Happy 4th of July! Independence Day! In a way, this journey is our independence, and man oh man, we are liking the freedom we have given ourselves to experience and explore! The posts are still about a month behind, so what you are reading about this week happened towards the end of May.

We left the Pacific coast and spent the night at Hendy Woods State Park in the middle of a redwood forest. We took our bikes down a trail in the middle of the forest and then hiked down another trail to see the big ones. This was probably the most tranquil place we have been on the journey. We only had one night there, but we plan to go back and spend more time at this beautiful place.

After we left Hendy Woods, we stayed at a Harvest Host the next night. This one was in an almond grove. It was pretty cool to see the almonds on the trees. We spoke with the hostess while we sampled her flavored almonds (they were good). She explained that when it is time to harvest they have a tractor that grabs the tree and shakes it until all the almonds fall out. She said it feels like a constant earthquake during harvest season.

We then moved on to our next reservation, Yosemite Lakes. This is a Thousand Trails campground. We were given a Thousand Trails membership free when we purchased our Airstream. So we have many campgrounds in a specific region that we can stay at for free. The odd thing about them is, you aren’t assigned a campsite. Once you get there, you drive around until you find one you like and park there. They are rustic but, usually offer full hookups (that means electricity, water and sewer hookups). Having full hookups is a luxury that a lot of parks and campgrounds do not offer. Most have water, quite a few have electricity and some offer none of those amenities. The location was great, challenging to drive to and very close to Yosemite National Park. But due to the massive snows during the winter, we couldn’t access the park from our location. The campground was OK. We definitely wouldn’t rush back to stay there again. But, free is free. And we want to experience a few more before we decide if the membership would be worth renewing when our current one expires.

We had picked a beautiful place to spend a couple of days. I was very excited to spend some time by the beach. We lived on the Atlantic coast for seven years and, I’m pretty sure Aaron went to the beach once when we were house hunting and once when a friend came to visit us. I went to the beach most every day on my lunch break. On my days off, I would go as much as I could to enjoy the sun, sand and surf. Aaron preferred our pool and backyard. When Aaron suggested we take the bikes to the beach, I was thrilled. Of course, he was in it for the bike ride and I was in it for the beach.

Aaron seemed disappointed that the only wildlife we saw that day were seagulls and a crab. I wasn’t sure why. The next day he suggested we head down to the beach again. It all made sense when we got there and saw all the seals. I had never seen a seal outside of a zoo or aquarium. They reminded me of lazy dogs and cats. Most of them had just draped themselves over the rocks and slept. A few were swimming and, we did see a mom and her pup.

We really loved our time there with the surf, sun, seals and sand. After a few days of salt air, it was time to get moving south again. Our next stop was Hendy Woods State Park. We were going to be staying in the redwoods!

Driving through Oregon is incredible. There is high desert, mountains, waterfalls, and the start of the Redwood highway. Our goal was to get to the Pacific coast in northern California, so we spent one night in Oregon on our way down to CA. We stayed at Schwarz Park on Dorena Lake for the night. It was a very pretty campground with a nice shady spot under some really big pine trees.

We had a reservation at MacKerricher State Park in Fort Bragg, CA to get to and, we had the Redwood Highway to drive. I was finally getting to the Pacific coast! Again, the drive was beautiful and challenging. I am glad that Aaron was driving those curvy and narrow highways. I was able to just soak in the sights and the beauty. Pictures do not capture the size and majesty of the redwoods. The first one gives you an idea with the cars on the road next to and across from the trees. My first views of the Pacific were a foggy view, but it was beautiful.

After a harrowing drive down CA Highway 1, and I mean nerve racking, oh sh*t, is this the only road to get there, and holy cow we made it drive, we got to Mackerricher State Park in Fort Bragg and settled in for a few days by the beach.

The drive to Wenatchee, WA was an interesting one! On our way out of Oregon we got to drive past a chemical weapons depot in the high desert, cross the Columbia River into Washington into more high desert and then into the hop farm and vineyard country of Washington. We got there before spring had sprung, so the orchards and vineyards weren’t green yet. It was interesting seeing them in their dormant state.

After we crossed the Columbia, and drove for a bit, started noticing a fence line that wasn’t ending with signs about no trespassing, warnings, and information. It looked like just fenced in sand, no livestock, no crops, just dirt roads on the perimeter. We, being the curious sort, decided to stop and see what it was all about.

They only provide tours a few times a year, and we couldn’t get one booked for this visit, but we will be going back sometime in the future to get an inside (as much as the government will allow) of this historical place. It is also the largest nuclear waste site in the US.

We had a few days of travel before we were going to get to Wenatchee, so we stopped at another Harvest Host for the night. Velan Winery was another fun place to stay. We had a wine tasting and purchased 4 bottles of wine, which we have thoroughly enjoyed. The owner of the vineyard was a very friendly and interesting person. We had a wonderful stay!

The vineyard was surrounded by an apple tree grove.

Our next night was spent at another Harvest Host, Seed Cupboard Nursery. It had a really neat shop onsite and, we found a little decor for the camper! They were exactly what we needed over our dining area. We haven’t named them yet. Any suggestions?

We had to keep moving, and needed another overnight stop. This time we stayed at a lavender farm! We were literally the only ones there. With Harvest Host, they ask that you purchase something from the place you are staying. Since there was no one there, I ordered from their online store and had some bath bombs and body butter sent to my daughter. She said they were amazing. I was quite a bit envious.

We spent a very quiet and peaceful night at Lavender Estates and, the next morning it was time to get moving again. We had a reservation at Wenatchee Confluence State Park, and poor Aaron had work to do.

On our way to Oregon, we made a few stops, the first one being Woodward Reservoir, a little northeast of Modesto and just south of Eugene, CA. It was a beautiful setting with LOTS of geese. Geese are big birds that leave big bird poops that look more like a cat’s or small dog’s than a bird’s poop. It was everywhere. Fortunately for you, I did not take pictures of the poop. There were also a lot of feral cats at the campground. Not quite the wildlife viewing we have been looking for but, we took what we could get. We did enjoy our stay there. Aaron even made a few friends.

On our way up to Oregon we got to drive over Mt. Shasta. It was a beautiful drive and a cold one. We stopped for the night at a Harvest Host location. Mt. Shasta Brewing Company. The food was excellent, as was the stout I had with dinner and the IPA Aaron had with his dinner. It was nice to be able to park, enjoy dinner and a beer and get a good night’s sleep.

After our night at the brewery, it was on into Oregon. Oregon is beautiful and diverse with mountains, high desert, forests and the Pacific coastline. This trip, we didn’t get to drive the coastline, but we did hit mountains and high desert. It was my introduction to the Columbia River. We made it to Boardman, OR and stayed in a campground on the shore of the river. It is a beautiful river and for the next month we saw the Columbia River and crossed that river more times than I can count.