Time off from the blog

To all my loyal readers and those who check in on occasion, thank you.
I have loved these months of writing and letting you follow our journey but other matters require my attention now and so the blog goes on the back burner for a while.
Be well!!!!!

Big Sur/Highway 1

Sometimes when we travel we debate the merits of one road versus another.  Time spent driving and gas expenses get in the way of a clear understanding of our purpose.  So it was with Highway 1 or the 101 for our trip to San Luis Obispo.  We made the right choice. Highway 1 was a drive that we will always remember not only for the scenery but also for the sheer drop offs and narrow road we crept along for a hundred miles.  Most of all it was spectacular for its ocean to mountain landscapes that had us uttering oh's and ah's at each turn of the road.  Off shore we saw occasional spouts of the Pacific Gray Whales migrating from the arctic to the waters of Baja California where they will calve and mate.

Valerie Williams told us to watch for the elephant seals that would be calving on the beaches along Highway 1.  We thought there might be a few visible on some distant rocky outcropping.  When we first noticed them they seemed more like large uniform boulders scattered along the shoreline.  Hundreds, maybe thousands, began to show up as we made our way.  They seem unaffected by the hordes of people, us included, who walk along a boardwalk just above the calving/breeding beaches.

The Missing Persons Report

A belated Happy New Year to all.  Where to start?  Some updates on my blog absence might help.   I think it has to do with a parallel universe experience and the California time space continuum, again.  I would explain in detail but know that the arrangements for the holidays were beyond An Introduction to Easy Travel.  

After our journey through the remarkable Redwoods we spent time in the wine country of California where the vines spread across the hillsides and valleys in orderly well tended rows. Small towns like Napa, Geyserville, Calistoga and Healdsburg are the heart and soul of California’s wine business and therefore the quietude reigns.  No fast pace development nor high-rise office buildings blocking the views, just the strikingly beautiful gnarled vines which were heading into their winter dormancy.  

Santa Rosa, California was the next stop where we caught up with Pat and Lori and shared lots of good food and good times.  Come and see us someday and we’ll return the favor. Was my camera broken or what?  I don’t have a single picture from our time there. 

During the holidays Toni traveled to Fayetteville, NC to visit Traver, Amber and our two grandchildren, Farrah, a precocious 2  and Hailey, now 7 months.  I went to Salt Lake City to see Ryan, Jackson Hole to see Jenn and Kevin and Bozeman to see Jess. Jamie and Madeline were off to Coure d’Alene so we missed connecting with them but all are well.  

Now it is January of 2010. We are anchored at a California State Park campground in Half Moon Bay.  The waves are pounding the beach about a hundred yards away.  Twenty-five miles to our north the Golden Gate Bridge crosses the inlet to San Francisco Bay.  On New Year’s Day we loaded up the road bikes and drove to the bridge where we peddled our way from the South end of the bridge to the North then back to Ring in the new year and new decade.   A short haul no doubt but a very memorable way to mark the day.  

Next stop San Luis Obispo. 

Northern California

We are biding time in northern California only miles from Napa Valley.  There is a mountain pass between our campsite and the fabled wine country though even here we are surrounded by vineyards and some well known wineries.  Just a hundred yards from our mother ship is a lake inhabited by thousands of birds and yesterday we kayaked among the egrets, blue heron, coots, ducks, pelicans, etc.
Our tour through the Redwoods left us with little doubt that Mother Nature has an eye for the dramatic.  We walked, biked and drove through the giants, gawking, entranced and humbled by the history surrounding us.  Two thousand years old and still healthy, vibrant and prolific.  A three mile hike took us three hours and seemed timeless.  Always looking up makes it difficult to move forward.
In the late 1800's and early 1900's countless pioneer environmentalist took it upon themselves to buy up thousands of acres of these treasures.  Fortunate are we who still have the opportunity to visit and enjoy the gift of the old growth Redwood forests.  National Geographic recently studied the tallest of the tall which is a tree mentioned with frequency but its location never disclosed.  What a fascinating secret.
We spent a great deal of time in Eureka, California, epicenter of the Redwoods.  Quaint towns like Arcata and Ferndale with their stunning Victorian architecture and artistic communities are just are minutes away.   The pace of life in northern California is much slower that other locales in the state and we found the people to be engaging and friendly, anxious to have a conversation with strangers from Jackson Hole.
Lyle McReynolds gave us a tip about a drive that should be kept a secret too but if you go to Eureka we'll be glad to give you directions.  It passes through Redwoods and large family owned ranches sprawling from the mountains to the ocean operated by the fifth to eighth or tenth generation of the family lineage.

Down Highway 101

Along the Columbia River

We pointed the mother ship south after our Olympic Peninsula experience and stopped in Portland, Oregon to regroup for a few days. While we were there we caught up with some of Toni's extended family. Chris and his wife Nita gave us a great tour of this vibrant metropolis where the old and new are juxtaposed in a symphonic style that is pretty unique.

Regrets to Frank and Cathy, we hope to see you along the road since Portland didn't work out. We look forward to meeting up again one day.

From Portland we headed east into the Columbia River Gorge. Our good friends Rhys and Kelly have created a beautiful home there that sits above the headlands across the Gorge from Hood River, Oregon. Surrounding their home are timbered hills interspersed by meadows, orchards and vineyards that erupted with fall colors during our visit. Good timing.

The community is filled with an eclectic group of baby boomers that seem intent on enjoying friends, food and the pursuit of wind. This is windsurfing central after all and as well known among those enthusiasts as Jackson Hole is to the ski world.

A surprising bonus for us was the number of quiet, nearly traffic free, paved roads that provided us lots of scenic road biking miles.

We are giving the Gorge a ten on our travel meter but of course friends are ninety percent of any adventure. Thanks Rhys and Kelly for a wonderful time.

Portland and the Columbia River Gorge

Toni, Chris and Nita in Portland

Rhys and Kelly's back yard

Vineyards and orchards above the Columbia

The mighty Columbia River Gorge