WEEK FIVE

WEEK 5 OF OUR CALIFORNIA VOYAGE   We are camped at the Elks Lodge a few hundred feet from the beach in Oceano, enroute home from our five weeks of rediscovering California. Week five of our excursion included travel through the beautiful farmlands of Central California, a visit to a gold mine and a look around the California Delta from our vantage point on the San Joaquin River in Stockton, Ca..   From Red Bluff we moved down the road to Yuba City where we spent two nights in the "heartland" of the State and allegedly "America's bread basket".  The predominant product from those prolific fields was rice.  Of course, this reminded us of statistics reflecting California's export of more rice to Japan than Japan grows.  It seems to me that we sometimes forget the impact of agriculture on our overall economy. A drive through California's fertile farmland provides a reminder of the impact of its farming activities on the welfare of this State and our Country.   From the lush farmlands of the valley, we proceeded back into the forest for a "look around" the hills from which gold once flowed.  Of course, Ken's interest in gold mining supersedes our old age and thus, a visit to the Empire Mine State Historic Park was a given.  According to the mine brochure the mine was acquired by William Bourn, Sr. in 1869 from a company founded by George Roberts who discovered gold in a quartz outcropping leading to the Ophir vein.  The Empire Mine State Historic Park is the site of one of the oldest and the richest hardrock gold mines in California.  An estimated 5.8 million ounces of gold was extracted from 367 miles of underground passages.  The mine was closed in 1956 but an estimated 80% of the gold is still there awaiting rediscovery.   From Yuba City we made our way into the California Delta for yet another excursion into satisfaction of Ken's curiosity. We parked in a RV Resort on the San Joaquin River in Stockton and were elated to see a major freighter go by as we sat outside and enjoyed the peace and quiet of our refuge.  Ken has long held a vague goal of doing a delta "houseboat" excursion and we went in search of what we might have missed.  Further, when Ken's parents were married in 1929, they did a steamboat trip from Sacramento to San Francisco on their honeymoon.  We hoped that there was still a similar trip that "wandering souls" might take but alas, no such trip was available.  We were somewhat disappointed that the delta was not better developed to take advantage of tourists like ourselves who have an interest in revisiting the old while enjoying the marvels of today's advantages.   From Stockton we drove into San Jose and camped at our RV resort of choice, the Elks Lodge in San Jose.  On Monday we grabbed a Cal Train in San Jose into San Francisco, walked several blocks to Powell Street and caught the cable car to Fisherman's wharf where we had lunch and Ken had his daily "consumption" of ocean air. I will not go into our many experiences of getting lost, on the wrong Bart train or, once back in San Jose, finding the Elks Lodge without our "gypsy".  There are days when we really wonder whether we should be allowed "out and about" but Ken's faith keeps us safe.  We have a reputation for bickering and believe me, few people know the half of it!!   Having survived our San Francisco episode, we are now en route home after stops in Oceano and perhaps, Santa Barbara.  We anticipate arrival home either Friday or Saturday.   That be another episode in the "dull" life of two old folks who do not assimilate old age well.       Ken and Pat Burns from the road and/or the sea just as happy as can be

Opportunities for frustration, amusement or stupidity abound in a “day in the life of”.   A battery went out on one of our smoke alarms in the RV. Ken decided it was time to replace it. He installed the new one and put the old one in a bag for disposal.  Tuesday morning at 4AM, I was awakened by a strange beeping.  While I am rummaging around searching for the “beep”, Ken awakened and wondered what I was doing. In the meantime, someone was knocking on our door allegedly to check on us but realistically, I suspect also, to tell us to turn off that DAM BEEP.   He joined us in our quest for the mysterious beep. Though still unidentified, the beep suddenly stopped and we hoped that it might have miraculously cured itself. In about 30 minutes, it began again.  This time we were able to get a better sense of where it was coming from and Ken remembered the old alarm.  Sure enough, the old alarm had come alive (Ken had not completely disconnected the old battery) and  the mystery was solved.

Of course, we had disturbed all of our neighbors several hours before they wanted to be disturbed. The next morning, Ken very humbly apologized and especially thanked the man who tried to help us and we fled the scene!  It was another event in our travel adventures. Honestly, I would not be adverse to living the “quiet life” of a proper aging person!

Tuesday we moved over the mountain to Old Ledwistown Bridge RV resort on the Trinity River, where Ken pursued his skill at Salmon fishing.  A resident in the park took Ken under his “wing” and showed him areas on the river where the fishing could be good but alas, no fish of note rushed to “grab the bait”. Our camp site among the trees was pleasant and our two days in the area (and on the river) relaxing.  

Friday we continued our travel over the mountain into Redding where Ken spent Saturday resolving a water leak.  Travel in a RV is reminiscent of life at home.All of those maintenance chores of home ownership accompany the RV owner and his “rig”. I am often reminded of a friend’s comment to a mutual friend after he had carefully laid out the many merits of his RV purchase.  My friend wisely asked, “what will Marie (his wife) do on her vacation?” RV ownership does not provide an escape – it keeps one in tune with the reality of living.   I must admit, I am very lucky. My dear husband carries the brunt of the duties in exchange for my "grumpy presence". He is so blessed.  

Sunday we moved a few miles down the road to Red Bluff.  From where we did a drive about into Manton where in an “earlier” life we invested in a ranch with an investment group.  We had heard that the town of Manton had suffered from the recent wild fires in the Mount Lassen area and we wanted to see for ourselves the fate of our “ranch”.  We were delighted to see that the town proper had been spared.  Happy that our good memories were intact, we enjoyed a “walk through” the old store and bar where we spent many pleasnt evenings with the locals. They thought we didn’t know that they viewed us as the “dumb flatlanders” from down South. Truth be known, they may have hit the “nail on the head”.

After our stroll down “memory lane” we drove through Shingletown and up to Mt. Lassen for another day of “tree hugging” bliss among the serenity of tall pines.

That concludes our fourth week of adventure on the ocean, in the trees, down (up?) the river in road weary fishing bliss.  Are we having fun yet?

OLD MAN AND THE RIVER

ANOTHER WEEK OUT AND ABOUT

Tuesday we moved on to Eureka with much cooler weather. Though we are graced with periods of sunshine, fog is common. This is an interesting town. An exploration of the immediate vicinity provides a vision of a once bustling complex of lumber related industry that, like the gold and silver mines of yesteryear, have come and gone..    Wednesday, we did a harbor tour (our weekly boat ride) and learned about the history of Eureka.  According to our guide, at one time, there were 450 lumber mills in the area.  I am not sure whether that number was in the area of Eureka proper or whether it included mills located in Humboldt County. No matter how you divvy up the industry, there have been a lot of jobs lost through the years as we pursue progress in our ever changing World.   After our boat ride in the cold invigorating fresh air of an overcast sky, we drove over the bridge to the Samoa Coookhouse for a late lunch in the lumberman style of the past.  In its day, the cookhouse fed 1500 hungry men 3 meals per day, seven days a week.  The food was cooked on wood cook stoves and there were no amenities such as refrigeration, dishwashers or any of the myriad of wonderful modern devices that are available today.  How many of our young today can even comprehend life without their ipod, I-phone or related electronic devices? Life has changed and, though not all change is better, it is defacto.     As I have accompanied my wandering traveling comrade through the forests these past weeks (and years?) and pondered the impact of the passage of time, I have considered this changing world and the effect of change on our hopes, dreams and expectations in life.  We only need to look around us and see the changes that have occurred and are occurring to realize that security is not assured. From my perspective, a simple Biblical phrase from Ecclesiastes was a summons that is as true today as it was in Biblical times.  "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven".  I wonder about those once bustling areas that have passed their prime and are now only desolate reminders of the life that once existed there.  I cannot help but wonder what happened to those people, where did they go, how did they survive or did they? The reality of progress validates the premise that "nothing is forever".       On Thursday, the resident wanderer was ready to explore the Northern Coast and I (in a state of fog both weather wise and mental) rebelled.  I am not particularly fond of the fog and I did not want to explore the beautiful Coast without seeing it.  Ever the tourist, Ken was prepared.  We could go to Willow Creek where the mysteries of Big Foot still occupy the imagination of its citizenry. Reluctantly, I agreed and we were off.   We had lunch in Willow Creek and after Ken checked out the museum, we took a "less traveled" road through Indian Country. As we merrily traveled along we were surprised to see sign informing us that we were on a dead end road.  That got our attention.  Ken stopped at a nearby Indian hosted store and was assured that it was not his navigating skills that were wrong but rather, the sign did not apply to our road but another.    Vindicated, we pushed on around, through and past the usual hills, curves, trucks carrying dirt and over one way bridges until we came to a construction activity that prominently displayed a sign "Veterans Cemetery". We looked at each other in puzzlement. We were 10-15 miles from any population of size (Willow Creek was the only settlement that we had passed and its population was certainly nondescript). Why would the powers that be locate a cemetery in what I deemed a "God forsaken" place.  We are still puzzling over that sign and have determined that it, like the road sign, must have been placed there in error.  However there was no denying that it was a site of major construction activity and a lot of dirt was being moved.    Our puzzlement was increased when a mile or so up the road, the pavement ended and we proceeded on gravel road for the next 10-15 miles. I cannot deny that the road through the Hoopa Indian Reservation, over the ridge into the Redwood National Forest was beautiful and pleasant in spite of the dust.   Friday, the Coast road got the prize as we drove to Klamath where Ken checked out the salmon fishing.  He realized he had not properly prepared for fishing from the bank. He didn't bring his waders and he found the rental of a boat and guide too pricey for his entertainment this trip.  After checking out the activity on the Klamath River, we drove 8 miles on a gravel road to visit a fern grotto and after Ken's walk to the grotto, he did a walk to the beach to conclude his exercise for the day.    Saturday was another day of gravel roads as we made our way over to the "lost" coast of California's Mendocino Coast.  The scenery was spectacular as we traveled by major ranches and open space en route to the Coast. The black sand beaches were spectacular and the ocean subdued. We drove back through the Humboldt Redwoods and stopped for a walk through the Rockefeller Grove to the majestic Giant tree located there.  Every day we have visited the redwoods but never the same locations.  The beauty is undeniable and even I cannot complain about boredom.  My husband does try to keep me entertained with the awesome sights   he finds as a result of his unending curiosity.   Sunday and Monday we visited the Headwaters Forest Preserve and did a hike to the old Falk mill town where once another lumber mill had thrived.     This pretty much wraps up a week in Eureka, our third week on the road.  Tomorrow we will head over the hill into Redding where Ken hopes to get some fishing done and his curiosity of that area satisfied.  Ken and Pat Burns from the road and/or the sea just as happy as can be