Full-time RVing after working on the road for 10 years. Now we're enjoying the great outdoors while retired!
"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood... And sorry I could not travel both. I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference." --Robert Frost
We have been lucky to have sunny, warm weather so far for this time of the year. There is some rain coming our way the second week but that's still several days away.
We drove to the Harbor to see that area. There are some restaurants and fish stores here we want to check out for later.
We walked down the jetty to get a geocache. Very cold as The temps plunge when the winds come up. Especially so when you are near the ocean. The Harbor is where the Chetco River empties and we hope to kayak up the river next week.
I took a walk to the point out in front of our campground at Harris Beach. Steve was working so Hurley and I set out to see if we could get down to the beach.
It was a steep trail but Hurley managed to get down and over the rocky part. It brought us out to a nice beach with plenty of rocks to explore and a tunnel in one of the larger rocks.
Waves crashing through the tunnel
We had a great time wandering around and looking at the tide pools. Not too much in these pools but starfish and sea anemones.
Here is one of about 5 of the nicest sites at Harris Beach. You get a great view of the beach.
The evening turned gusty and cold so we headed to Misty Mountain Brewery/Tap House. Steve really liked the IPAs. They had the most delicious Ribeye Steak Sandwich that we split. We almost went back another time it was so good but we wanted to save room for popcorn. This was only the first or second time since Covid that we've been to a movie. We love going to the movies. Lost City was cute and funny.
They also had entertainment at the brewery. This guy had a great voice and could really play that guitar. He mostly played 70s music that you don't hear so much anymore.
On the way to taking a hike to Chetco Point, we passed this huge Rhododendron Tree. I can't imagine how old it is. The trunk was at least a foot wide.
Parking was easy and it crosses the bike trail. As we walk out to the point you get some great views.
Looking South.
Looking North.
You cross a small bridge and the trail keeps going up to the bluff.
Looking down there are some very nice small beaches but most are difficult or impossible to get to.
Very windy up here on the bluff!
We did find a way down to one of the larger beaches. So much driftwood/trees. Makes you wonder what part of the world did they come from? How old are they?
Found a blow hole. You could hear the water thundering as it hit.
As we head back you pass some Cypress Trees. Not too hard to see how the constant blowing wind shapes their growth.
We met up with my sister-in-laws Mom and her husband for dinner. They moved here a year ago and love it.
We met at Superfly Distilling Company. Each bottle is handmade, hand bottled and hand labeled. It takes 10 lbs of Russet Potatoes to make one bottle of Superfly Vodka. I like that they say it's for folks that don't' really care how fancy the bottle looks or how expensive the label is. It's the best spirits at the best price possible. It is! Most of their specialty martinis were only $6 or $7! That would be double just about anywhere else. Wine, $5, beer $6. Delicious! And the food! Awesome! I had the Angry Prawns, $14 and Steve had the Seared Pacific Yellow Fin Tuna, $15.
Me, Steve, Sherry & Bob.
Another sunny day we took a walk through Azaela Park. They have beautiful gardens, picnic areas and some trails.
Capella by the Sea, sits up top. It's mostly glass with gorgeous views! What a great wedding venue.
Down the hill, across from the park sits the Community Gardens. Another pretty spot. So many different types of flowers and trees. Some I have never seen before.
The Peonies were very pretty.
Never saw these before.
In the Harbor was a Memorial to Lucy, the last known full-blooded Chetco Indian to live in Chetco Valley. You can read more information about her on the link.
One night we decided to do one of our favorites, Grazing. We go to one place for an appetizer, another for dinner and another restaurant for dessert. Or any variation of these. First up was a visit to Chetco Brewing which had a lot of promise with several IPAs. Steve was not impressed with any of them except one. I did like their homemade Root Beer though. It's a doggy friendly place too. We shared an appetizer of Spinach Frittata. What I didn't realize until we got it was that it was a Vegan and Gluten Free, made with Garbonzo Beans and a Walnut gravy. We didn't care for it though. They should've named it something else though as it had no resemblance to Frittata (pictured above).
Next was Catalyst Seafood for drinks and a salad. This place was a bit more expensive. The drinks were good though. I had a Shrimp Cocktail which was very large over some greens and Steve had the Loaded Breadbowl of Clam Chowder with Shrimp and Clam Strips. He loved it. There was enough for him to have leftovers.
Lastly was a to-go order of Butternut Squash Ravioli tossed with Browned Butter, Cremini Mushrooms and Sage Leaves. SO GOOD!!!!!! This was from The Black Trumpet Bistro. It included some Rosemary Bread and Olive Oil to dip it in. We'll be coming back here for my birthday dinner. They have fantastic food! We love to do this "Grazing" when we want to try several different restaurants but don't have the time to go to a full dinner at all of them.
I was trying to find somewhere to spend my birthday in the mountains (the Big 6-0). Problem is in April it's still cold and snowing. We didn't want to drive more than 8 hours either. Brookings, Oregon is in the "Banana Belt" so it's a warmer than most areas and just over the border of CA on the coast. Perfect!
We left Placerville early and drove up I-5 to meet my sister in Redding for lunch. It was a quick visit but nice to see her. I forgot to get a pic! We stayed overnight at the Redding Elks Lodge and visited the Sundial Bridge. It was opened July 4, 2004 and crosses the Sacramento River, linking the north and south parts of Turtle Bay Exploration Park and the Sacramento River Trail System. It is one of the largest working sundials in the world. The deck is translucent and glows at night. No part of the bridge touches the river to protect the Salmon habitat below.
(above picture from the website)
Redding, CA
Elks Lodge
W/50/Dump, $30, #10.
Old Chevy parked across from us.
We drove Rt. 299 from Redding towards the coast. This is a very curvy route with some grades but nothing our truck couldn't pull. We've driven it before and it is very scenic as it follows the Trinity River and past Whiskeytown Lake. You can still see the burn areas from the past years fires as well as some newer burn area we didn't see a couple of years ago. It's 275 miles from Redding to 101, then up to Brookings. Nice and easy. It was cold too. 36 degrees in Weaverville up in the higher elevations.
We drove past many areas with lots of Spring color.
The Trinity River.
Just before turning north onto 101 we stopped into the small town of Blue Lake at the casino to gas up. At $6.49(!) this was the cheapest around. At least once we got to Brookings you could get diesel for $5.79 at Fred Meyer.
We passed by some Elk not far from Orick and the Redwood National Park.
Some bridge repair near Klamath made for an interesting crossing with the trailer.
An interesting landmark at Smith River.
We stopped for a geocache at the border.
I can't say enough good things about Harris Beach State Park. Right across the road from the ocean. You can hear it from your site. Some sites have a perfect view of the ocean if you're lucky enough to get one. This is a very popular place. We switched to a site in the back in a FCFS section so we could extend our stay. My only complaint is that Oregon has joined a few other states in charging extra to Out-of-Staters. Usually $10. I'm not a fan of this practice. Seems very unwelcoming to me and not encouraging of tourism. The prices also went up this year. When I made my reservation before they started charging for out-of-staters, it was $32 for W/E. Now it is $35 for locals or $42 if you're not an Oregon resident. Wow! We don't normally pay over $30 but this was a special occasion :-)
There was some confusion when we changed sites so the very, very nice ranger let us stay in this FHU site for $32 instead of $44. Happy Birthday to me!! Site# B8.
Almost every site is very private with lots of natural vegetation surrounding you. Ours was cut into a little hillside with huge trees and flowering Rhododendron around us but very open to let the sun in.
After we set up we went to walk along the beach and watch the sun set.
Every now and then a very colorful bunch of rocks appears.
Why is it that dogs seem to like beaches so much?
"Should I run left, or right? Or into the water?! Or all 3!!
He's glazing over with the possibilities!
Hurley will be 14 in June. He's almost totally deaf and moves much slower, but it sure warms my heart to watch him get his "pup on", tearing up and down the beach.
Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!
Playing in one of the small rivers that flows into the ocean.
The reflections of the setting sun were incredible.
The sounds of happiness.
My heart and soul are very content at this moment. What a way to end our
We did find a way down to one of the larger beaches. So much driftwood/trees. Makes you wonder what part of the world did they come from? How old are they?
As we head back you pass some Cypress Trees. Not too hard to see how the constant blowing wind shapes their growth.
We met up with my sister-in-laws Mom and her husband for dinner. They moved here a year ago and love it.
We met at Superfly Distilling Company. Each bottle is handmade, hand bottled and hand labeled. It takes 10 lbs of Russet Potatoes to make one bottle of Superfly Vodka. I like that they say it's for folks that don't' really care how fancy the bottle looks or how expensive the label is. It's the best spirits at the best price possible. It is! Most of their specialty martinis were only $6 or $7! That would be double just about anywhere else. Wine, $5, beer $6. Delicious! And the food! Awesome! I had the Angry Prawns, $14 and Steve had the Seared Pacific Yellow Fin Tuna, $15.
