after peering over the rim for the 20th time our response was “Look, a blue lake and there’s that wizard thingy again.” Still, it is a sight not to be missed and a park we will never forget.
Crater Lake national park gets half a million visitors each year.
Finally, here's something fun from a terrible movie "The Crater Lake Monster", released in 1977"
On August 1st we headed east to Detroit Lake campground. We had a nice spot in the trees a few hundred feet from the lake with plenty of space.
The next day we left early to visit Silver Falls; called the ‘crown jewel’ of the Oregon state parks. It truly is a beautiful place. The land was owned by one family for almost a century and donated to the Oregon in the 80s. Most of the trails and bridges were created in the early part of last century by the CCC. You can read more about the park here.
Our goal was to hike the “Trail of 10 waterfalls”, a big part of what makes Silver Falls so beautiful.
We have hiked lots of waterfall trails, that’s kind of our “thing”. We were even married at a waterfall almost 25 years ago. This waterfall trail beats them all - gorgeous scenery, perfectly maintained trails, and you can walk behind THREE of the waterfalls. You know that scene in “Last of the Mohicans” where Hawkeye says “Stay alive. I will find you”?
It’s just like that!
Here's a short video:
Seeing 10 waterfalls is very motivating if you're a hiker. By the time we got back to where we started we were shocked to see we had hiked almost 9 miles in total. We had a double cappuccino to celebrate and drove back to Detroit Lake campground, tired and happy.
The day after our city of Portland visit we headed east along the Columbia River to explore the Columbia River Gorge. The shape of the Columbia river basin began with the largest outpouring of lava in the history of North America from 16 to 6 million years ago. Advancing and retreating glaciers carved the basalt creating today’s waterfall filled landscape that makes the Gorge a popular destination.
We stopped at the Bonneville Dam, constructed in 1934, to learn something about this historical landmark. We were treated to a surprise tour by an engineer named Lee who once worked there and designed many of the enhancements to the current dam and power plant. Lee told lots of great stories and gave us bits of trivia that added to our appreciation of this amazing place.
Driving along the Historic Columbia River Highway we stopped to climb to the top of Mt Larch and were able to see 5 of the Cascade peaks at one: Mt St Helens, Mt Adams, Mt Rainier, Mt Hood, and Mt Jefferson. A truly amazing sight.
Closer to the river we visited many of the scenic waterfalls near Vista Point. We climbed to Wahclella, Elowah, and Multomah falls, logging almost 9 miles in the process (half of them straight uphill!).
The next day we drove to Mt Hood Meadows, on the southeast side of Mt Hood. We learned they were offering ski lift rides up to the tree line of Mt Hood. We’ve never been skiing at Mt Hood but it sure is a beautiful place in the Summer. We enjoyed the sunny day with temperatures in the 60s. After taking the lift chair up, we hiked a few miles on the Timberline trail until we reached a waterfall. Not wanting to get wet feet and hungry for lunch, we doubled back to the lift.
After a well deserved lunch at the base of Mt Hood we continued our adventure to Little Crater Lake - a perfectly clear, deep, cold, tiny, spring-fed lake. Goofing around on a log jutting into the lake, one of us fell in the ice cold water and had to hike for an hour to dry off before continuing with our drive.
We finished the day driving around the east side of Mt Hood before returning to our RV near Portland.
It’s been another busy week on the road as we continued our travels around Oregon.
We arrived at our next stop, an RV park NE of Portland and planned our next expedition. On July 29th we headed into the city of Portland using the fast and friendly MAX train. Our goal was to find Pioneer Courthouse Square and meet up with the “Secrets of Portlandia” free walking tour.
The “Secrets of Portlandia” free walking tour is actually one guy, Eric, who does an amazing walking tour around downtown portland twice a day in the summer time. He started the tour 5 years ago after doing similar tours in Spain and Portugal. He saw the need for a “pay what you wish” tour in Portland and has turned it into a successful business. It is at the top of Trip Advisor’s things to do in Portland.
We learned a lot about the history of Portland, and laughed at the quirky things that make Portland unique:
Portland got it’s name with a 2 out of 3 penny toss. Settled by two guys from the east coast, Portland was almost named Boston.
The one square mile that defined the original Portland settlement cost 25 cents.
Thousands of large trees had to be removed to make room for the new town. The city founders cut down the trees but did not have the manpower or the motivation to remove the stumps from the ground. When settlers arrived on the Oregon Trail they saw a muddy landscape filled with large stumps. To this day Portland is still called “Stumptown”.
There are drinking fountains, called Benson Bubblers, all over town that constantly spout fresh spring water. The first fountains, around 20 of them, were installed around town directly in front of saloons. Men working in the lumber mills were encouraged to drink free water, not beer, to increase safety in the mills. It worked. The city of Portland later added more fountains and now maintains 52 throughout the city.
Portland is a very “green” town and was one of the first cities to recognize global warming and greenhouse gasses. In 1993 the city made it a priority and citizens have reduced their carbon footprint over 26% since then. On average, most American citizens have INCREASED their carbon footprint by over 12% since 1996.
Speaking of fountains, there are dozens of beautiful ones around town and unlike most cities, you can wade and swim in them. Signs at many fountains remind you that it’s ok to get wet.
Courthouse square is the Portland meeting place and hosts activities almost every day. On halloween they have a Zombie party where party goers dance to “Thriller” for 4 hours straight.
Portland boasts the record for the largest and smallest urban parks. Forest Park covers more than 5100 acres, Mill Ends Park is a tiny circle in the middle of a street less than 2 feet across with an interesting story.
There are over 70 microbreweries in the city and 400+ in the surrounding area. This is a beer loving town. They also have amazing coffee houses, giving us more reasons to avoid Starbucks.
The 34 foot tall “Portlandia” statue (modeled after the city seal and protector of the city) is the second largest of its kind, after the statue of liberty. It sits over the door of the Portland Building but few people know about it because the artist retained all rights to the artwork and does not allow the image to be used for any commercial purposes. Even posting a photo of it on this blog could generate a law suit so I've provided an illustration instead :-)
We really enjoyed our tour and when it ended we headed to the river to check out the Oregon Brewers Fest to sample some home brewed beer. Full of beer and bratwurst, we wandered over to Voodoo Donuts. We spent the end of our Portland visit at Powell’s City of Books before hopping on the MAX back to our RV.
Portland is a great town we look forward to visiting again!
Follow this link to see other photos from our visit to Portland and surrounding areas: FLICKR Portland
We left Astoria, Oregon and headed inland on Sunday with the intention of spending a day near Mount St Helens and checking out the visitor's center there. We discovered so much amazing beauty in the area we had to stay a few more days to enjoy it all!
The beautiful peaks of the Cascade mountain range were just the icing on the cake. We saw vistas where two and sometimes three peaks were visible - Mount St Helens, Adams, and Hood. On a later drive through the national forest we even got some great views of Mt. Rainier!
The Mount St Helens eruption of 1980 is well remembered by most people who were alive at the time but we were surprised at the details we did not know and touched by the stories of the people who survived the blast and those who lost their lives. The science and research that continues today helps scientists around the world understand and better predict volcanic eruptions. Mount St Helens is the youngest volcano in the Cascade range and it promises more activity in the near future.
The forest of tall, old trees was beautiful, our campsite was perfect, and the weather was mild. We will return to this place again, it has captured our hearts and our imagination.
More info about Mount St Helens here.
Follow this link to our photo album: Mt St Helens
Here's a moment of Zen from our hike to Iron Creek Falls -
We arrived in the suburbs of Seattle on July 7th and began our adjustment to the Northwest Coast way of life. A new time zone, lots of trees, great coffee and micro-brewed beer.
While there, we got to spend time with our friends Hans, Stephanie, Kimberly, and Vince.
We took a trip into Seattle and did the usual tourist things. Saw some unusual sights...
After a long weekend in Seattle we headed north to Vancouver and spent 4 days exploring that part of the coast. From downtown Vancouver to the Sea and Sky highway, we enjoyed the beautiful coastline and some great hikes in the surrounding hillsides.
We headed back to the US on July 15th and drove a long way, through nasty Seattle traffic, to Astoria, Oregon. There we met our friend, Chris Stiehl, in Kampers West campground and settled down for a week.
While in Astoria we saw a local stage production of "Shangheid in Astoria", we visited the Astoria Column, Rode the trolley, Visited the Maritime Museum, Rode bikes in Ft Stevens, and created glass ornaments at Ferhill Glass studio.
We had a great time hanging out with Chris and his friend Sherry and Bill. We even got to help Chris Celebrate his birthday.
Almost forgot - we did a fun zipline adventure while in Astoria.
Today is Sunday, July 24th, and we are headed east into the Oregon interior to explore Portland, the Columbia river, and some beautiful waterfalls along the way. Catch you later!
Waterfall at Artist Point - Grand Canyon Yellowstone
After spending a week in and around Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks we’re amazed at the natural beauty that has been preserved and protected in these majestic places. Our visit also reinforced our belief that a lot of people are just plain stupid. Both facts made for an interesting and entertaining visit.
These yellow flyers are handed to you every time you pass through a gate or enter a park facility. We counted 11 in the glove box by the end of the week.
This flyer did not stop some people from trying for the perfect ‘wildlife’ selfie. Three feet to the right of this bison (photo shot from my car with telephoto lens) was an woman with a selfie stick trying to get the perfect shot. We waved our arms and signaled her to move away, she ignored us. This happened so often we finally gave up and assumed it is nature’s way of cleaning up the human gene pool.
Turns out, Yellowstone once had a very different attitude toward human and wildlife interaction. Campgrounds once had designated areas where you could dump your food waste and bears were allowed to forage freely. It was not uncommon for bears to approach cars and people would hand them food.
We’re a lot smarter these days and are much better at keeping wild things wild. Park policies keep most people safe and help us remember that in places like Yellowstone we are not the predators, we’re the prey.
We’re still not sure what happened to the guy who owns this baseball cap, but we’re pretty confident there was a selfie behind it all…
Not much else to say except please visit and support your national parks. They are one of our nation’s noblest and worthwhile efforts.
Here are a few of our pictures - many more at the links below each image…
Our next stop on our trek west was Thermopolis, WY. We got this recommended stop from the lady at the hardware store in Newcastle. Must be legit, right?
We parked at the Eagle RV resort just outside of town. Tight quarters but there were lots of shade trees and the owner and his Son were the nicest people we've met so far.
We had two days scheduled for this stop, the first day we took in the Wyoming Dinosaur museum and the Hot Springs State Park. Everything was within 5 square miles of the RV park so we took the opportunity to ride our bikes around town.
Our first stop, the dinosaur museum, was one of the best we've visited. Lots of information about the fossil history of our planet with enough jaw dropping displays to keep you reading the fine print and actually learning something. The dinosaur fossils in the main hall were staged well, the supersaurus taking up the full space with his smaller cousins filling in the open spaces. They even offer an extra ticket to visit nearby dig sites and help scientists discover new bones.
The Hot Springs State Park was a pleasant surprise. Built around the world's largest single mineral hot spring, Big Spring pours millions of gallons of mineral water every 24 hours at a constant temperature of 135 degrees Fahrenheit. The perpetual fountain forms a seething caldron and some of the water is channeled into pools to be cooled and then piped into bathhouses for public use. From another stream, the water flows over a Rainbow Terrace and then spills down into the Big Horn River.
In the bath house we had our choice of indoor and outdoor pools. Guests are limited to 20 minutes every 2 hours. After sitting in the outdoor pool for 20 minute we can certify this is for health reasons only. Any longer and you would cook.
The next day we took a drive out to Legend Rock to see the Petroglyphs. This protected spiritual site has been important to native Americans for thousands of years. Thought to be a place where one could speak to the spirits, the petroglyphs here show a rich visual history of the people who have lived here. The wall carvings date from 8000 to around 400 years ago.
This might be our favorite spot on this stop. We would have stayed longer but the deer flies wanted to eat us alive.
We've got to agree with our friend Jim, Texas does not hold the patent on true cowboys and hearty souls, Wyoming is the real west.
We arrived in Newcastle, Wyoming on June 24th after a hot and grueling 430 mile ride from Great Falls, SD. Climbing the hills near Mount Rushmore we saw the thermometer hit 97 degrees, so we were happy to find a parking place where we could finally plug in and crank up the A/C. As we setup camp and got our bearings we checked out what there was to do in this town with a population of 1003.
We got lucky and stumbled on a 50th anniversary celebration going on at the Anna Miller museum in town. Anna Miller was famous for being the first librarian, pioneer schoolteacher, and school superintendent in Newcastle. Her husband, sheriff Billy Miller, lost his life in the last recorded indian conflict in 1903. Anna lived another 50 years, dedicating her life to education.
The museum is in the old calvary horse stable, a well preserved building that shows off the clever construction techniques of the time. Full of items from the county's wild past, it is worth a visit. Outside the museum we got to talk to town residents, some with a long family history in Newcastle. We enjoyed hotdogs and homemade ice cream with rhubarb topping as we watched kids play on the lawn.
We had one full day to explore the area before heading further west and decided to follow a loop trail outlined in a book provided by the local Chamber of Commerce. Called the Beaver Creek Loop Trail, it covers about 50 miles along paved and gravel roads and has 25 stops highlighting stories of Wyoming's rich history.
Along the drive we saw amazing views of the badlands, hogback ridge, the black hills, and the great plains. With the helpful signs and the well written guide book we learned about how Newcastle started (if you guessed gold, you'd be right). Stories of stagecoach robberies, salt mines, sawmills, a ghost mining town, cowboys, indians, and grizzly bears. A rich and colorful history of the pioneers who called this area home over a hundred years ago.
For more information, visit this link: History of Weston County, WY
Halfway through the loop tour we headed north to visit Sundance, WY, birthplace of the Sundance Kid. We then headed to Spearfish to pick up the scenic drive south through Spearfish Canyon. Along the way we stopped to hike the Devil's Bathtub trail (the only devilish thing about it was the number of time we had to cross the stream before we finally got to the waterfall). Our last stop in Spearfish Canyon was Roughlock Falls.
After the Falls we finished the loop drive and returned to our coach, ready for a new adventure the next day.
We left West Chicago Last Saturday morning and traveled about 300 miles. We stopped at a KOA off the interstate - a well shaded park and a friendly staff. They served ice cream in the evening and pancakes for breakfast so we give it 5 stars. We pushed off for Pipestone, MN the next morning and chose a state park campground next to a lake. Electrical connections were not up to standard so we spent a warm night with the windows open and decided to cut our stay short. Took a morning trip to Pipestone National Monument before departure.
The Pipestone monument was created to preserve the pipestone quarries, a sacred place for American Indian tribes for thousands of years. All tribes, even those at war, came here in peace to quarry the stone and create sacred pipes and carvings. Pipestone is a workable red stone created from fine clay compressed between diamond-hard granite over millions of years.
Walking the path through the quarries and along the river and waterfall, we could understand why the area was sacred and significant. Today the Dakota Sioux work the remaining active quarries and create tribal carvings and pipes that are sold at the park.
We left for nearby Sioux Falls, Monday around lunchtime. Our coach needed its charging system checked out so we scheduled an appointment for Thursday. That gave us a few days to spend exploring the town. We parked at the Fairgrounds in SW Sioux Falls, made sure we had reliable electricity for our air conditioners, and became tourists.
We found Sioux Falls to be a pleasant town, with great outdoor spaces and nice people. It even has a 19 mile bike path that encircles the city and goes through the numerous parks. The sculpture walk in downtown Sioux Falls was our favorite walk. You can see pictures of the sculptures here: Sculpture Walk.
Today is Friday and we're on the road again, headed for Newcastle, Wyoming. The flat plains are turning to rolling hills as we slowly approach the Rockies.
It's been one week since we started our adventure and we've logged a lot of miles and had fun along the way.
After a few overnights in Tennessee and southern Illinois, we parked our coach in a beautiful state park about an hour from the Chicago (Big Rock Campground). Our plan was to relax a few days and see the city of Chicago. Rather than drive into the city and find parking, we took the METRA train in and out for two days. Everything you could ask of a commuter train - clean, fast, and cheap.
We thought we had escaped the heat in Florida only to arrive in Chicago and enjoy 90 plus degrees on our first day there. We couldn't be satisfied with just seeing the city, we had to go into space (Adler Planetaium), back in time (The Field Museum), and under the ocean (The Shedd Aquarium). The air conditioning was nice as well.
Our second day in Chicago gave us very different weather. Cloudy, drizzly, and a 70 degrees cool. We decided to get our fill of history by riding the Hop on - Hop off busses. The buses and trolleys take you all over town and stop at popular locations; you can get on and off the buses as you like. Along the way a guide points out interesting information about the city and its history. Important stuff, like where to get the best deep dish pizza.
We tried to get a bird's eye view of the city by visiting the 94th floor of the Hancock building (now called Chicago 360). Socked in with fog, we did not get the view you will see at the link above. It was fun though and we learned a lot about the building and its history. We were most impressed by the spider who chose to live outside on the 94th floor.
We had a little better luck at the the SkyDeck (Sears building) when we visited the 103rd floor. We could see things below the building but not much beyond that. That might have been a good thing since playing on the LEDGE was already pretty darn scary! Re arrow in picture below shows where we were hanging out (literally).
We only had two days in Chicago but we managed to see a lot, now we're off to adventures further West.
Posted with Blogsy
