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Published: February 5th 2008
Where's the Baywatch Babes?
All this needs is David Hasselhoff and some Baywatch babes9-10-07
When I first got up around 8:00 I walked to the restroom and saw where my Canadian friends had already left. They are some go getters. I ate my oatmeal and got packed and ready to go around 10:00. I slept reasonably well, but not great.
I was heading to Redwoods National Park to sleep amongst the Redwoods for another night. Actually several different people recommended I stay at the Beach Campground at this park. It seemed weird to me for there to be a beach campground in Redwoods National Park but there is. I drove in that direction the rest of the way to Crescent City. There I had some lunch and did some shopping to restock my kitchen which mainly consisted of breakfast and super supplies as I normally eat lunch on the road as I normally do not spend more than one night camping anywhere. I ate at a KFC for lunch as chicken sounded good. I am not sure how people eat the same food all the time as I like variety. Actually I guess I like a little variety in life as well. I am definitely getting lots of variety this year in my
life. I am learning so much as well. Learning about geography, the world, politics and most surprisingly I would say I am learning a lot about me. I would say traveling is like life on steroids. You learn a lot in a little bit of time. I suspect what I have learned this trip would have required me 10 years to learn as a regular citizen. You do learn as you age, but at what rate is dependent on lots of things. Sure I am not learning about engineering, math or science, but I am learning a lot about people. Isn’t that what life is really about. It is about people.
I got to the main visitor center and talked to those folks about a quick hike and camping. They said the beach campground only had 4 places left an hour ago. I thought man this must indeed be a nice place so I jumped in my truck in a rush to get there. Off the main road you have to drive several miles on a dirt road. The road is narrow and winding at places. I made it there and was afraid that a tent spot for me
Hard on the Job!
An artist in San Francisco. might be gone. The guy at the entrance said they have 3 spots left. Great! He gave me a tag and I paid the fee and was again on my way. It was another couple miles to get to the Beach Campground. Once there I drove around looking for a spot but only found one and it was buy two porta potties. I drove the loop again but same result only one site by the porta potties. What are you going to do? A couple groups must be here illegally. Consequently I had to put up camp at the crappers.
After throwing some things out onto the picnic tables I drove up to Fern Clyffe to check this area out. Jim had said this was a must see. I walked up threw the canyon and it was quite interesting. For me it is not amazing, but very interesting. These ferns grow on the canyon walls that are about 50 feet high. The canyon walls are completely covered by them. I walked all the way up the canyon and then went into the woods a little that looped back around to my truck. There were a few other people walking
the canyon, but I did not see anyone on this loop trail. Back at the truck I walked out to the ocean and saw a pretty big elk in the weeds. It is hard for him to hide out here with those big horns in the grass. You had to walk through the water to get to the beach. There was a couple out there that was letting there child play in the sand and get all dirty. I thought that was nice letting the kid get dirty like that. I think some parents are really anal about keeping their kids clean all the time. If I ever had a kid I am going to never clean them. They will have more fun and it will be less work for me. Maybe I can train my dog to lick them a little to help clean them or just take them to water parks or pools occasionally. Not sure how long I will have the kid if I treat them this way as social services I suspect will have a say in the matter as well.
I went back to the campsite and fixed some pasta for supper. I usually
My Favorite Spot on the Pacific Coast Highway
The Bridge show in preceding photo is in here. have pasta or rice for supper when camping and throw some Tuna or chicken in with that. I like it. After supper I walked down to the beach and checked out the waves. I saw an elk walking a long the beach which seemed weird to me. I wondered if it was the same one as it came from that direction and I took a few pictures. It was getting pretty dark and I guess he was headed out for the night to find some food. That was a neat sight.
Back at the campsite I looked over and saw him still walking up the beach and walked right past the campsite. He obviously was not afraid of people. I headed for the showers. It seems most campsites I stay at have showers, which was a little surprising to me. Although the ones in the real arid climates do not. I did some journaling and turned in around 10:00. I wondered if I would be able to sleep with the noise of the ocean right outside. Most people would think that is a good thing, but not for me. Good night from the banks of the Pacific Ocean in
Giant Redwood
Wow! Wow! Wow! That is all I can say! Redwoods National Park.
9-11-07
I slept pretty good considering where I was sleeping. The waves however really were not that loud so I am sure that helped. Yea sleeping by the crappers was not too bad. Most campgrounds require you to be out by noon so I headed out without eating breakfast which was a strategy as it seems right after eating I really struggle hiking. I assume the blood my muscles need are going to my stomach for digestion. I decided to walk miners path for awhile and then decide at the trail junction point if I wanted to loop back to Fern Canyon, where I had been yesterday, or just continue on to the visitor center.
I started out and walked fairly briskly up the trail. The trail head was right by the beach campground so it is easy to find. You have to walk about a mile away from the beach before you get to the redwood trees. Apparently they do not like the salty air at the ocean. I was feeling pretty good and was amazed at the giant redwoods, which is usually the case. These trees can not be explained just experienced.
There are lots of things in life that just need to be experienced as it will be a different experience for each person. For me these trees are awesome and will turn the most ardent, money seeking logger into a tree hugger. These trees are as old as 2,000 years old. If a person does not appreciate that then he needs to reevaluate his life as something is definitely wrong.
After about an hour I got to the junction and decided to circle back to Fern Canyon as I had quite of bit of driving remaining ahead of me. I started down the trail and then came to a y in the road at the designated grove area. You can get a Grove named after you by making a donation. There are a lot of people who do that. I use to think these were private citizens donating land to the parks but no just donated money to the parks. I wondered if they decide which grove they want named after them. I assume they do. I made it to Fern Canyon and appreciated it more I think this time through than the first time even. There were a
few other people meandering up the canyon as well, but in the opposite direction. I felt like a canyon expert when they ask me how far it is to the end of the canyon. I made it down to the beach again and looked for the elk, but did not see him in the same location. As I walked out to the ocean though I noticed him at a different location. I new it was him because I looked at my pictures the night before and noticed a broken antler on one side. He had moved about 100 yds farther north in the grass this time.
I walked along the grass back to the campsite to see if I could discover another elk but I did not. At the campground a guy was picking up the portable Johnny on the Spot at my campsite. I was unclear why these were even out there since there were nice restrooms with showers at the site. The showers though seemed to not get very warm. I wondered if maybe they intentionally set the temperatures very cool so as to promote water conservation. I thought that was a “cool” idea. The water is
My Canadian Friends
I love there story. They said the bet thing that could happen in their lives was for him to have a heartattack. They travel now. cold enough that you take a very brisk shower.
I left campsite number 1 about the same time as the Johnny on the Spots left. They didn’t smell so they really were not that bad to contend with. On my way out I ask the campground person that was at the entrance to the park about 2 miles from this site if he knew why there was only 1 site when I got there and not 2. He said he only has time to go down there 2 times each day and he suspects day users come in and pitch a tent as well. I think they could figure out a better system than they currently have. Why not put up a sign that says anyone found illegally camping will be fined a million dollars. That would get there attention. He didn’t seem very apologetic but then again seemed to be pretty cool so I told him not to sweat it things happen. This site was just ok for me. I enjoyed the hike and Fern Canyon but am not a big fan of the beach. I would have rather camped by the visitors center. The sand all over
the campsite just is not my thing.
I got back on the road and after driving about 30 minutes saw the sign that says Avenue of the Giants. Even though it was going to add at least 30 minutes to the trip how could I not drive it and drool all over my steering wheel again. This is one of the most amazing places on the earth. Really how could I not. After driving it and wiping up the drool the best I could I was back on the interstate headed to Santa Rosa where I was to couchsurf this night. Santa Rosa is about 1 hour north of San Francisco. This is in Sonoma County which is right near Napa Valley. This is wine Country. As I got closer to Santa Rosa I saw many vines on both sides of the road. In one location they had recently picked the grapes and the aroma was so strong that you could smell it on the highway. It was great to smell grapes in the air on the highway. This was an amazing thing as I had never smelled that ever. The smell made me smile. The drive is really
beautiful. California reminds me a lot of Italy with the mountainous areas but California has much more to offer with regards to nature. In California you have the ocean and then a mountainous area that stretches 40 or 50 miles and then a valley area that goes for awhile and then more mountains. On the other side of the second set of mountains you have a desert area. California is the best country I have ever been to. You know if it were a country it would be my favorite. I guess partly due to California the United States is my favorite country, but I have more to see. I know it is not a country but if it were it would be my favorite. I love the US National Parks too. I have never been to one that I did not like. If you are into other thing besides nature you might have another country that is your favorite.
I made it to the couchsurfer host around 6:00 and the couple was busy with their kids. Their youngest daughter is starting school and they had a teachers conference. The lady was going to that and her husband was
staying home with their two kids and me. I enjoyed playing with the little girl. I used there computer for awhile to check emails. They had a mac and it was interesting that you pressed the whole mouse down to select something. It is a lot different from what I am use to but I was able to figure it out only having to ask for help a couple times.
They fed me some soup and we drank a couple beers. They are very nice people and I really enjoyed talking to them. The husband is into art and his job is to assemble art displays while she is in school working on her masters and raising the kids. She is into art as well.
My bed was in a little loft area above her old studio. I like unique sleeping locations like this. Maybe I am still a lot like a kid. Not sure if all grown ups would like sleeping in a weird place like this. I had a long day of driving and shut things down around 10:00. Good night from Santa Rosa, CA in Sonoma County. This is wine country and I drank beer.
Wine Country. Sonoma, California
I drove past here during the harvest and I could smell the grapes on the highway even. It was an awesome aroma. 9-12-07
I got up around 7:30 and typed for awhile. People were stirring quite extensively around 7:00 and I did not see getting much sleep after that. I slept great and loved the loft bed. I went outside for awhile before leaving with my host and she showed me all her garden. She has a fig tree which I ate one. It was ok. I had never had one before only fig newtons and now I know where the flavor comes from. It was very interesting but probably will not become my favorite just a good fruit. She has grapes which I took a bunch of as she said they need to be picked and she will never eat them all. The grapes looked awesome and she said she does not spray them at all. Quite impressive. She has strawberries and a few other things. It is quite impressive considering what we are able to grow in the Midwest. If you want to grow stuff this is the place to do it.
I left truly enjoying my experience. Next stop Big Sur. This is one of my favorite places last time in California and one of my
favorite pictures from the trip came from there so I wanted to go back to get another pic in the same area, but this time try to do a few things differently to see if a better pic results. On my way south the computer diverted me around downtown San Francisco which I questioned at first and I almost trumped the routing as I kind of wanted to see the Golden Gate bridge and then decided ok lets see what Oakland is all about as that was the direction the computer was sending me.
Oakland itself is really nothing but the view in certain locations of San Francisco. I went past Berkley and continued south towards Big Sur. I was glad to get this perspective of San Francisco more so than seeing anything Oakland offered.
I was tempted to stop in Monterey and was tempted to go to Pebble Beach, but did not do either. I am not a fan of golf for a couple reasons. First of all it bores me. After 9 holes I am ready to head to the 19th hole (the bar). Secondly, I do not like the stuffiness of golf. Where you have
to wear a certain type of shirt and/or pants etc. I get the impression people are trying to say that I am better than you are or richer than you. I just don’t like it. I do like the locations often where golf courses are and think now this would be a great place for a park that the whole public can use, not just the rich. I worry about the poor as the rich run the world and I do not have to worry about them with a few exceptions like when they take advantage of the poor like the Enron scandal, when they reduce taxes on theirself like Bush has done and when they take us to war like Bush has done. That’s when I do what I can to help them. Mainly by voting for candidates that I feel will look out for the poor, which is about the only thing I can do.
I found some cheap gas just south of Monterey which really surprised me and when I say cheap it is all relative in California, The gas was like $2.75. I stopped in one location to take a few pictures but none of
I love California.
You can grow everything here and my couchsurfing host did just that. them turned out that great. I kept looking for that location where I had taken that great picture but never saw it. I figured it must be farther south. I pulled into the Big Sur campground around 4. This was the most southern range for the Giant Redwoods and the trees here actually are not that great just ok. A lot of the campsights are actually close to the big trees but a lot or not. This is a huge campsight and there were plenty of available spots. I got mine and just chilled out most of the rest of the evening. Did a little typing and called it a night. Good Night from Big Sur, CA a pretty cool coastal drive. I will be searching tomorrow again for that beautiful picture. I had a lot of driving ahead of me to make it to Hollywood tomorrow. Pacific Coast Highway number 1 is not a fast drive.
9-13-07
I slept pretty good. I had quite a bit of driving ahead of me, but still wanted to get a hike in before I left. I ate a quick oatmeal breakfast got packed and was leaving my campsite by 10:00. This
is later than I wanted to be get going, but it seems like that is often the case these days I sleep in too long. I parked the truck at the trail I wanted to hike and started up the trail. This trail supposedly would take me past some giant redwoods. I did see a few on the way near the stream. I walked up at a pretty fast pace and was walking up hill at a little over 15 minute mile pace. I thought about Cata saying in Norway that a person could not walk a 15 minute mile. I am going to have to do that someday and see what I can actually do it at.
At the top, the view was kind of ho hum. The hiking really was not that great and I headed back down. Really the Big Sur campground was just an ok experience with regards to the hiking and camping. The coastal drive was the premiere attraction. A person really needs to go see the redwoods of Northwestern, CA and/or the Sequoias in Sequoia National Park and/or in Yosemite.
I jumped in my truck and headed out. The total hike was
only about 3 miles, but it was something to help me stay in shape if nothing else. I got back on Pacific Coast Highway No. 1 and began my search for this elusive bridge that I had taken a picture of back in February. I knew I could not have missed the bridge as I have been looking for the bridge the entire drive. About 40 miles south of Big Sur I came across the bridge. It is called “Big Creek” bridge. It is just as I had remembered it. Beautiful! At the place to get the best view there is somewhat of a turnoff, but not a really defined location. I took a several pictures and even tried a couple through my polarized sunglasses. Some people use polarizing lens over their camera and I thought maybe I will try the same thing with my sun glasses. It may have worked if I had really clean sunglasses, but I do not, so there are splotches on the pictures. I wanted some sand from the beach in the picture so I ran down to the beach. I had to get past the barbed wire and all the signs that said no
to trespassing but I made it. At the beach I hurriedly grabbed the sand and took off running back up the hill. It was about a ¼ mile in total distance and I could not run all the way back up the hill. I was spent. I was going to kill myself. I finally made it to the top and got back to my truck relieved that that hike was over. The hot and sweaty and that conditioned lingered for awhile. I did decide to drive back to that bridge and take a picture of the name on the bridge just to document the location. I was satisfied by effort and was really curious as to how the pictures would turn out. I noticed everything was really brown though so I suspected this picture was not be as good. I put lots of effort into getting the bridge larger in the picture. I was not sure how successful I was though.
I continued south and drove past the Hearst Castle from the highway and noticed the pull offs for the seal viewing areas. The first time here I was all excited about pulling off and was amazed at all the
seals. This time I was just annoyed at the people slowing down to turn off as I was in a hurry as I had hoped to get to Hollywood earlier than what it looked like I would at this point.
I made it to San Luis Obispo a location I had hoped to surf but was unable to find a host around 3. I stopped and grabbed some lunch as I had not had any. I grabbed internet access at a nearby hotel and everything was a go for my couchsurfing host. Laura said she would be there when I arrived. I always feel much better when I know that is worked out. I called Laura and gave her a more precise idea of when I would arrive in case she had other plans. Traffic was getting to be a little crazy as it was getting to be near the rush hour.
I made it into LA around 4 and of course traffic was getting to be ridiculous. In LA at any time, on any highway, you can come to a complete stop on any of the many 5 lane highways. Traffic in LA is ludicrous. I got
on Santa Monicas Boulevard and started plowing through the many red lights. I went through Beverly Hills and ultimately made it to Hollywood and with a little instruction from Laura made it to her place. She was there with her landlord and he hopped in with me to help me find a parking spot. They were both being very helpful. Her landlord and her were sitting down drinking a scotch and they offered me that or win and I chose the wine. Laura used to sell wine and the wine was very good. Laura’s landlord offered to make us a sandwich but I declined while Laura accepted. Her landlord said a few sad things about his son who passed away and Laura ask that he keep things positive as she lost a nephew in the Iraq war about a month earlier. I get the impression Laura has had a challenging life. She is working in Hollywood currently walking dogs while she is taking acting lessons. I wish her the best but with my logical mind I am afraid she might have an uphill battle. We sat around and talked until around 12:00 and then called it a night. Another long
day in the bag. Good night from Hollywood.
9-14-07
I slept well and woke up around 8 and got moving around 8:30. Laura is a late sleeper and remained sleeping until around 9:00. I walked up to get some breakfast and when I got back Laura was up and moving around. I folded up the her blow up mattress the best I could and left it up against the wwall. We ate the donuts and I got going as did Laura as she had a job interview to go to. I headed out to Pamona where Frances and her husband Bill work. They are the people I am going sailing with tomorrow. I wanted them to meet me before we went sailing just so they felt more comfortable with me on their boat. Also they work at the LA county wastewater treatment plant which treats 60 mgd of flow at this plant. They have a bigger plant in another location that treats 400 mgd a day. Most plants I have worked with in the past treats less than 1 mgd a day. Frances gave me a tour of the plant and it was very interesting to see. In talking
to her she acted like there is a lot of politics that take place there like most places. I am just not much on kissing butt for money. If you kiss butt to help someone out or to make someone feel better that is ok with me, but kissing butt for money I do not like. Most things that happen in this world are for money at least in the US and Europe. Not sure about the less developed countries. I think about the bosses of a company I know very well. 1 of them I respect but do not like, another is arrogant and condescending, another I like, and the last one is just an average Joe who was in the right place at the right time and kissed the appropriate ass to get the position. I could never be or would want to be for that matter, a boss. I make enough money the way it is to live a comfortable life and that is good enough for me. I don’t really feel like I have helped anyone much to date, but I hope to someday. I have a lot of work to get to be the person
I want like to be.
Frances gave me directions to their boat and had said I could spend the night on the boat. Man was I excited about spending the night on the boat and about sailing with them. I said goodbye and left thinking about the next day’s sail.
From there I headed up to Venice Beach area and did some bike riding. Frances had said the Dodgers are in town tonight. Bill had said there would be tickets available as they normally do not sell out. I called and left a message asking Michelle, my next couchsurfing host if she wanted to go to the Dodgers game tonight with me. She had called back while I was biking and left a message saying she would like to go. Once I got the message she indicated she did not want to drive down and would like to car pool. I told her I would swing by to pick her up. In LA this is not always an easy thing to do but Michelle said it was about a 30 minute drive to her place. It took me a little longer than that but I have learned not
to be surprised by the traffic in LA. She lived right near the beach in a beautiful place. From her living area you could see the ocean. From where I was to stay you could not, as that is an area below her living space. She has a very nice place and where I was staying she rents out. She said that is the only way she could afford the place.
We jumped in my truck and headed out. Of course the 405 was ridiculously slow. We had an interesting and funny debate about which lane is the fastest. Michelle said to take the HOV lanes which should be faster, but are not always in my opinion but I am basing my opinion on just a couple observations. We got to the stadium just a few minutes before game time and I became worried about not getting tickets. Everyone parks around the stadium on a flat parking lot and from the parking lot you have a great nighttime view of LA. The cost to park was $15 and it really looked like the only option to me. Oh well what are you going to do. On the way in
I realized I had forgotten my camera and knew I had to get that. I ran back and got it and it only took a couple minutes.
As we got close I became more worried about getting tickets and was looking for a place to buy them. Michelle did not know where to go. Then I saw a man who was trying to get rid of a couple tickets and he was selling the $30 tickets for $20. We snatched them up and headed in. It was Tommy Lasorda bobblehead night and we got ours as we walked in. I thought man what luck and this is probably why there were so many people here tonight.
The game was great and Tommy Lasorda was actually there celebrating his 80th birthday with Sparky Anderson by his side. Two legends of the game. I went and got two beers, two Dodger Dogs and a bag of peanuts which cost $10 for a beer, $ 5 for the hot dog and like another $5 for the peanuts. This was turning out to be an expensive night. The price tag for the night was $40 for tickets, $15 for parking and $35
for food totaling $90 plus gas. Kind of an expensive night. Can't do this every night that is for sure.
The Dodgers won the game 7 to 4 and I enjoyed seeing them play a song on the scoreboard about loving LA which many fans sang to. Of course getting out was slow but not as bad as I thought it might be. It had been a long night and it felt good to make it home again. I said goodnight to Michelle and headed downstairs to my living area. I had a bathroom, kitchen, living area and a bedroom. I was living it up. Good night from Manhatten Beach about 150 yards from the Pacific Ocean.
9-15-07
I got up around 7 and did some typing. Around 9 I went to the nearby store to grab breakfast. Everything was much more expensive than I expected from a neighborhood grocery store. I grabbed some cereal and a ½ gallon of milk. I normally do not get cereal on the road so this was a treat. After breakfast I typed a while longer and watched a little tv. I also did some trip planning as there is lots of
planning to do for a trip like this.
I went and grabbed some hotdogs a little later in the morning. Not sure why but I felt like being really frugal for some reason and this was the cheapest I could find. It was probably because I had spent so much on the Dodgers game the night before. Around 1 I headed to Long Beach for the sail. I got there a little early and Frances indicated Bill was visiting his father who was sick and that I need not hurry. I asked Frances what I should bring and she said nothing, but I knew I had to grab something so I got some Corona and some fruit.
I was surprised to find that when I arrived at the dock Frances was already there. She welcomed me aboard and I took care of some business at the restrooms. Everything here is really secure and there are electronic keys for the bathrooms and the gates for the docks. As I walked to there boat I was really impressed by the boat. Karen had shown me the boat she thought was Frances before, but she was never certain which boat was
actually. It was a CT 41 a ketch style boat, where the back mast is shorter than the front. It looked like it was a really old boat but was really only a 1979 which is newer than mine. Frances’s husband showed up and we got going after getting the sails ready to go and the motor started. They were most concerned about getting the boat out of the slip without hitting any other boats. We got it out quite easily and were on our way. I always stayed close to my camera and took some pictures on the way out. Man this was awesome and was one of the highlights of this leg of my trip. I did skip Yellowstone to do this instead. I thought I will go to Yellowstone sometime in the future, but this opportunity doesn’t always come up. As we got out of the harbor we started raising sails. This boat has 4 sails whereas mine only has two. It took sometime but we got them all up. Frances took some pictures of me on the boat and told me where good pictures were on the boat. One of the 3 forward sails was a
Dodger Dogs are expensive
$10 for a beer. What are you going to do? You have to pay it. particularly good one I thought. Man I was in heaven. After watching them steer the boat I really thought I could captain this ship and they did let me steer for a little while. It really was just like my boat just bigger and more powerful. We looked for the break, which is essentially a rock dike about 3 miles off shore creating a makeshift harbor. Frances got her radar out to help find the dike since the fog was so heavy. We finally saw it and sailed along it for awhile looking for the opening which allows you to sail out to Catalina Island which is what they often do. Since Frances had to take her son to college the next day she was unable to go out to Catalina Island and anchor for the night. The water where they normally anchor is about 50 ft. deep whereas I usually anchor in only 8 feet of water. They laughed when I told them that.
We sailed through a sailboat regatta accidentally as it was so foggy it was hard to see the boats. I was helping to look out for other boats and Frances said this was the
most excitement they have had on there boat in awhile. We made it through the other racers without causing them any problems. The wind was strong and showed 20 knots on the speed indicator on the boat. Some of the race boats were really heeled over. There were a few times when we dumped wind from our sails as well. Frances seemed quite calm the whole time whereas I was a little nervous. I remember sailing on Lake Michigan with my college friend and his wife and the girl I was dating at the time. We had some really high rollers coming off Lake Michigan I was on a J 22 a boat I had never sailed and I was really nervous as I was the only one with sailing experience. I was really nervous but in that situation I never let anyone else notice my concern. Maybe Frances was doing the same or maybe she wasn’t concerned? I am not sure.
We sailed past some bait boats that was quite interesting. They have several bait shops right on the water. Essentially they are big floating cages that the bait shops keep there live bait in and give fisherman
the bait on demand. This seemed like a very good setup as the fish should remain very healthy this way. We sailed in after about 1.5 hours of being on the water and me being in ecstasy. There were seals in several locations that we could see and it was interesting to see the oil rigs which are camouflaged to just look like islands.
This sail had been awesome. I was excited as well to get in and do some barbecuing on the boat as well. This is something I really enjoy on my own boat, but this year I had not done any due to my travels. They had brought kebabs and Frances brought some salsa which she made. We drank beer which they had brought Corona as well. I love that beer in this setting. I was truly in heaven at that moment. Their son came out as well. We talked softball for awhile as Bill still plays 3 nights a week. I will be glad to start doing that again next year.
They gave me instructions on sleeping on the boat and got the DVD player cued with Captain Ron as that boat is just
like the one I would be sleeping on except Captain Ron’s was about 10 ft. longer. As they left Jack a man who is living on a boat just a couple boats down talked to us for awhile. He invited me to come down for a drink. I enjoyed talking to them and went down to talk to Jack a little later in the evening after I got everything ready for bed and tried a couple night photos of the Queen Mary.
Jack had a few other guest there as well. Jack said several times, that this is his 4th wife and this one and his first one were long marriages I think over 20 years but the two in the middle very short marriages less than a year. He is a character there is not doubt about that. I headed back to the boat to watch Captain Ron. The interior of this boat is just amazing. This is what I want to have some day. Maybe not all the woodwork that this one has but more fiberglass for ease of maintenance although there boat is much prettier. If I were to be on it for long periods of
time I might go for a fancy boat like this, but otherwise for a recreational weekender type boat, I would go with a more maintenance free boat. This boat is truly amazing.
Well after a great day it was time to call it a night aboard the Penelope. It is much more boat than mine although mine is nice too. This boat is just in the big leagues. There were people looking over at us when we came in and one guy even yelled hey nice boat. This boat is Frances passion and I am so lucky to be aboard it. Goodnight from the North Pacific in Long Beach, California.
9-16-07
I slept great on the boat and got up around 8:00. I walked up to use the restroom and walked over to a point where you could see the Queen Mary. She was still there as expected. I took a couple pictures and then went back to the boat to get a few things packed up and loaded on the truck. I walked over to Jack’s Party Boat. This guy is a party animal still at 79 (I think) and was as expected drinking a screwdriver.
He had invited me over the previous night to have a Bloody Mary, which I am not a big fan of but thought I would try one none the less to see if my taste had changed which so commonly occurs as a person ages. I must not be old enough as I still did not like it. Jack was watching football and was talking about his bets. They are really engaged about the world around him. He said he doesn’t know what party I belong to but he said if Hillary gets elected he doesn’t know what he would do. I bit my tongue as I was his guest and it wasn’t the time to talk politics. But I think about what Bush has done getting us into a war that we should not have not gotten into. The Bush backers always say the Democrats gave Bush permission to go to war so doesn’t it stand to reason the Republicans are going to have the same sort of supervision over Hillary. I am not scared of Hillary. What is she going to do help poor people get health care maybe. Holy crap she will go straight to hell for
Blue Man Group?
Some people like their sports. Maybe a little too much. that. It amazes me how the Republicans are the so-called religious party. What a joke that is. Taking us to war, lowering taxes on rich people, killing criminals with the death penalty etc. I am sure the bible tells them to behave that way. Protect me from the good people. The pot smoking hippie does not scare me nearly as much as the self righteous religious folks.
Jack told me one time when he was between wives how he got drunk one night and took his 51 ft. boat out on the high seas and put it on auto pilot and a part of the crate that holds his smaller boat came loose so he went up to fix it. While up there he got knocked over board and was holding onto a railing. All he could think about was his boat being found by the coast guard somewhere out to sea out of gas. He said too they recently ran some tubes from his upper body to lower body to help blood flow down there as he did not have much feeling in his feet. He said he went into a coma like state for 10 days. His
I love LA.
Well lets say it is ok? wife now of 20 somewhat years was by his bedside and finally told the doctors he needed alcohol and the doctors allowed his wife to give him alcohol. He said he came out of the coma like state soon afterwards. He says he knows he is an alcoholic, but he is not changing. He also smokes like there is no tomorrow and at this rate there probably will not be many more tomorrows. He says he knows the cigarettes is why he lost feeling in his feet and why they had to perform the surgery. He is a character for sure and has some great stories although I say he is very lucky to be alive and people die all the time from the things he was lucky enough to cheat death on. He said when he was 17 he ran a motorcycle into a truck and they pronounced him dead. He said in the morgue someone saw him move his toes. Wow. He says that hospital in Florida is still there as he was there not so many years ago.
I watched a little football while I finished my bloody mary and said goodbye. He has a very
unique and interesting lifestyle. I was glad we talked. I made one final look over Frances’s boat and everything looked fine. I jumped in my truck and headed back to Michelle’s where I was spending the next two nights. I chilled out for awhile at Michelle’s and then we went for a drive and she showed me the area south of where she lives. She said in this area where Trump built a golf course the land settles a lot and they are always adding new pavement to the road. We also hiked down to the beach area where she said locals surf a lot. I was always trying to kid her, but she usually did not think what I said was funny evidently by her facial expressions. I got the impression maybe she was just wired to be in serious mode. I guess I use to be that way a little as well or maybe what I said was not that funny. Then again that couldn’t be the case so she just must be a serious person. I picked up some trash along the way and threw it in a trash can near where her car was parked. I
My Friends on the Boat
This is the good life! told her I wanted to see the sunset so we drove around looking for a place to park and was not being very successful finding one so I suggested she drive farther away from this area and she said who lives here? Ok then I thought lets keep driving around. She can be very direct at times. Finally as she drove around we found a spot. We parked and headed down to the beach. The sunset was beautiful and I took some pictures. There was a bar nearby and we jumped in there and had a cold one. This place was as local as it got and was quite interesting in that they had lots of Boston Red Sox and Patriots memorabilia on the wall. The owner is from that area of the country. Michelle said no one is local here. The bar was just ok for me as they had only a couple selections of draft beer and they smoked inside even though there was a ban on smoking in the City. There were a couple guys really plastered.
We went back to her place and Michelle agreed to fix some chicken breast and spinach. A home cooked
meal sounded really good. I had a beer and she had a glass of wine. That was nice of her and it really hit the spot and the chicken was very juicy. Around 9:00 I headed down to my sleeping area and typed for awhile and called it a night. Again a busy day on the road. Tomorrow morning we were getting up to go sea kayaking. I was really looking forward to that. Sweet dreams from Huntington Beach, CA.
9-17-07
I got up around 7:00 and got ready to go out with Michelle to do some sea kayaking. I had a great bed and great accommodations, but for whatever reason I did not sleep that well. The sea kayaking sounded awesome and something I really looked forward to. I walked down to the ocean and there were lots of people surfing. Even during the weekdays I saw lots of people surfing and wondered if most of the people get up early and surf then go to work or if most were on vacation.
Michelle came out and opened the door promptly at 7:30. We put the kayak on a cradle which seemed a little wimpy to me as
My Grilfriend
I have a girlfriend and she is named Penelope. The name of the boat! it was not that far to carry but then as we cradled it around I realized it would have been a long way to carry it. At the beach we put the cradle down and Michelle gave me instructions. She said whatever you do just do what I say. She acted like I wouldn’t. I think it peeves her if she tells someone to do something and they do not. I heard her loud and clear. We got going and once we got to the surf she said to paddle hard and I did and the first wave came crashing over the bow and then less of the wave hit the second time as we had gotten farther from the beach and then we were clear of the surf and everything was smooth. We paddled to the pier below us and on the way back we saw seals and at one time I think she mentioned seeing a dolphin, but not sure. On the way back in Michelle said to keep paddling and do not try to steer the boat. She would take care of all the steering and she reiterated just keep paddling. I thought we might have a
chance to catch a ride in on the surf. As we got to the wave she said to paddle hard and we started going crooked and I just kept paddling and we got sideways and the surf pummeled us and we capsized. I was only concerned about my glasses being crushed as I had them in her dry bag and she said not to worry about them that’s why we put them in the dry bag. The dry bag was not going to help matters if they got under the boat and then a wave moved the boat on top of the glasses and crushed them. The only thing that dry bag was going to do is keep the crushed glasses dry. Even though Michelle said not to worry about them I took off running for the boat and got the bag. I got the glasses and everything turned out just fine. We got the boat out of the water and back to the house. I grabbed Michelle’s boogey board and went back out to body surf. I had done this a couple days earlier, when I was there and really enjoyed it. I seemed a little fatigued and only
spent about 15 minutes out there. The water is a little cool and everybody had wet suits on except for me.
I went back to the house and took a hot shower and got ready for the big event in 15 minutes the Bruce Springsteen tickets went on sale. I got the website pulled up and was ready to go. Right at 10:00 the site changed to find tickets so I clicked on it and two seats popped up in front of the stage but way in the back. I hesitated and looked at the seating chart I had up and thought these are not that great so I searched again and the next time the seats were a lot higher. I was beginning to panic after only about 3 minutes. Then it said no seats available. Then two seats right behind the stage came up. I was not about to pay $100 for two seats behind the stage. I then clicked again and it said no seats. I then was really panicking. I ran up stairs to ask Michelle if you can usually buy these tickets on Craig’s list and she said yes they sell these tickets on
Craig’s list. I then went back downstairs and tried again for just one seat and one became available right behind the stage and I grabbed it. I felt at ease to have the seat, but contemplated what is it gong to be like to be behind the stage. I thought well at least I will be in the venue and will hear everything.
I took a nap after that as I need to distress a little. I had been waiting for these tickets to go on sale for about 3 weeks now and all I came up with was one seat behind the stage. It was down low so that is nice. I wondered how in the heck do you get the good seats. I even tried for the standing locations on the floor but nothing. After 20 minutes the whole venue was sold out. Such a deal. Oh well I had a ticket.
I messed around on the computer for most of the day and called another couchsurfing person who I had originally contacted. She was up for going out for a drink so we did that later in the evening. This lady is from Romania and
like the Ethiopian guy had won the lottery to come to the US. It was interesting talking to her, as she is a big traveler. We called it a night around 10 and each headed home. She lived very near but far enough that she drove. When I got back I talked to Michelle for awhile and then called it a night. The next day I was heading back up to Hollywood to hang out with Laura for awhile as she said she was available to hang out for the day. I wanted to take a few pictures. Good night from Huntington Beach my final night here.
9-18-07
I got up and laundered clothes including the bed sheets and towels of Michelle’s that I had used. She had said she would be gone between 9 and 11. I told her I would not be leaving before then. It took me two loads to get everything done. I got some breakfast and did some typing while the clothes were washing and drying. Around 11:00 everything was done. I went to tell Michelle what I had done and told her everything is washed and then realized the hand towels, which I
had used a couple times I had forgotten to wash, but I only used them a couple times and their might be a little sand on the floor. I told her the hand towels looked fine and she said the hand towels were not sanitary and for me to throw them in a pile on the floor and ask for me to go over the floor with the vacuum cleaner. Not exactly the response that I expected. Of the 30 plus couchsurfers I stayed with none have asked me to do this. I just politely said ok and went down and did those things. I am not sure she has the spirit of couchsurfing. I know when I start hosting surfers I will not be asking people do any cleaning and I will give them a cell phone to use as well for local calls. It is a very nice place, but I was glad to get going. I think we both had enough of each other. We were probably too alike.
I made it back to Hollywood and Laura was ready to go sightseeing. We took her convertible. Right when we left on our way to Beverly Hills
we were stopped at a sign near an assisted living center for the elderly and she got out of her car to take a picture of them. She said they are supposed to have this place setup so people can park there but instead they set it up so parking is restricted. She said they then park on her street. The whole time I was there there was always parking available in front of her house. I ask her if she ever has trouble finding a parking spot and she said all the time. She said she is going to give the photos to her alderman and voice her complaint. It seemed rather petty to me and this is the person I was spending the rest of the night with. She also talked about how she got the Porsche she drove at essentially no cost as her previous was a lemon and she complained extensively about it. I also noticed consistent fidgeting with her ear right ear and nose. If I were to guess I would say that the fidgeting is from drug use as it seems like people who do the hard drugs have problems like that. Laura said
when she first moved to Hollywood she lived on the streets for 2 months. She said she has an agent and wants to be a movie star. I just do not know about her lifestyle. She recently said she got a job as a dog walker. I don’t know but everything in her life seems a little complex. I wonder if my life is complex. I don’t think it is, but maybe it might be perceived as such. It is amazing how people perceive things differently.
A friend suggested I see Malibu and Laura had not seen it either so we headed to Malibu. I was not overly impressed with Malibu although the houses along the ocean were very cool. I did not know Pepperdine University was located there and I found that interesting. Traffic as you might expect was crazy so getting anywhere was a little long. We did finally make it back to Hollywood and Laura changed to some warmer clothes as did I grab a ¾ length sleeved shirt as it was cooling off. We went up to the strip and had some supper and some drinks. At one point Laura ordered a Margheritta and she
said it was great. Her second one however was not very good and she made them make her another one and told them how to make it and with what ingredients. She got the new one and it was still not like her first one. She accused the bartender of not using the type of liquer she told him to. He said scouts honor I did and they argued about it a little. I was thinking just drink the damn thing and shut up, but obviously did not say that. I finally started talking to the German guy sitting beside me. We talked for awhile and I really was enjoying the conversation. Laura was talking to some guy that had just walked in. She said she was not going to drink the drink and I told her to give it to me and I would and I did. I know nothing about drinks but it tasted ok to me. She used to be a bartender and seems to think she knows her drinks. I told her she should go back and make her own drinks. I was thinking it will be nice to get back on the road as I
had my fill of the LA area. The sailing was the highlight of course as that was great fun.
We headed out around 11:00 pm and found our car back. Laura had spent about 30 minutes trying to find a parking spot earlier where I would have just parked farther away, but people seem to like to drive around looking for a close spot as opposed to parking farther away and walking. We got back to her place and called it a night. It felt good to be going to sleep as tomorrow I would be getting back on the road. I felt like it was time to leave LA. I felt like I had learned a lot about the LA area and the people I stayed with were really good to me, but I didn’t exactly hit it off with the couchsurfers. My sail and night on the boat however was fabulous. Good night from Hollywood.
9-19-07
I got up around 8:00 and got my stuff together. Laura had her first instructional day at her new job and she did not want to be late to that. She was doing dog walking for awhile until she hits
it big in acting. I used her computer for awhile and then realized time had slipped away from me so I ran to get my truck and got it loaded just as Laura needed to leave. I thanked her again for everything and headed out. She had been really nice to me and I was grateful of that. Everyone was for that matter in Southern California but I was looking forward to getting out of there to do some camping again. I was on my way to Sequoia National Park. I had never been there and really had low expectations for the place. I wanted to check into the Bruce Springsteen ticket as they said there was a difference in the shipping and billing address. I decided to go to a ticketmaster location on my way out of the City of LA and went to the Korean Institute. Not sure why they sell tickets as it seemed like a government institution. They really had no help for me. They gave me a contact number to call however, so I decided to do that on the road which ended up resolving the entire issue as I now have the ticket being
Looking down over Malibu.
Pepperdine University is near here as well. sent to Batchtown where I wanted.
The drive to Sequoia amazed me as I didn’t realize it would be this mountainous just outside of LA. After driving through the mountainous area I came across the valley area where lots of produce is being grown. It is a desert area essentially and without irrigation nothing would grow there. In California man they can grow anything. They have trees there that are planted on a ridge that is about 18 inches higher than the surrounding ground. The trees are planted in rows with the rows being spaced about 30 ft. apart. With the irrigation they flood the ground between the trees which seeps into the root systems of the tree. I assume the water comes from wells but I am not sure. I saw a sign that says with water comes life. Man they are right about that. It’s all about having water. I saw a couple huge grape farms as well. I always think of wine when I see grapes but they very well could be grapes for eating as well.
Like Yosemite after crossing the big valley I started getting into another mountainous area. The drive was pretty
Malibu!
The homes are very close to the water! long. I stopped at a Best Western ran by an Indhian owner and walked into the place asking if I could use the wifi. I didn’t see anyone around at first but heard this Indhian music being played on the tv and didn’t really know what to think about that and was wanting to just kind of sneak out of there but then the owner arrived. He was extremely nice and said sure it is no problem and he said I can sit right there in the lobby. He was extremely nice and that was very cool to see. It turned out for whatever reason I could not access the wifi and therefore ended up going down the road to a Comfort Inn. The person working there was really nice as well and she let me sit in the lobby as if I was a paying customer. The more economical places life your Comfort Inns and Days Inn seem to be the most friendly when it comes to using wifi. The places like Holiday Inns and Mariotts are the worst. I try to avoid those places and for some reason it makes me angry that they do not allow me
to use their wifi. I tipped the lady and headed on. I had about another 30 minutes of driving before making it to Buckeye Flats, the campground where I planned to stay. It was pretty full. I walked down to the creek and was surprised at the size of the boulders. They were huge. I took some pictures of the flowing water, none of which I felt would be classics. There was one photo I saw that would have been great but the mountain was cloud laden so at this time the photo was not good. It was fun running amongst the big rocks. At one point I heard a weird noise that I could not identify so I move away from the area. It didn’t really sound like anything I had heard before and it didn’t sound human either. There are lots of snakes and bears in this area so I headed out. There were a couple other people in the area as well.
After getting to my campsite I heard an older lady yelling something to a William and I had no idea what was going on it sounded like “William Bare, William Bare.” I should have
Pig And Whistle
I heard this is a famous bar. Not sure why it is so famous. understood it in the context but I didn’t. She had a very southern accent. Then I saw a man go running down the road to a nearby campsite and I realized she might be saying bear. I walked up to the water spigot and I asked the lady what all the noise was and she said there was a bear in the camp. I asked her what direction the bear went and she pointed and I hurried down there hoping to see it again. As I got down there I did see something move in the shadows and I was about 25 yds from the bear, which was closer than I expected to be. I tried to take a picture but it was so dark I could not really get a good shot. I tried with the flash on and with it off. During the picture with the flash, the bear had looked up at me and I captured the reflection of his eyes. This was the best I could do. The bear then walked into the creek and I walked around farther away from him down to the creek. I did indeed, see him again, but it was just
too dark to get a photo. I walked back up to my campsite and the lady that told me about the bear brought me the cap to the bottle I had left by the water spigot. I talked to her for awhile and then her husband showed up. Her husband was the guy that helped chase the bear away. He said the guy William was in his car typing on the computer when this bear came up out of the creek and snatched their cooler. The people really screwed up as you should never do that kind of thing when you are in bear country. The camp host later stopped by to ask the man questions as he had to write up a report. We talked for a long time. The ranger said fortunately the bear had not gotten into the cooler. If he had they would have probably had to put the bear down. He said during the last month they have had a bear in camp every night with only a couple of exceptions. I had no idea this was bear country. After the camp host left I talked to the couple a little longer and learned that
they lived in Raleigh, North Carolina. He was a carpenter and I am not sure what she did. But they had remodeled a house and a person said he wanted to buy it for a large sum of money and they sold. She said they now are just traveling for awhile. It sounded like they would be traveling for around a year. They had been to pretty much every national park in the Country. They are extremely nice people and I really enjoyed talking to them. They were driving around in an older model van that he had installed an elevated bed. He had a table that slid out the back of the van. They also had a dog as well. For me traveling with a dog would be tough but I know for a lot of people dogs are just a part of the family. There are a lot of areas where dogs are not allowed in the national parks so that would be a restriction as to where you can go. These people are the type you could have talked to for ever and I selfishly took advantage of that. They were probably in there mid 40's. We
joked a little about looking out for bears the rest of the night. He told of true stories where in Yosemite a bear had ripped off the siding of trucks and one even took off a camper shell. I jokingly looked at my campershell where I would be sleeping and told him that is nice to know! His wife then tried to cover his tracks a little to help put my mind at ease. We joked about that and I told them bear or no bear I am sleeping tonight as the night before I had only gotten a couple hours of sleep. That is how it works on the road some nights you do not sleep but the next night you definitely sleep. Ok I am going to sleep and tonight I will be counting bears to get to sleep. One Bear, Two bears, Three Bears…………….
9-20-07
I did indeed sleep well last night. I got up and had some breakfast and headed out. It was overcast still so that fabulous picture that I had seen the previous night would not be possible today either. I said bye to the people I had met from Raleigh. I gave
Outside Sequoia National Park
Now we can have a Barbie here as the Australians call a BQ! them contact information so hopefully they will stay in touch. They said part of their trip is getting away from the computer but they said once they get back home they will contact me.
I drove up to the Sherman Tree area. There was construction in one area of the road which delayed me by about 30 minutes. The road took you right through a Sequoia Grove and there was a black bear along side the road there. I wanted a picture but was too late and didn’t feel like turning around for that. The drive was awesome and the trees are truly amazing. I made it to the Sherman Tree parking lot. I saw European License plates on this Range Rover and I started talking to this kid and his girlfriend. He is from Switzerland and had ferried the truck across the Atlantic. He said it cost him $2,000. He said he went into Canada and into Alaska. From there he is heading south into South America, He said this Range Rover has a bathroom and bar in it. It appeared to be a great ride to travel in.
I walked down the path towards the tree.
Amazing Park
The US has awesom National Parks I heard some people talking and guessed it to be German but they said no they are Dutch. There were 3 adults and a child in this group. They were very nice people and I thoroughly enjoyed my conversation with them. I told them I like Stroopwaffles, a Dutch cookie, and they laughed. I saw all kinds of Germans. The dollar is very weak right now and it is cheap for Europeans to travel here and the opposite for Americans to travel there. I blame the weak dollar on Bush, but I am not sure he has a lot to do with that. I talked to some Germans and they said Germans often fly to San Francisco and then go to Yosemite, Sequoia, Zion, Bryce, the Arches, Grand Canyon and then fly home from Los Angeles or Las Vegas. It amazed me they knew so much about these western parks in the US. I didn’t even know anything about them.
I was amazed by the Sherman tree. A display there said it was the biggest tree in the world by Volume. I then walked down the trail where I ran into a conglomerate of trees called the Senate and
another called the President. I talked to a couple from Romania. They were very nice and I took several pictures for them and they did the same for me.
I got back to my truck and decided to head on out. At a Sequoia grove I saw the couple from Raleigh again and I honked at them. After waiting at the construction zone I was on my way. I discovered a great picture just outside of the park and took a couple pictures. I was hi above the stream bed and there was a lot of cloud effects in the sky and allowing for periodic light penetrations. I got back on the highway and decided to head to Bakersfield and then back up to Death Valley. The only other road was through the National Forest just south of Sequoia, which was shorter in distance, but a local told me that was longer in amount of time as you had to drive on very curvy roads. The trip seemed to be taking a long time. Once I got into a desert like area at one time I felt a little strange as it appeared I was in the middle of
nowhere. That is a weird feeling to feel totally separated from society. It was a little scary as all I could see was open highway and mountains.
I saw a couple areas that looked like good camping, but I wanted to make it farther. I stopped at a rest stop and considered staying there, but ultimately did not. I always remembered rest stops not to be that safe and there were about 4 guys sitting outside the gas station who looked like they may not have teeth and two guys had banjos. Actually there were no banjos, but I know several of them were missing teeth as I could tell when they talked or gummed the words. The owner of the gas station there too said I could just park in his lot as truckers often do, but I do not feel as secure in my truck as I would in a semi. A little father down the road I saw a place that had camping and I stopped there and they indeed had a spot. I was spent and ready to call it a night. I was not exactly in Death Valley, but I am just inside the
See the Eyes
We had a bear come into the campsite in Sequoia and I took a picture of him. All you can see is the eyes as it was late. park entrance. Good night from Death Valley well really close anyway to the actual valley.
9-21-07
I slept pretty good through the night and was excited to see Death Valley. I walked across the street and had two eggs sunny side up, hash browns, wheat toast and water. This was a perfect meal for a hiking day at least for me. I planned to do some hiking today in the desert. I used the internet for awhile as well and then headed out. I had asked the lady working at the restaurant where to go and took the list and headed out. The first place was to the community’s water supply. The name of the place is called Darwin’s Falls. The name of the town is Darwin and there must be a fall there. The lady working at the store said it is amazing a water fall in the desert. Sounded cool to me and she said you turn off to it about a ¾ mile up the road. That sounded easy enough so I watched my odometer, but never saw the place and kept driving. I went about 3 miles and never saw a sign that said Darwin’s
Folks from Switzerland
They put this on a ferry for $2,000 and are driving it across US to Alaska then down into South America. Good for them! Falls, but did come to an observation point. This was very cool and you had to drive off the road a ways to get to it. I asked a guy close by if he heard of Darwin’s Falls and he said do not speak English. He was a French guy and I thought well you just spoke English by saying that. I thought back to the French guy who worked at the train station who told me to try and speak French if I wanted a train ticket but this French guy has come to the United States not speaking English. It turned out he did speak some English and was quite enjoyable to talk to. We talked for awhile and I told him where I recently was in France and bragged it up a little and he did the same about the United States. I think everyone always believes the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. He headed down to another viewing area and I stayed there for a few photos and then went to where they headed. The view here was phenomenal and the valley was vast. I do not think this was
General ShermanTtree
Biggest Tree in the World based on Volume! actually “Death Valley” but more a tributary to it. It was amazing though. I took a picture with my truck in it and thought man this truck has been to some places. I saw the French people pulling away and they waved at me as they left. The French are nice people actually most people are nice. I just do not like people who are always proper and do not like to let their hair down at times and are afraid to get dirty. Some French people seem to be a little that way, but I need to just learn to accept that about them. I am sure there are lots of things people do not like about Americans besides of course our current leader.
I drove away from this spot and back down the hill. I thought man if this is where the City gets there water then that water pipe I saw along the road earlier that should take me back to the Falls. I saw where the water line left the road and sure enough it went back into this Canyon so I pulled into the area. I saw a cooler lid propped up alongside the
road that had written on it Darwin’s Falls. I was like no wonder I had not seen it. I had spent about 30 minutes driving to that other point in search of this location and I now felt a little rushed. As I drove back there, I suspected since this location is the City’s water supply they try and keep it a little quiet. What if someone goes back here and tries to swim in it or somehow else contaminates it. I drove and drove and drove on this rock road that had washboards in it that only allowed about 20 mph top speed. I got to an area where it had some information posted, but then there was a road continuing on to the left. I decided to just go up this road and it would probably take me to the water fall. I was wrong. I passed a sign that said 4 wheel drives only and thought well does the 4 wheel drive in the truck have to work or just as long as it is a 4 wheel drive truck as I wasn’t sure the 4 wheel drive in my truck worked as the check 4 wheel
drive light has been on so I kept going and going and going. The road was getting more narrow and more treacherous. I thought wow I am probably going to get to see something only a hand full of people have ever seen. I felt like Cata now the Czech Republic guy I met in Bergen. Norway as he was always searching for the holy grail of tourist spots. I kept thinking I have to be getting close to the top of this mountain, but it seemed every turn just led to a more rugged road. I then came to a spot where I was afraid the truck might bottom out and stopped to look over the situation. I still didn’t like the looks of things. I thought I could get through it, but there appears to be no end in sight. This was jeep country too. I was on a rock ledge of a road and saw no turn around place so I started backing down this loose rock road. It was a little nerve racking as on one side there was a canyon and the other side a rock wall. I took my time and a few times
Now thats a truck load of Grapefruit
Almost all of California's fruit is irrigated. I had no idea. I was concerned the brakes would not stop the truck as the grade was about 15% and the rock was loose causing me to slide over the rocks even when the brakes were applied. I made it to a spot that looked like it might work but then decided it was too risky and I should just keep on backing. On the corner of this turn there appeared to be enough room so I got the rear end of the truck out over near the edge and then pulled the truck towards the wall. The back wheels where then above the front of the truck and I thought negatively that those wheels are going to just spin and I am not going to be able to get the 4 wheel drive to work and I am going to be stuck in this rocky God forsaken place. Fortunately though my negative vibes were wrong and the back tires did grab. I continued down this hill now forward which was a relief after driving so far backwards. After about 15 minutes of driving I made it back to this informational place and got out to read what I should have read before
as this is the place to go see the Falls. What was I thinking when I thought I would be able to drive right to it on this other road. Naïve I am. I started walking up this canyon after leaving my breakfast about 2 hours ago. Man I am not getting much done and I need to be in Vegas tonight. I walked for about 10 minutes and noticed the grass and trees in the ditch getting more prevalent and greener. It was kind of fun just follow the green flora and that would take me there. There had been one other car parked where I was and I wondered at what point would I encounter them. I walked farther and soon I was in like a jungle area in the desert. It was neat to see. I walked farther through the grasses and trees and could see the water flowing with more and more volume. I encountered a man and a woman and I guessed they were Australian but it turned out they were English, my least favorite people. They too are very proper and seem a little arrogant to me. They always say it is an insult
The GPS program says there is a subdivision here
I see no subdivison or cars for miles and miles here. to be called an Aussie. I was tempted to tell them I see it as a compliment as I like Aussies better generally speaking. I passed them as they were hiking slower and went to look at a rigged water intake structure. I also saw a USGS flow gaging station, which seemed a little out of place to me. The vegetation just got more and more dense and at one point I was tempted to turn around, but I continued. The English had passed me when I took the detour to see the intake structure, but I passed them again right away. I finally made it to the actual fall and it was a little amazing to me to see the fall exiting the earth so high up on the mountain. You would have thought it would had been at a lower point but I know from work never guess the location of the water table as you will very often be wrong. I took a couple shots and thought man I wonder what the cowboys thought when they came across this pool of water after having been traveling all day. I thought man that is what a person needs
to do just follow the green plants until you find water. I started looking around again like I was an Indian tracker but realized these desert plants are a little green even in areas with virtually no water. It would be hard to find water just driving around looking for the green plants. I made it back to the truck and headed down the rocky, washboard road that seemed to go on forever and I was back on the highway. I drove through Darwin again about 3.5 hours after eating my breakfast there. Man what the trip and I stopped there and grabbed a tuna sandwich and some French fries.
I drove down the highway and looked for the next turn off the lady at the restaurant told me to go and never saw it. After that Darwin Falls fiascal I was less willing to look very thoroughly. I continued on to Stovepipe Wells and went to see the marbeled rock walls near there and seen the Mesquite Flats. There are sand dunes there and that is where Star Wars was filmed. I wasn’t too interested in that and went on to an area that they called the Devils
Corn field. I then decided man I should go out in the sand dunes to take some pictures so I turned around and went back. I decided to just go a little ways into the dunes, which turned into about an hour long adventure. I kept looking for a great picture and ended up with a couple that I think are quite good.
I left there and headed to the artist drive. On the way I stopped at a place where Borax was mined. I did not even know what that was and learned it is simply salt. They had Chinese folks doing the hard work back then. I had no idea there were Chinese hear working back then. From there I headed to the artist drive which was an area where the rocks are a lot of different colors. The place called Artist Pallet was of most interest to me. It was quite neat. Badwater the place with the lowest elevation in the US at -282 ft. was just down the road but I decided to keep moving. At times during the day it rained which seemed a little weird to me as I expected no rain in
I hiked for many miles to find this Oasis
There is desert all around this place. Where there is water there is life as this was the only place where there was green for many 100's of miles. This is near Darwin, CA. Death Valley. There was even water on the road in some areas. Man this water really moves across the land in a hurry here when it does rains.
On my way out of the park I stopped for a couple photos at Zabriskie Point, which was a short hike to get to and was pretty neat. I took a few pictures there and headed out. I had stopped a little earlier at this ranch like tourist trap and had gotten a sandwich a little earlier and ate them on the road. The farther I drove out of the Park the heavier the rains appeared. There were lots of areas where I had to drive really slow while crossing creeks as the road was covered with water. Yes I am in a desert I know!
I made it a town called Pahrump and checked emails and tried to call a couchsurfing possibility and left a message. I called another person as well and that person was a little hesitant as she already had another person staying with her. I told her I would check some other possibilities and if they work out I will call her otherwise expect me
See the green up the canyon.
This is a City's water supply there in about 2 hours. I felt a little bad but the person had said in an earlier email that she could probably find me a spot on the floor. I stopped at the gas station and got some gas and a snack. The lady working there asked me where I was from and I told her and she said go get a fountain drink on me. I think she thought I was very poor or something as I asked a lot of questions about the prices of things. It was a nice gesture and I accepted her offer and thanked her. That made me feel good.
I made it to Vegas and it really rained in a couple locations. I stopped at a gas station and asked about camping in the area but the person was not sure. I thought rather than risk it I would just go to the couchsurfer’s place. Once there I watched the end of a star wars movie and talked to them for awhile. The other surfer was from Germany and he went to bed saying he was a little tired. Andrea then said she was concerned about her car being in a
parking garage downtown at a Casino. She had a lot on her plate this day. I asked her if she wanted me to drive her down and grab the car. She accepted the offer and that took about 40 minutes before we got back. I was spent and again ready to get to bed. Man what a long day. Good night from Vegas the City that never sleeps, but I do!
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Nancy R
non-member comment
Cowboy Mouth, YO!
Nice pictures on this leg - and finally you get to sail!