On The Road To Portland (Part 2)

It took us six days to make the drive from San Diego to Portland. Why, you ask? Why did it take us 6 days to drive the 1,000 short miles? Well, because we were pulling a trailer and going under the speed limit, but also because we wanted to catch as many of the destinations along I-5 on our way as we could. In the first four days we went roller coaster riding in Santa Clarita, spent a long day driving most of California to Redding and then two adventurous days in Redding itself (I wrote about those four days here). Here is how we spent the next two days, ON OUR WAY TO OUR NEW HOME IN PORTLAND! :o)

Thursday morning we woke up in Redding and got back on I-5. Within minutes of getting on the interstate we were greeted with gorgeous vistas of Shasta Lake. I had noted in the atlas that we'd be passing by this lake when planning our route, but had not expected it to be as magnificent as this. The views we saw that day strongly reminded me of the views we'd seen off of the Sea-to-Sky Highway in Vancouver, BC and we were both blown away by the natural beauty.

View of Shasta Lake from I-5

Shasta Lake

Soon after passing the lake we rounded a bend in the road and were presented with another amazing site- snow covered Mount Shasta, the fifth tallest peak in California at 14,179 ft. The view of the mountain got better and better as we got closer (I probably took a million pictures, thinking each was better than the last) and eventually we were directly next to the imposing mountain.

First glance of Mount Shasta

Getting closer!

Mount Shasta!

Not thirty minutes later we passed the last exit on I-5 in California. This might not seem that interesting, but it was exit number 796, meaning that I-5 stretches almost 800 miles north and south through the state! Right after crossing the border into OREGON! we also passed another I-5 landmark: Siskiyou Summit, the highest point on the I-5 at 4,310 ft elevation.

The last exit in California on I-5

Welcome to Oregon!!

Our destination that day was Ashland, a super cute little town tucked deep in the Rogue Valley. We'd heard great things about Ashland, and my Pacific Northwest guide recommended it as a culinary delights destination, which is always a huge plus in my book. The town was located conveniently right off of I-5 and we had no trouble finding parking for our truck and trailer on one of the side streets right off of Main Street.

Walking around Ashland

Main Street in Ashland

The biggest reason we decided to make a stop in Ashland was because it was also home to one of my favorite bloggers, Patti from One Road At A Time (Patti wrote a great write-up on Ashland here). After living in the Bay Area in California for over 30 years, her and her husband Abi decided to shake things up by moving to Ashland, buying a Bed & Breakfast and renovating it! Today, two years later, they are running a successful business and have gone on several exciting adventures around the US and abroad. I really like reading Patti's blog because she is totally open about what it's like to run a B&B, and haven't we all wandered and dreamed about what it would be like to open and run a B&B some time in our lives? Well, I know I have, and I really enjoy reading the "behind the scenes" stories. Patti also writes a second blog on behalf of their B&B, On the Road to Abigail's, where she shares up to date interesting information on what's happening in Ashland and the Inn.

Abigail's Bed and Breakfast in Ashland

So! After wondering the town we made our way to Abigail's Bed and Breakfast and Patti gave us a true "behind the scenes" tour of the B&B. It was awesome to hear about the before and after progress they made on their renovations. Then the four of us made our way back down Main street to one of Patti and Abi's favorite restaurants, a quaint Italian place called Pasta Piatti, and we spent the rest of the evening swapping blogging secrets and sharing funny stories. It's really funny how the four of us would have never met had Patti and I not accidentally found each other on this huge world of the internet. How amazing is it to find friends like that?

Abi, Patti, Sky and I at dinner in Ashland

The following morning we'd planned to drive to somewhere between Ashland and Portland, to arrive in Portland on Saturday, but we couldn't help our excitement and drove all the way to the city. On the way the weather could not make up its mind and we kept passing under grey clouds and light rain and then blue skies and bright sunshine. Right before we drove into the city limits we were greeted with a huge and beautiful rainbow that seemed to begin right at the side of the intestate and stretched far into the countryside. Does this mean we've found the end of the rainbow? We've found the gold? I sure hope so! We plan to call this place home. :o)

The rainbow right off of I-5

Huge rainbow over Oregon!

Now we've spent the last week running around Portland, trying to get all of our affairs in order before I start my new job tomorrow! I have lots to say about this last week, and plan to write about that soon.

To see more pictures of Ashland, click here.

Happy New Beginnings!

M.

On The Road To Portland (Part 1)

We reluctantly left San Diego after spending two awesome weeks there. Our original plans had included visiting Joshua Tree National Park next, but we soon found out that all the campgrounds in the vicinity were booked solid because of Spring Break. We spent an extra day on the beach instead...bummer. :o) Sunday morning I woke up with the crack of dawn because we were spending that day RIDING ROLLER COASTERS!! We drove three hours north from San Diego to Santa Clarita, to Six Flags Magic Mountain and then spent the next eight hours running around the park like school children, trying to ride as many coasters as we could.

California Dreaming

We spent the rest of our two weeks in San Diego (aside from spending afternoons in La Jolla and visiting the San Diego Zoo) biting our fingernails thinking about the impending end of our year long journey exploring downtown's Little Italy and Gaslamp districts, laying out on the Pacific and Coronado beaches and admiring the other treasures around the city. The two weeks flew by in an instant and all I have left to prove that we were even there now is the collection of pictures I took and the golden tan on my skin. There is something to be said about Southern California...life is just different here. This region of the country has an amazing smell to it; it smells of sunshine, of freshly cut grass, flowers. If this smell could be captured, I think it would be a top seller for car air fresheners, although its likely it would cause an increase in traffic accidents, as drivers would tend to drift off, happily dreaming about California.

San Diego downtown view from Coronado Island

We wasted whole afternoons laying out by the ocean on the warm, golden sand, watching kite surfers and sailboats go by. Since our next destination (Portland) doesn't deliver quite as much sun as the SoCal region, we were trying to soak up as much sunshine as we could before we left to make the drive north. Our most favorite beach ended up being Pacific Beach mainly due to its popularity (lots and lots of interesting people watching!), its wide and clean sandy beach and its long boardwalk.

Pacific Beach

Me, trying to work on that horrible shorts tan line!

The boardwalk on Pacific Beach

A pup enjoying the views on Pacific Beach

Spring Break rolled around during our second week in California and the beaches filled up with all kinds of amusing folks out for their one week of freedom. We would pack up our beach blanket, a picnic lunch and our books and head to the beach late morning. We'd spend the rest of the afternoon goofing around on the beach and then in the early evening we would walk the boardwalk and wait for the sunset. Sunset over the Pacific Ocean is one of this nation's greatest assets. We tried to capture as many as we could.

Sunset on Pacific Beach

One Saturday afternoon we drove out to Coronado Island to visit the Coronado beach and see the famous Hotel del Coronado. It turned out that a dog beach was nearby so we spent a good portion of our visit there, watching dogs happily run around, kicking up sand and chasing balls into the high waves. Afterwards we strolled the beach up to the hotel and got a hot coffee from the cafe inside. We took our coffee to the outdoor patio and sat and watched as guests of the hotel shuffled past, some dressed in swimsuits and some dressed for Rodeo Drive.

Coronado Island

The Hotel del Coronado

Coronado Beach dog beach

We spent an afternoon in Balboa Park and another touring the Old Town San Diego, the birthplace of California. On our last day in town we finally made it out to the San Diego harbor and Skyler got to oogle at historic warships. That evening turned out to be pretty magical. There was a gentle breeze off of the ocean, the temperature was a warm, mid sixties. We strolled the harbor, then made our way to the Gaslamp district where we had an amazing Italian dinner on an outside patio. Afterwards we walked the streets, taking in the casual and happening atmosphere of St. Patrick's Day celebration. We ended the evening with a dessert from an Italian bakery, complete with two frothy caffe lattes. Life truly seemed grand, and it was.

Sky and the Star of India in the San Diego harbor 

Unconditional Surrender statue in the San Diego Harbor 

Gaslamp district of San Diego

Walking around the Gaslamp district of San Diego

Little Italy district of San Diego

Dessert selection in Little Italy, who could say no?

If only all days could be filled with as much sunshine as these...but then would we appreciate them for what they were? San Diego has moved into our top ten cities around the US list. We'll be back, maybe often...to recharge our sunshine batteries during long stretches of rain in Portland perhaps. :o)

To see more pictures of San Diego, click here.

Happy California Dreaming,

M.

La Jolla Afternoons

While visiting San Diego, we've spent several amazing afternoons in La Jolla, a little scenic seaside community just north of the city. One of La Jolla's best features (in my opinion) is the abundance of seals and other marine life that is easily visible on the shore. The harbor seals can be seen year round in La Jolla at Casa Beach and Seal Rock, and right now (early spring) is pupping season! These baby seals, with their giant flippers and whiskers are possibly the cutest babies I've ever seen. In addition to the seals we saw a few California sea lions, and lots of brown pelicans and Cormorants on the beaches. Even whales can often be spotted close to shore here during migration season!

San Diego Zoo

Aside from the beaches, we were the most excited about visiting the San Diego Zoo during our time in San Diego. I'd been to the zoo in the past with my parents and little sister, but Sky had never been and we were looking forward to spending a day there together. We bought our tickets online with a $4 discount and got to skip standing in line at the ticket office. We arrived just after lunch and had five hours left until the zoo closed, so we got a map from the front and planned out our route around the park. Our ticket came with a free guided bus tour of the zoo, so we went on that first to get acquainted with the park layout and learn a little about the animals. Then we spent the remaining hours running around the zoo like madmen, making sure to visit all of our favorite animals (the park is HUGE and has Lots and Lots of hills...if you visit, plan to walk a lot and wear comfortable shoes!). In the last thirty minutes before closing we caught a ride on the aerial tram that flies over the zoo from one end to the other, a nice feature that was also included with our admission tickets. I believe this day is best captured in pictures, so here goes:

On The Way To California!

After spending five days in Phoenix we packed up and headed west to the land of sunshine and sea, California! I-8 took us right through the Sonoran Desert National Monument, by large fields of solar panels and again right by the Mexican border.  Since the drive from Phoenix to San Diego was too far for us in one day (pulling a trailer we have to go slower on the highway and Sky is the solo driver), we were just hoping to find a boondocking spot along the way.

Inspiration For The New Year

So how is everyone doing on following through with their New Year's resolutions? Me? Not so good. I didn't really go into the year with specific resolutions, but I did have some general life goals in mind. So far: eating healthy, Check! sticking to a regular running schedule, Fail....Well, in case you've been looking for some motivation on getting in shape this year, look no further than this epic blog.

Oregon, Our 9th State!

Tuesday morning we packed up, and drove our last portion of highway 101 in California. We turned off on highway 199 at mile marker 794. What a long state California is! An hour later we crossed the border into our ninth state, Oregon!

Welcome to Oregon!

Crescent City and the Jedediah Smith Redwoods

We had found street parking in Arcata, right by campus, and it was convenient to walking to downtown for the festival, but unfortunately, it was only good until Monday morning at 6am. Since we're not the best at waking up at such early hours (at least not anymore...), we chose to leave town on Sunday, after we hiked around the awesome city park.

A Drive Through the Avenue of the Giants And The Arcata Oyster Fest

We continued up the California coast via highway 1 from Fort Bragg. Chris, our Couch Surfing host, had suggested that we drive down the Avenue of the Giants. The Avenue is a 31 mile long scenic road that used to be the old highway 101. The reason its world famous is that the two lane highway takes you deep in the forest, through redwood groves of giant trees. To get there we took highway 1 until it merged with 101, and then got off on the town of Miranda exit. There are signs for the Avenue closer in, but Chris though that Miranda was where all the true Giants started.

Ft. Bragg, CA

Tuesday morning we said goodbye to Marin County and headed north on highway 101. We debated on whether to stay inland on 101 or head to the coast, and after doing a bit of research on gocalifornia.about.com we decided to head to the beach via highway 128. Another reason we chose to head to the beach was that the temperature inland was nearing mid-90s, while the coast was at a mellow low 60s. We figured the dogs would appreciate the lower temps.

Marin County- A Perfect Blend of California

So we've spent the last week in Marin County, in an RV park in Larkspur. Larkspur is a small town that is on the water, and is known for its Larkspur Landing, where the commuters can catch the ferry to San Francisco.

The Larkspur Landing

Crazy San Francisco

You know you're in Northern California when...

when you're asking for directions, and someone tells you to "go past the nude beach, turn right on Front Rd, then make a left on...." WAIT WHAT? "Did you say NEW beach?" "No, I said nude beach, as in N,U,D,E. You know you're in Northern California, are you not from around here?"

Who knew there were nude beaches right in San Fran? Not me. I'm not prude, its just I'm not used to nude beaches being right by civilization. I'm used to nude beaches being off the beaten path, a long hike away, tucked in a pocket or a cove. So that's interesting.

A Perfect Day in California

This Friday turned out to be one of those perfect days. Sky woke up early and joined a team of local road bikers for a 40 mile ride from Larkspur (the town we're currently in), to the beach, along highway 1, and then back through the mountains. He woke up at 5 am, excited to ride. He hadn't ridden on his road bike since Fredericksburg, and that was ages ago. While he rode, I slept in.

Petaluma and a Small High School Reunion

After dropping off my parents at the airport at 5am on Saturday, we drove into San Fran and spent the morning wondering around Golden Gate Park. The park is over 3 miles long and just under half a mile wide, and is 20% larger than Central Park. According to Wikipedia, this is the third most visited city park in the US, after Chicago's Lincoln Park and New York's Central Park. There are so many things to do in this park, its easy to see why its so popular.

Marin County and San Fran Exploring

Tuesday morning we packed up the family, put the dogs in their cage in the back of the truck, attached the trailer and drove to San Francisco! We had an RV park booked in Novato, about 20 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge. There were not many RV park choices around San Fran, it was kind of surprising.

My Mom, The Runner!

My mom recently discovered an interest for running. In March, she signed up for a Women Run Arkansas, a free training program with training groups in cities around the state. In this program she trained up from never having ran before to running up to 3 miles. And in May, on Mother’s Day weekend, she ran her very first 5k!

My Parents Flew Out to Visit!

My parents flew into Reno on Sunday morning, and we drove to pick them up. Our first stop on the vacation itinerary was a stop at the local Thai restaurant in South Lake Tahoe. Although Sky always whines that I only want to eat Thai food, and poor him, he has to enjoy it with me, my mom is just as big fan of Thai food as me, so we had two solid votes for the cuisine! Dad decided to show off by ordering a dish with a spiciness level of 4.5 out of 5, 5 being Thai Spicy Hot, and cried through most of his meal. :o)

Lake Tahoe Under Snow

We were greeted with snow at Lake Tahoe. Who knew it could snow, and be so cold, in late May in California? Well, not us. The snow storm was due to start on Friday, so we decided to drive most of the way on Thursday, stopping for an overnight boondocking spot in the El Dorado National Forest, just outside of the town of Kyburz. It took a few tries to situate ourselves of the road properly, but it was well worth the quietness and the beauty that we woke up to the next morning.

A Drive Through The Salad Bowl of the World

We left Morro Bay after a full day of biking and sunning on the beach. On our way out we passed large avocado tree groves, and stopped at a road side stand to pick up some freshly picked Haas avocados.

Avocado stand