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Don:
A brisk cold morning and an inch to an inch and a half of snow. Joey loved it. Fortunately there was a lot of open space and a plot with Christmas trees in it that provided an ideal place for him to run while I froze. The driver, Jim is proposing that we shoot for home. There is bad weather predicated further north for the future and Jim wants to miss it. I was also having problems getting in touch with people I was planning to visit so thought maybe it was wise. We stopped at Less Schwab's in Albany OR and bought a set of chains in case there was an area where they were required.
Almost made it. Deb met us at Sherry and Jim's where I abandoned the RV. Sherry had dinner for Her, Hannah, Jim, Deb, Paul who showed up and myself. Deb and I then set off for Whidbey and home. We made it to Whidbey Island but the Denneboom Rd. was to icy to travel on so we went to Deb's home and that is where I spent the night. Seeing as more cold and snow is predicted I might be here for a couple of days
I however guess I am close enough to call this the end of my trip. It has been a wonderful adventure and I want to thank all my family that participated in it and help bring it about. I also want to thank all the people I saw and visited with on the trip for giving up time, some times traveling to meet me, according me the hospitality of their homes, sometimes providing meals and reliving our experiences. I enjoyed them all very much. Thanks
A special thanks to Joanne and Mike Montague for lending me the use of their motor home for the trip.
I know I missed people for some reason or another that I would have liked to have visited as much as those that I visited. I will have to chock up the shortcomings of the trip to this complex life we live in. I am sorry I missed some of these opportunities but I don't want any of the deficiencies of the trip to detract from the real joy and pleasure of the trip. Love to all, Don
Posted at 12:34AM Dec 17, 2008 by Don
Jim
It's cold this morning, but at least it isn't snowing and there isn't that much on the ground. What the roads are like, we don't have much of a clue. One thing that varies a lot between RV parks, even KOA parks, is the quality and quantity of internet connections. Some are great, some are pretty sad, some allow instant connection, some require a key that you get from the desk when you check in. Those that require a key are all fine and dandy unless you arrive late. Then you have to wait until morning. This connection is of the great, requires key variety; and we arrived late; fifteen minutes late to be precise. It let me do a "trial version" last night then booted me off. Anyway, to make a short story a little longer, in order to assess the roads, I wait until nine o'clock to get a key so I can get on the internet. Having achieved this, I discover that the roads look drivable, I also discover, from several sources, that there is more bad weather forecast for Wednesday.
Not knowing exactly what we are going to face between Albany and Seattle, I am anxious to get on the road and get home. The RV is reasonably comfortable in cold weather, but not that comfortable, and I don't have as much cold weather clothing as I would like. As it turns out, things go as I would prefer. Don can't reach any of the people on the list to visit in the Portland area, so agrees with me that heading for Seattle would be a good thing. So we do, after a little stop at the Les Schwab Tire Center in Albany. Finding the store is easy, finding a parking spot, especially for an RV, is not. I pull in the front lot. After playing chicken with a few cars, I pull out, down the road a block, cut through another parking lot, back into the Schwab lot from another direction, go into the back, and stop in front of some closed shop doors. Leaving Don in the RV in case it has to be moved, I head into the zoo in the main store. My hat is off to the folks manning the counter. I get into the line with a half a dozen people ahead of me and a whole horde sitting in the waiting room. With in five minutes, I am at the counter being helped. Five minutes later, I am walking out of the door with my set of chains. To be fair here, people that need something done like a tire changed or a set of chains put on are having to wait an hour or two, but there isn't the endless waiting to even find out if anything can be done.
Prepared to face the worst (a little worse anyway), we get back on the interstate to try our luck. Our luck is good. We start off with the tire tracks bare and dry, then encounter some areas with snow on the road through Salem, but after that we are dealing with roads that are mostly bare and dry through Portland and then entirely clear once we get into Washington. Our final lunch is a choice between fast food in Hazel Dell or an RV lunch in a rest stop. Joey votes for the rest stop so he can get out and stretch his legs. We pull into a sunny spot between a couple of semi's and drag out the fruit, cheese, lunch meat, crackers and cookies for the last time.
From there, it is just a matter of putting in the miles until we get to Seattle.
It is starting to get dark as we pull into the driveway to end this epic journey of Don's. I am a little amused with myself as I pull in, remembering the first time I tried to get it into the driveway and having to jockey a couple of times. This time, I just pull right in, having maneuvered the thing into much tighter places on this trip.
It has been a great pleasure to be a part of this trip and I would like to thank Sherry, Paul, Deb, Russ, Cissy, Betty Lou, Hubert, and Pearl for making it happen. Thanks also to Mike and Joanne for being so generous with the loan of the RV and not seeming upset when I banged up the bottom of the cargo hatch on the tree root. Most of all, I would like to thank Don for letting me travel with him (twice even) and for sharing his visits and experiences with me along the way.
Posted at 12:54AM Dec 16, 2008 by Jim
Don:
We got a fairly good start this morning hoping to beat the reported snow and hail that the campsite attendant said was predicted. We didn't make it. A stretch of road where it had hailed prior to our passing was the worst. Two cars had we assumed slid into the ditch but most of the hail had melted off the road when we went by. We did go through other areas of rain or snow.
It was 1:30 or 2:00 before we reached Keven and Cathy Sherwood's. They have a wonderful location with a view and a beautiful home. Keven's shop is almost competitive with Bob Richardson's. They had a wonderful lunch for us which was almost like a dinner. Jim and I needed very little to satisfy our dinner appetites. We got so involved in conversation that I forgot to take any pictures. It is a temptation to go back and get some. We are at a site only about forty miles down the road. It is the Albany/Corvallis KOA in Albany OR. Per usual it was dark and rainy when we got here. Later probably because I had to get out and do some laundry it was snowing pretty hard.
Posted at 10:36PM Dec 14, 2008 by Don
Jim
It is with some apprehension that I look out the windows this morning. Even in Gold Beach, there was a chance of snow last night. Luck is with me, it is actually sunny. Lots of big clouds around, but it's sunny at the moment. Around nine, I go by the office to get another bathroom key. The one we got last night has disappeared and the only place I can think it might be is in the bathroom since I was using a flashlight because the lights weren't working. Shortly after that, we get packed up to leave. It is cold enough that I decide against going up to the cemetery, but I do drive up to have a look at the house where my grandparents lived.
That accomplished, we head for Eugene to visit Kevin and Kathy Sherwood. Last night, after some thought, some google-mapping, and some looking at the National Weather Service forecasts, I reached the conclusion that going to Reedsport and taking Highway 38 along the Umpqua River to get to I-5 via Drain would be the best route since it appeared to have the least elevation gain. Before we even get to Port Orford, we encounter snow/hail on the road and an overturned car in the process of being pulled out of the ditch. We proceed with even more caution. From there to Reedsport, we encounter a few slushy spots, some snowfall, some rain, and some sunshine. Mostly, though, the roads are bare and dry. After we head inland from Reedsport, the road is still bare, but I am not seeing any other cars and I am beginning to wonder what we are heading into. It starts snowing again, pretty heavily at times, but not really sticking, so we keep cruising. About the point I am really starting to wonder, an RV pulling a car comes by us going the opposite way, then a couple of semi's. Shortly after that, we are passed by a camper pulling a trailer, so I stop worrying so much. The snow is getting thicker and the road a little slushy, but the camper is blazing along and clearing the slush out of the tire tracks for me. About the time we hit Elkton, the snow stops, it seems to warm up, the road changes to bare and dry, and there is no more snow by the side of the road. From there on out, it is an easy drive to Kevin and Kathy's house.
They have waited lunch for us, so after some initial catching up on family chit-chat, particularly involving kids and colleges for some of us, we have a truly excellent meal that will likely count as dinner too. Around four or so, Don and I take our leave hoping to get to our next stop over before dark. As usual, it doesn't happen. In fact, it is raining/snowing a bit by the time we get there, but we get the power hooked up and both heaters going very quickly, and settle down for a leisurely evening. I even find the bathroom key I lost last night. In the cookie cupboard. We have no idea how it got there, it could have been either of us...
Tomorrow? Who knows. It really depends on what the weather does overnight.
Posted at 07:01PM Dec 14, 2008 by Jim
Jim
Today we are aiming for a long drive, so our plan is to get up and get going. As usual, reality tends to intrude. When some of us stay up late uploading pictures and working on blog entries, getting up and going doesn't always happen as planned. This time is no exception. But, better late than never, we are on the road by ten or so. The drive starts out through crisp sunny weather. As we are traveling, it occurs to me that calling California the "Golden State" isn't quite accurate. Based on the road signs I have been seeing
it should be called the "Golf State" or the "Christmas State".
As we travel northwards, the scenery is changing from drier with more deciduous trees to wetter with conifers. The weather is changing also. The sun disappears behind thicker and thicker clouds and the dry changes to wet. Also, my navigator, who also stayed up too late, changes from awake to
asleep and back again, several times. He is awake by the time it starts snowing, somewhere around Willet, CA I think. Fortunately, the snow doesn't stick on the road and we are only in it a short distance until we crest a small pass and drop back down again. We continue on through the forest until Joey reminds us that we have been driving for quite a while and it is definitely time to pee.
He, of course, takes the opportunity to investigate all the smells and tastes.
Eureka finally comes into view and we gratefully take a break to get diesel, visit the Verizon Wireless store, and get lunch. Since this is where I had figured on having lunch, the only diversion from the plan is that lunch is occurring at three in the afternoon. All that taken care of, we start reconsidering where we are going to stop for the night. When we discover that Gold Beach is only about two hours away, we decide to go for it so as to reduce tomorrows driving. Our travel time is increased when we encounter another round of snow before we reach Crescent City, this time sticking on the road and cutting our speed considerably. A snow plow has been on the road ahead of us, clearing the road some and putting down sand, so the driving isn't bad, but I am just feeling a need to drive conservatively in this situation.
We arrive in Gold Beach around six-thirty. Not too bad for a long day that started late. Tomorrow we are intending to go to Eugene to visit Kevin and Kathy Sherwood.
Posted at 11:05PM Dec 13, 2008 by Jim
