Thursday, October 15, 2020 - Day 12 - Weaverville, California to Sacramento, California

Almost there. Just 40 miles of this scenic but treacherous road before Lake Shasta and then it will be on to Redding and Interstate 5 to Sacramento. I never liked Rt. 5 but after all the  mountainous windy roads I think I'd rather have the fast but straight and level Rt. 5. There are no fires now but there is a red flag alert for this area because of high temps and winds. We should be out before the warning takes affect. They have cut power to some of these areas already in anticipation but that shouldn't affect us. We saw Lake Shasta in passing but Shasta Lake and Lake Shasta aren't the same thing. We should have stopped at Whiskeytown. This was a last minute thing so I guess for the way back I'll have to plan better for all stops. The temperature right now at 11:00 is 81 and the winds are 26 mph. Ron has to hold the RV on the road again today. When we arrive in Sacramento the winds will only be 12 but it will get to 93 today. A big difference from our days in Wyoming. We have traveled through 12 states other than NY and gone about 4700 miles. But the reward at the end was certainly worth it. We have seen some awesome sights, beautiful landscapes etc. but the best view was of Chris, C.J. and Alma waving as we pulled up to the house. It made all the traveling worthwhile. The pictures at the end of this tell you what this trip was about - FAMILY.

Views of Cali

Wednesday, October 14, 2020 - Day 11 - Coos Bay, Oregon to Weaverville, California

 

Getting closer to Cali! Up and out well before 8:00 heading to Redwood National Forest. We are still on the Pacific Coast Highway 101. There are so many cute little towns along the way but we do want to get to Cali soon. Also can see areas where trees, trailer parks etc. have been decimated. Got stopped at the border and they took our apples and cuties. We also had to wait for a gypsy moth inspection before we could proceed. It took about 5 min. Stopped at Crescent City Visitors Center but it was temporarily closed even though the website didn't say that. That's the joy of traveling during Covid 2020. We have been lucky to still be able to enjoy the stunning views of nature along the way. Wanted to get to Lake Shasta but there wasn't camping available and windy Rt. 299 took too long so we stopped in Weaverville at Sidney Gulch RV Park. Shrimp scampi for dinner with a quiet night. Getting ready for our last westward leg tomorrow.

State: California

Views along Highway 101 - Pacific Coast Highway

Yum

Tuesday, October 13, 2020 - Day 10 - White Salmon, Washington to Coos Bay, Oregon

Happy Anniversary Dad and Mom Hochmuth - 69 Years

Up and out as usual before 8:00 on a very rainy day. We drove the Washington state line along the Columbia River Gorge but it was pretty hard to see much. Glad we had good views yesterday. Had planned on avoiding going through Portland but this is the first time Google Maps let us down and had us in the wrong lane. No worries, we went through Portland but not the city center. We wanted to get to Hwy 101 and drive along the coast. The coast was beautiful even though it was a little cloudy and hazy. We stopped and had lunch at one lookout and then made several other stops along the way to Sunset Bay State Park in Coos Bay. There really are some magnificent views. May not have many pictures today because of the rainy start. By the afternoon the sun broke out and it turned into a gorgeous afternoon. We took our chances and arrived at Sunset Bay State Park without a reservation but even though 2 of the loops were closed for the season there were still sites available. Had our little happy hour snack and then took a walk around the park. The campsites here are nice. They each have a little privacy and nice paved pads to pull onto. We had chili for dinner and then made it another early night.

Views along the Oregon Coast

You never know it's 2020

Sunset Bay State Park

Monday, October 12, 2020 - Day 9 - Bruneau, Idaho to White Salmon, Washington

Happy Columbus Day!

Got up about 6:45:and was surprised by how dark it still was. Had a pretty sunrise and even had a rainbow 🌈 on the way out of the park and actually saw a second rainbow along the way. We did have some rain on the drive but overall the weather has cooperated. Any rain or snow had been at night and not disrupted any of our activities. The wind though in the afternoon picked up and Ron did a great job of keeping us on the road. In fact an RV that was ahead of us was pulled off the side of the road with their awning all twisted and broken. I understand how the wildfires spread so quickly if fueled by winds like this. Today we passed through Mountain Home, Boise, Baker City and Echo. We even crossed into Oregon so 3 states to go. Our whole leg today is basically on Rt. 84 W. We decided to cross into Washington a little sooner than we expected to avoid a very narrow bridge by the campground. That makes 48 states down - 2 to go. The Columbia River Gorge is impressive as were the views of Mt. Hood. We made it to the campground by about 3:30 but that's Pacific time. Ron got a well deserved Manhattan, then we showered and had an egg and sausage dinner. Tomorrow the plan is to drive around Portland and to Oregon's coast and we'll find a place to stop. It's supposed to rain so we'll see what the day brings. 

States: Oregon, Washington

Great sunrise and sunset here

One of our rainbows

Views along our way

Mount Hood

Our campsite at Bridge RV Park

Sunday, October 11, 2020 - Day 8 - Moran, Wyoming to Bruneau Dunes, Idaho

During the night we had hard rain and wind that rocked the rv. No, that wasn't us. In the morning we woke up to 32 degrees and a dusting of snow on the grass. The snow made the mountains even more beautiful though. Back driving before 8:00. Drove through Jackson on our way to Idaho. Our stop tonight will be Bruneau Dunes State Park. Ron did a great job driving the curvy mountain roads with a bit of snow on them. It made the view pretty but I'm sure it made the driving harder. On the flat lands he had to fight the winds (27 mph) that were buffeting the RV. We arrived and stopped at the visitors center before heading to our campsite. Then we took a walk to see their observatory but it was closed. This area is perfect for star gazing as it is so far from city lights. Then we went to the dunes which are the highest single dune structure in the US. There were a few kids sledding down the hills but we didn't have our sled.😳 Went back to the RV and had a beer, salsa and chips. We looked at the map to try to figure out the rest of our trip. Tonight is our last reservation and Ron wants to play it by ear so we'll see what happens. Had some steakums and beans for supper and another early night. Ron has his longest drive tomorrow but we should be in the Pacific time zone so we'll gain an hour. Not sure our bodies have adjusted to the time changes as we've been traveling.

State: Idaho

Yes, that is snow on October 11th

Views along our drive

Hard to believe that this is the same day

Our Campsite

From snow to sand dunes

Beautiful end to the day.