California to Yellowstone

California is behind us.
After many months of traversing back and forth and up and down and experiencing some great wonders of this state and our nation we have finally put California behind us. We’ll be hard pressed to ever forget the eclectic landscapes – deserts, sea shores, mountains, and massive agricultural areas. After leaving Monterey with its Pebble Beach Golf area, and the aquarium, we headed back north of San Francisco to Petaluma where the U.S. Coast Guard maintains a training center. While there we ventured to Point Reys National seashore to see elephant seals, Tule elk, black-tail deer (I think), and the beginning spring wildflower bloom. The rocky cliffs, miles of beach, and awesome scenic overviews made for a great day trip. On another day we ventured into the Sonoma Valley for some wine tasting. We took a tour that allowed us to experience the vineyards, the processing area, and then gave us a chance to taste several of their estate wines. They were good but I am still happy with Charles Shaw, a.k.a. Two-buck Chuck that we get at the Trader Joes stores. Before departing the USCG base we were told not to miss the Friday noon meal at the chow hall. Coast Guard cooks train at this base and every Friday there is a grand seafood buffet. For $4 and some change we dined on smoked and fresh salmon, assorted fried clams, shrimp, steamed mussels, and all the fixings. Believe you me, the Coast Guard eats well!

We casino hopped for a couple nights where we stayed at casinos that welcome RVers. We attempted to show our gratification by eating diner in the casinos and losing a few dollars at the gaming tables and in the slots but they apparently did not want our cash. After two nights we were still in the winner’s circle, and well fed as well.

Between casinos we passed through the Humboldt Redwood State Park and were in awe with the largest remaining stands of old-growth redwood trees. We hiked several trails and were just overcome with the majesty of these enormous trees and the spectacle of the lush ferns and mosses that flourish in this very wet and verdant ecosystem. We crossed the Klamath River several times and stopped for some Native American smoked salmon--great snack! The Klamath has been a river of controversy with the agricultural community taking too much water from the river leaving too little flow to support the salmon migration.

Humboldt Redwood State Park was not enough for us so we spent a few more days looking at the redwood and beaches of Redwood National Park. There we got to see the Roosevelt elk, as well as more majestic redwoods. We stayed in Smith River National Recreation Area and took a scenic drive on a one-lane gravel road along the river and through more old growth redwoods, and Douglas fir. Sure was impressive.

We left the National Forest campground in the recreation area and followed Rt 199 to Oregon where we stopped for a few days Near Grants Pass. A day after we drove the scenic mountain road, it was closed by a rock-slide. We camped at Valley of the Rogue River State Park—right along the Rogue River, noted for its white-water rafting and world class salmon and trout fishing. We’re between salmon and steelhead runs so I did not bother to wet a line, but maybe we can come through here another more appropriate time. With the recent rains and the winter run-off, all the rivers we see are flowing at capacity. We’re camped relatively close to Crater Lake so we took a day to drive into the National Park. As we climbed higher, we left the balmy 50+ degree temperature along the river and watched as the temperature dropped as we climbed up the mountain—finally reaching 23 degrees. Passing through a vast evergreen forest, we started seeing a dusting of snow that soon became a thick white blanket. At the top of the caldera near the visitor center the road-cuts made by the huge snow blowers were over 8 feet high on both sides of the road. This has not been a good year for snow fall. They are about 100 inches behind their normal 460” for the season.

From the ROGUE River area we headed for the coast. Not the best time to be on the Oregon coast with high seas, winds, daily rain, and cool temperatures. The coast is beautiful with great waves crashing onto the beach. Some beaches are great expanses of sand—others are rocky outcroppings. On a walk down to the waterline at near low-tide on Seal Beach we got to play in the tidal pools. No effort is needed to see Dozens of starfish in various shades of blue, orange and grey; sea anemones; sea cucumbers, and other squirting creatures. If all that was not enough, a flock of harlequin ducks perched nearby on some rocks and showed off their colors. Although I did not get to see any of the shorebirds that I was hoping to see, we were certainly not disappointed with what we did get to see.

We left the coast for the Columbia River Gorge where we took a quick tour of the Bonneville Dam and the fish hatchery. We also stopped at several exceptional waterfalls. Oregon has been rainy every day which, with the wind and cool temperatures, makes it a bit uncomfortable. We may just have to add Oregon-in-good-weather to our list of places we still want to visit.

We finally arrived at McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma, WA. Here we parked the RV and flew back East for a much needed visit with family and an essential grandkid fix. Seems all were well and growing just getting older and we realized how much we miss being around family.

After returning to McChord we started a circumvention of the Olympic Peninsula. With Mt Rainier in the rearview mirror we headed north. After passing through some awesome countryside with the Hood Canal on our right and verdant mountains disappearing into the clouds on the left we passed over beckoning salmon streams to arrive in Chimacum (near Port Townsend) Washington on the Strait of Juan de Fuega. Knowing good seafood would be scarce in a matter of weeks when we get to Yellowstone, we began a seafood binge with some great fresh (according to the waitress, “just 200 yards away”) oysters at a Mom-and-Pop family restaurant. Then a stop at a shellfish farm for some clams for steaming, and some smoked and shucked oysters for stew later on. In Port Townsend we took a self guided tour past dozens of beautiful Victorian homes -- all circa. 1860s – and stumbled on a sign –“fresh crabs, clams, oysters, seafood”. With a big Dungeness crab under our arm we headed home for what was one of several special seafood dinners.

Northwest birding was somewhat challenging. I managed to get a few new gulls as well as some alcids. New birds or not, the seascapes have been spectacular. We have stopped just short of the most Northwest point in the continental US to visit Mount Olympus, take a ferry to Victoria, B.C., and do some fascinating tidal pool investigating. We learned to live with the persistent rain and really enjoyed the Pacific Northwest. Completing our trip around the Olympic Peninsula, although without reaching our fill of lush fern –filled rain forests, magnificent coastlines, spectacular views of Mount Olympus, and fresh seafood feasts, we pointed our rig eastward and headed to Yellowstone National Park.

Our first week was one of training—exceptional training. World-known geologists covered the history of the landscape and the details of current seismic activity. Biologists gave details of bear, wolf, bison, and elk activity; ecologists verified weather, plant, and animal interaction and dependence; botanists took us on field trips to identify flowers. We have a few days set aside to re-familiarize ourselves with routine procedures, develop our programs, and prepare for another great year in, what I think, is America’s Wonderland.

San Francisco & Monterey

From Oxnard we headed back east into the Mojave Desert for a few days of rest and relaxation. We stayed at Edwards AFB where I managed to get in a round of golf that I prefer not to elaborate on. We went to the Air Force test museum and thoroughly enjoyed the displays and especially the movies of the Air Force test history. Seeing Chuck Yeager’s Bell X-1 that broke the sound barrier as well as many other great airplanes was interesting. Edwards is on the Rodger’s Dry lake bed where the Space Shuttle lands when it cannot land at Cape Kennedy (Canaveral). Two 747s built to carry the Shuttle from Edwards back to Kennedy were parked on the ramp at Edwards.
We left Edwards for Travis AFB and were able to make a quick tour of Sequoia National Park. The weather in the mountains broke just enough that’ with rented chains for the tires, we were able to get up to see General Sherman, the largest tree in the world. The giant forest was simply spectacular and the snow that was over 8’ in places added to the experience. At Travis we stayed for about a week. Their fam-camp is ok but they have more rules than Alcatraz has and it was almost like being in prison. Regardless it was a great place to base while touring San Francisco. We rendezvoused in town with a very special couple who used to go with me out to Horn Island in Mississippi. They always said I was to call them if I ever came to California so we did. They met us and gave us a grand tour of San Francisco. From the government buildings, the Presidio, Golden Gate Bridge and more we drove all over the town, saw and rode on cable cars, drove down the most crooked street in the USA (Lombard Street), had some great food, saw some great views, and just had a great time. We attempted a whaling trip with Jennifer and Joey but wind, rain, and high seas made for a rather rough outing. We have rain checks and maybe we will get another chance. Sandi and I had been anxious for sea food and finally had a great meal at Fisherman’s Warf – Dungeness Crab and fresh salmon. We took a tour of Alcatraz, bought San Francisco sourdough bread, and just had an awesome time.
From San Francisco we went back south to Monterey. This has been another great stop. We drove along the Big Sur. Great waves crashing on rocky shores, sea lions, harbor seals, giant redwoods, some great birds and one breath-taking view after another as we cruised south along the coast. A stop at a farm market provided some of the freshest and tastiest strawberries and artichokes. We hiked trails in a most interesting National Estuary Research Reserve and I picked up a couple more life birds and then we spent a day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Not nearly as big as other aquariums we’ve been to like Atlanta, Chattanooga, and Baltimore, but every bit as good. They had a very natural display full of live shore birds. Black oyster-catchers, snowy plovers, marbled-godwits, American Avocets, assorted sandpipers, phalaropes, and more. All in the open and within arm’s reach. We ate lunch in their awesome restaurant sitting against big windows and enjoyed more sea food while watching harbor seals, pelagic and Brant’s cormorants, pigeon guillemots, and especially sea otter--all in the wild in the Monterey Bay. Their kelp forest display, and sea-horses were awesome.
Sandi and I have picked up a hitch-hiker in the form of a Barbie doll called Belle from the Beauty and the Beast. We take Belle with us and she gets to write back to her best friend and “Mommy” our four year old granddaughter, Braelyn, who though that since she could not travel with Nana and Pop Pop, maybe Belle could go. Remember Flat-Stanley?
Golf is great here as it should be. Sandi and I toured Pebble Beach and ate more seafood from the veranda of the clubhouse overlooking the famous 18th hole. I would have liked to play a round there since the course is open to the public but the $500 green fee is just out of my range. If I could only find a sponsor.

Salton Sea to Oxnard California

The Salton Sea was a great birding area and we were to return there but first it was back to the desert near Yuma to relax and return to Mexico for some affordable dental work. Then back to Slab City and a tour of the wetlands around the Salton Sea with a contract tour on the International Birding Festival. Saw some great birding areas. No life-birds but some great birding. Seeing thousands of Pintails at one time was interesting. The bird expert was a painful, egotistical, know-it-all, but except for some glaring mis-identifications, he really did have a good birding knowledge. From there we headed to desert Hot Springs Resort, a Western Horizon Resort. Not an organization that I would want to belong to. I was a bit amused with the inhospitality of nearly everyone – staff, members, sales staff, etc. Not that we did not meet some friendly folks but they were the exception and not the rule. Went from there to 29 Palms where we stayed at the Marine Corps Base. Just a few miles from the Joshua Tree National Park, we took the time to drive through the park, take a couple hikes through an oasis (saw my first California thrasher) and play a round of golf on the Marine base.
From there it was back to Algedones, Mexico for some dental follow-up. That completed we worked our way westward to Point Magu Navy Base near Ventura, California (Northwest of Los Angeles). We are nearly parked right on the beach. Shore birds and harbor seals are abundant. The weather forecast is scheduled to be varied from day-to –day for the next week so we need to plan our activities accordingly. The good weather of the first day made for a touring opportunity to see Hollywood. We took the drive down the Pacific Coast Highway and into Hollywood where we saw Grauman’s Chineese Theater, the Kodak Theater, the Hollywood Walk-of-Fame with all the stars as well as the footprints and hand prints of stars in front of the theater. We also went down to the La Brea Tar Pits to view the work being done there as well as to go through the museum and see the thousands of fossils they have so far discovered. The displays of Mammoths, saber-tooth cats, dire wolves, and more were a great sight to see. Watching the actual excavation-in-progress and the cleaning and cataloging work was most interesting.
The Oxnard area has been interesting. We visited the Harbor at Ventura, after getting some advice from the folks at the Oxnard Information Center. We attempted to find the roosting monarch butterflies at a local city park but few remained. Seems late February is just too late. We did fond a few mating pairs and others flying around as well as numerous hummingbirds. The only ones I could positively identify were Anna’s. The Costa hummingbird, supposedly common, simply eludes me. We sto[pped at a fruit stand and bough farm fresh celery, avacodos, and strawberries. Eating one of these berried is almost like eating an apple.

Oxnard is just a few miles from the Channel Islands so I had to take a trip out there. Added almost a dozen new birds to my life list including the endemic scrub jay of Santa Cruz Island. Saw several new cormorants, some auklets and common murrelets. No whales but hundreds, maybe thousands of common dolphins as well as a multitude of sea lions. A great trip on the Island Packer.

Phoenix to California's Salton Sea

We pulled into the Freightliner truck facility in Phoenix for what turned out to be a $1600 oil change. Actually a lot more than just an oil change: Filters, inspections, lube, transmission fluid change and more. There is a lot to be said about preventive maintenance.
We had a great couple of days together with Frank Ramsey, my roommate and squadron-mate from Vietnam days and his wife Janis. A few dinners out, a round of golf that I prefer not to talk about (Franks home course, a mountainous, but beautiful desert course, destroyed me), and plenty of time to recall our experiences as Lopez FACs (forward Air Controllers) made for a most enjoyable way to spend time while the RV was getting its annual checkup.
Frank and Janis have a place in Alaska where they spend the summer and keep their bush plane, a Maul, that Frank uses to get into the back country for hunting and fishing. We’ve been putting a trip to Alaska on the back burner for sometime but the invite from Frank and Janis to see Alaska the right way may be too good to pass up.



From Phoenix we made a short drive to Tonopah, AZ where there is a great hot springs. The private area that Sandi and I rented for two hours had a beautiful rock hot tub with a water temp around 106F. There was also a cooling tub which we did not use. Lounges and chairs faced to the west and the setting sun. The private area was enclosed on three sides and completely open facing the desert. What a great way to watch a beautiful sunset.
We finally arrived in Quartzite, AZ, the boondocking destination for thousands of RVers. We heard from our great friend, Marilyn Darling, from Mexico and Yellowstone and met her and several other friends whom we had travelled with into Mexico. We joined up with another 100 other RVers who belong to a group called the “Boomers” all baby-boomers born between 1940 – 1960. We were all parked in the middle of the desert on BLM land. The “Boomers” are an interesting group—no officers, no rules. A working display of anarchy. If you do not like what you see or what is going on, you are free to leave anytime. Our visit here coincided with a huge flea market and a rather large RV show each with hundreds of vendors selling everything from RV-unique items to things that I can’t imagine anyone needing – miracle eyeglass cleaner, kitchen aids that chop and dice (just like seen on TV), tools, nuts and bolts, jewelery, and much more. We did get new RV slide-out awnings and a few other item that we really needed. It is also a rock-hound’s mecca and all kinds of lapidary equipment, rocks and fossils are on display and are available for sale.
This town is quite different. It has a gum museum (never been to one of them), a book seller that has a store on Main Street who does not wear any clothes, and there is a monument to Hadji Ali, a Syrian camel driver that came here in the early 1860s to help the U.S. Army with a test to see if camels would work in the American deserts. Known locally as Hi Jolly, he is buried beneath a pyramid monument in the local cemetery. We are surrounded by mountains, but the desert is flat and quite suitable for boondocking. It really is like a big party. It has been fun but we were ready to continue on towards California.

From Quartzite we headed to Yuma and then into california where we faound a great place out in the desert to spend a few days. The rains came and we watched an Arroyo "dry stream bed" go from bone dry to a raging flood torrent. The wheather forcasters commented that they had never in a liffetime seen Arizona entirely in the green forcasting rain. Many had more than a half a years rain in one day. We endured the rain and 50 mile-per-hour winds and really apreciated the nice weather when it returned. We took a side trip without the RV into Algedones, Mexico where we had another tooth filled and both got a couple pairs of glasses.

Then on to El Centro Naval Air Facility. Small Navy Air base that is used for training and also is the winter home for the Navy's Blue Angels. It was quite thrilling to see a daily air show right over the RV when the Blue and Gold F-18s would return from their practice sessions.

North of El Centro in the Salton Sea, one of the Important Birding Areas. An awesome inland sea, that is saltier than the Pacific Ocean, is a great place to see birds. I've seen nearly 100 species and have added a couple new birds to my life list. I think the Eurasian Widgeon is the best so far. A close look in the photo will show Ross Geese. Snow Geese, American Avocets, Shovellers, Pintails, Widgeon, and more. What a place.