Enjoying The Good Life

We are still at the Thousand Trails Park (Russian River) in Cloverdale, California. The park is very quiet and has many hiking paths and roadways for us to explore. We are here with friends, Jim and Nancy Leivas. They arrived on Tuesday and we got them into a space and we moved up with them on Wednesday as the park had a tree service coming in on Thursday and Friday to remove trees and stumps. We watched as they did the trees up from the rigs.

On Wednesday afternoon we went down through Cloverdale and proceeded south on Hwy 101 to Hwy 128. We drove Hwy 128 to Tubbs Road where we found "California's Old Faithful in NAPA Valley Calistoga."

This Geyser has Earthquake Warnings from two days to two weeks prior to an earthquake. The warning is by delaying its regular performance from the average of forty minutes to a longer interval. During this prolonged interval, it may send up "splits," small eruptions no more than two or three feet in height, every few minutes. Finally, after the long delay, a 60-foot column of water and steam shoots upward.

At the park they also had "Jacob four-horned sheep", " Tennessee fainting goats", and "Llamas" which were very interesting and fun to watch. Patty even tried to get one to give her a kiss as the picture shows.

After visiting the Geyser we went down the road for about 5 miles and for the "Petrified Forest". There we saw trees that had become petrified after thousands of years. This also was very interesting and worth going to see.

We then came back to the River Rock Casino where we all got Players Club Cards which entitled us all to vouchers worth $10 to play the machines and a $5 off voucher for their buffet. The food was good and we enjoyed playing on them for a while.

We all had a very fun filled day.

Thousand Trails/NACO Russian River Park

On Sunday, May 25, we left Lighthouse Marina and RV Park in Isleton, California, heading west on Hwy 12. This is a two lane road with barriers in the middle. Russ did a very good job of getting through this part. We continued west on I-80 for a while and then proceeded north on Hwy 37 to Hwy 101. Most of the trip was very easy and the scenery along the way was just beautiful. I had been up this way about 15 years ago with my mom and dad but Russ had never been here so we were really enjoying what we were seeing.

We arrived at the Thousand Trails/NACO park at about 11 am. Of course they had to remind us that check in was not until 12 but.....This park does not have a lot of spaces that will accommodate our 40 footer but we did manage to get into Space 50 with no problems. They did warn us at the gate that we would have to move before Thursday as they will have tree trimmers in here to take out some trees and a lot of stumps. No problem.

After setting up we took a ride into Cloverdale, CA. just to see what is there. We stopped at the Owl Cafe for lunch and learned their history. The food was only okay. We had their fish and chips special.

After lunch we rode around for just a little longer as it was NASCAR race day on TV and I had promised Russ that we would get back in time for him to see the whole thing. He really enjoyed the race and all that went on.

All in all it was a very good day and this will be our home for the next 10 days.

Well until next time, Take Care.

Lighthouse Marina and RV Park

Hello to everyone. We have been in Isleton, California at Lighthouse Marina and RV Park since last Sunday when we left the Holiday Rambler Rally in Lodi, CA. We are on Brannan Island at a very nice campground which is affiliated with Resorts of Distinction. We paid an electrical surcharge of $2 a day.

The weather this week has been really weird. On Sunday and Monday it was 100 degrees plus. Tuesday, the temperature was down in the 60's and the winds started to blow. Wednesday and Thursday we thought that we were going to be blown completely away as the winds were up around 38 mph with gust around 50 mph. Trying to get out and walk around was something else. Friday the winds began to calm down and the park began to fill for the holiday.

Monday we took a ride to Antioch and went out to the Black Diamond Mine (a coal mine). They only give tours on the weekends so we just looked around at the center and gathered a couple of brochures to read about this mine. We headed back across Hwy 4 and I-80 to Fairfield where we found the local Wal-Mart and then we saw a sign for "Jelly Belly." This was one of their factories so we went to investigate. They had tours but were expensive we thought ($47 for adults) so we just looked around their store and of course had to buy some of the "Belly Flops" to consume. It was fun just looking around at all the different kinds of Jelly Beans. Some of the names: Vomit, Pencil Shavings, Skunk Spray, Rotten Egg, Ear Wax, Booger, etc.

Tuesday we made a trip over to Travis AFB to see if we could get blood test done for our provider back in San Diego. It was going to almost take an act of congress so we have decided to wait until we get to a Navy Base and have it done. They will be on the same systems as San Diego we hope. We also rode over and checked out the FAMCamp and then we went to the Exchange where Russ was able to get a hair cut and I browsed around. We had lunch at the food court and then went over to the Commissary to get a few items. We then came on back to our little home and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon inside.

Wednesday morning Russ woke up feeling awful. He was sick from both ends. If he was not in the bathroom then he was in bed for most of the day. He was really sick and I just left him alone to get over whatever it was that he had.

I walked over to the dock and there were people shooting scenes for a movie. There were 2 other couples there at the same time that I was but none of us could find out the name of the movie. We just watched what they were doing and guessed what would happen next. There was also a couple there trying to get their boat out of the water. It was a funny sight as he did not want to get wet and she was not use to driving a stick shift car. They did finally get it out and all was well.

Friday Russ was feeling much better so he decided to clean the carpets in the motor home. They look so nice and we will try to keep them cleaner by not wearing shoes inside. You know I have the best husband in the world as he is always doing something to make our life better.

This morning (Saturday) we woke up to cloudy skies and rain. It has been cold all day and the sun never did shine. The park is filled to capacity it looks like. There are motor homes, trailers, boats, and tents everywhere. Also there are kids running hither slither. In moving around with the car you really have to be careful. We took a ride around the Levee just to see what was here. The houses are built on stilts and there are boats everywhere. It was really interesting to see.

Well we leave here tomorrow headed to Cloverdale, CA. and a Thousand Trails Park, Russian River. We will be there for about 10 days where we will meet up with Jim and Nancy Leivas. We plan to travel north from here and will let you know where we are and where we are going. Until next time. Take Care.

Holiday Rambler Region VIII Rally at Lodi, CA.

As stated in my post of 5/13/08, we are at Lodi Grape Festival Fairgrounds for the Holiday Rambler Regional Rally. It was reported that there were 68 rigs present and the temperatures for the entire rally were above 100 degrees.



Russ and I participated in all of the games (washer toss, bocce ball and bean bag baseball). We had fun but were not as good as those who won and have been doing this for a long time. We will have to get more practice.



On Wednesday at noon there was a Ladies Luncheon and the food was excellent. There were two breakfasts prepared and the other mornings we had pastries and fruit. The committee also had two dinners catered and everyone was full by the time desert was finished. It is the first time that we have been to a catered pasta bar and then we had chicken and meat loaf on another night.



On Saturday, Russ and I along with 15 other retirees and their spouses went to the Richmaid Restaurant for lunch. This was a 50's type diner and the food was very good here also. One of the couples only had a banana split and pie alamode. It was all good.



We enjoyed sitting out amongst the stars and just visiting at night.



On Sunday morning we bid everyone a safe journey and headed to our next destination.

Lodi Grape Festival

We are now in Lodi, California at the Holiday Rambler Regional Rally. There are suppose to be about 70 or 75 rigs here and it appears that there will be a lot to do and a lot to be accomplished.

We arrived this morning at about 9:30 am and are parked very close to where everything is happening. Russ and I took a walk this morning to get some pictures and we stopped to talk to the welcoming committee. While there one of the ladies was working on a project crocheting with plastic bags. Someone had given her a purse that someone else had started and needed finishing so Russ said that he would work on it for her. He is just so good.

This afternoon we took a ride over to Isleton, CA. where we will be going on Sunday. It is only about 25 miles away and a very easy drive so that makes both of us happy. The campground is of medium in size and there were very few people there. We look forward to being there.

When we got back we went over to the happy hour and met a few people who are camped here at the Rally. We will continue to meet more and get really involved with all the goings on tomorrow. Until then Take Care.

Wind plus more Wind

We are still at Turtle Beach Fish Camp in Manteca, CA., and the winds are blowing so hard that the motorhome is bouncing around. The temperature is in the 60's early this morning but the air feels like the 50's and it is very hard to walk.

Russ and I decided to take a walk after putting on jackets. We took the trail that winds up by the river and explored the banks. Russ really wants to get his fishing pole wet but the weather is not right for catching fish. He will just have to wait until another day.

We visited with campers on either side of us this afternoon. We found out that the Bird's are SMART members and know our friend Sharon Whitaker from her newsletters with the Fulltimers Club. We know that we will meet up with them at another of the SMART Rally's.

We will be moving again tomorrow up to Lodi Grape Festival Grounds for the Holiday Rambler Regional Rally so will let you know then what is going on.

Take care until next time.

Mother's Day

We are still at Turtle Beach Fish Camp in Manteca, California. We awoke to a very nice day with plenty of sunshine outside. There is a slight breeze blowing and it appears that the day will be great.

Today is Mother's Day and also Lori Schulke's birthday. Lori is my niece and lives in Richmond, Virginia. She and her husband Dave are building their house and hope to have it ready to move into this fall. We are very proud of them and wish her a very Happy Birthday.

I called and wished my mother a Happy Day and then called Russ' mother and wished her a great day. We talked with both mothers for a while and found out what all was going on in their respective lives. My mother is doing well except for the hurting knees. Russ' mother is having problems with her back. Just wish that I had a magic wand that I could wave and make them both better.

We took a ride up to Lodi to find the fairgrounds that we will be moving to on Tuesday. We are going up for a Region VIII campout with the Holiday Ramblers. This will be our first regional rally so are looking forward to it. We did see a couple there and found out that they are expecting about 70 rigs for the 6 days. Should be fun.

Russ fixed hamburgers on the grill and we still had two ears of corn from the other day. It was super good. I watched the finale of Surviver and then Desperate Housewives while Russ watched a baseball game on the bedroom TV. Another good evening.

Until next time, Take Care.

Time to Travel

We have been at Thousand Trails, Soledad Canyon in Acton, California for the past 10 days and have enjoyed being with friends Dale and Melody McCoy and Jim and Nancy Leivas. We had met both of these couples down in Southern California about 3 years ago.

We also had to extend our time at Soledad as Mystee became sick and we still do not know what is wrong with her but she is still with us. We continue to give her medications twice a day and she is eating just a little each day. We will just continue to monitor her and see what happens.

Both Russ and I awoke around 5:30 am on Saturday morning ready to get moving. We picked up what needed to be stowed and Russ put away the electric, water and sewer hoses. We each ate a few donuts and were on the road headed out at 6:45 am. We traveled north on Hwy 14 to Hwy 58 and continued across it to Hwy 99. We had never been that way but found the traveling to be very comfortable and an easy drive. The scenery was nice and showed many aspects of the earth.

We took a break at Burger King in Bakerfield. The parking was easier here rather than trying to get into the Flying J lot and beings we did not need fuel. We did need fuel when we got to Ripon, California so we stopped at the Flying J there. Diesel was selling for $4.399 and we had to put in 40.049 gallons. Sure wish we had a rich uncle somewhere. It was back on the road heading for Turtle Beach Fish Camp, Manteca, CA., which is just south of Stockton.

We pulled into Turtle Beach Fish Camp, a Thousand Trails property at 2:30 pm. We did very well for traveling 332 miles. When we got to the gate they told us that there were only three sites remaining open and none of them had sewer hookups. We will only be here until Tuesday so will use the dump station when we leave. The park appears to be very nice and we will explore more after we rest a bit.

We were in this area last year and since then they have put in a new shopping center and a lot more houses. We went down to the new Chili's and had dinner and returned to the RV in time to watch the NASCAR race from Darlington. It was a very good race and we just relaxed for the rest of the evening.

Mystee

Writing from Thousand Trails, Soledad Canyon, Acton, CA. We were suppose to leave here today and start heading north but Mystee (our kitty) has become ill and we are waiting to get her on the road to recovery. Last week she begain throwing up and she stopped eating and going to the potty. When we arrived here in Acton on Thursday Russ made an appointment with the vet in town. He could find nothing visually wrong with her but took blood and urine to test. It took until yesterday (Wednesday, 5/7/08) for them to get the test back. They think it is some type of infection of the liver or kidneys so she has an appointment at 5:40 pm today. We are now scheduled to leave here on Saturday morning heading up to Lodi, CA. and the Holiday Rambler California Rally.

Also while we have been here, we had to take the electrical booster into Temple City, California, to be fixed again. One of the circuit boards had malfunctioned and was causing a misreading of the amps being supplied to the motorhome. What we found first was that when plugged into the post we were showing 50 amps and knew no way as this park only has 30 amp post. We also could not get the recepticals in the bedroom to work nor the electrical unit in the hot water heater to work. Russ called Frank, who had sold us the unit, and told him what was happening.

Coming back from Temple City, we (Dale, Melody, Russ and I) decided to come back across the mountain on Hwy 2. It was a very interesting drive and we all enjoyed it. We went down to Pearblossom and checked out the market place there including the wine tasting. Melody and Dale bought a "Bear Clock" to add to their collection. We really had a great time.

A quick stop at Wal-Mart and it was back to the campground.

On Sunday morning we went to Lancaster to the Elks for breakfast. Special was Spanish Omelets and the food was really good and inexpensive. Another fun day.

We have eaten meals together and just enjoyed each others company.

Until next time, Take Care.

Soledad Canyon, Acton, California

We left Mountain View RV Club in Lytle Creek, Ca. this morning after bidding Steve and Joyce Dombroski a good summer and safe journeys wherever they may go this year. These friends are very special to us and we enjoy meeting up with them when we can. They are headed to Las Vegas to spend time with family there.

We drove north on I-15 for about 12 miles and turned northwest on Hwy. 138 heading for Palmdale, CA. In Palmdale we took HWY 14 south for about 6 miles turning of in Acton, CA., headed for the campground about 3 miles away. We were able to check-in right away and headed for the "N" Section as we can get good receiption for the cell phone and broadband connection for the computer.

Dale and Melody McCoy were waiting for us to arrive. The space next to them was open and we soon found out why. No sewer hookup. We decided to move across the roadway and are functioning just fine here. For some reason the AMPS are showing 50 on a 30 post. Russ says that we are okay for now. He will make sure by testing the post today.

The four of us took a drive to Palmdale, first stopping at Famous Dave's for lunch and then I showed the McCoy's where Wal-Mart and Costco were. We did tour Costco picking up Vodka and Peanuts. Sounds like party time to me.

By the time that we returned to the RV, the winds had died down and it was wonderful just to sit out in the sun and catch up on all that we have missed being with our wonderful friends. We sat out until almost 7 and the air was beginning to get a chill to it.

We really have fun.