Family Time in Roseburg, OR

We've spent the last two and a half weeks in Roseburg, Oregon, home of my daughter Chantal and her hubby, James. This visit was a long time coming; we skipped Oregon altogether in 2015 and although Chantal spent a week in San Diego this past winter, her visit was prompted by my mothers serious health issues. This stay in Roseburg was especially sweet because my dad spent the first five days with us as well.

We stayed at our favorite local RV park: On the River Golf and RV Park. It's very close to Chantal and overlooks the South Umpqua River. Golf enthusiasts be warned: the golf course is a very short six holes!

This time we got a site backing up to the river. Though the neighbors are fairly close, we had a nice expanse of lawn behind our rig and terrific views of the river. We enjoy hiking up the mountain behind the RV park (they own over 100 acres) to pick buckets of blackberries and search for the Scottish Highlander cattle that roam the hillside.

Site #8 with the lovely grassy area and river behind us.

View of the South Umpqua River behind our site.

Dad and Hans try to reason with a Scottish Highlander cow.

They all have these wonderful horns.

The stock ponds were full of lillies...and photobombing frogs!

One of many days picking blackberries.

Chantal joined us after work one evening at the weekly summer concert in nearby Myrtle Creek.

Chantal and her grandfather.

Chantal is an extremely crafty woman and she taught me how to wet felt one afternoon...so fun!

Wet felting is best done outdoors, it is messy!

Every time we visit Chantal and James we like to do some projects around their property. This time we had the pleasure of riding a lawnmower for the first time...us city slickers had only used push mowers before. We were excited we arrived just before mowing was outlawed for the rest of the summer due to fire hazard!

We accomplished several projects during our stay, the largest being demolition of the old garden shed and wood bin. James will build a new larger structure, hopefully before the rainy season begins.

This has got to go!

Six intense hours over two days and it was cleared!

We made a quick weekend getaway to Portland with Chantal, where we saw a local surf band, Satan's Pilgrims.

Mother and daughter rocking out to the Satan's Pilgrims!

Our hiking days have been limited for the past couple of months because I've been battling a bout of plantar fasciitis. We only managed one real hike during our stay in Roseburg, but it was a beauty. The North Umpqua River flows into Roseburg from the Cascade Mountains and there are 79 miles of trail along the river, we hiked a few miles of the western end of the trail.

We loved being back in healthy green forest.

Many varieties of salmon run the North Umpqua, though we did not see any at this time.

Deadline Falls may be a good place to watch for salmon when we pass through here again in October.

I've seen  photos of salmon jumping the pounding center of the flow!

Tomorrow will be bittersweet as we move north to Eugene. It's been wonderful to spend some quality time with Chantal and James...but it's also good to be on the move again!

We're Back On the Road!

After eight months in San Diego it feels so good to be mobile once again! We blasted north through the heat of central California in three long (5 hour) back to back travel days.

That's us on the right and my dad on the left.
When the sun goes low enough to give us shade it's still 100 degrees in Bakersfield.

My dad has joined us for the first couple of weeks of travel. The first night in Bakersfield we were happy to jump in the pool at the no frills, highway adjacent RV park; to rinse off the long day of bumpy secondary highway and 106 degrees upon arrival.

Another five hour travel day got us to Lodi, CA, and another simple but clean RV park a little further off the freeway with another wonderful pool, and slightly cooler temps...only in the 90's. Traveling through central California in the summer can be rough!

Finally we get into the mountains...Mt Shasta is stunning upon our arrival to our next destination!

A third five hour day got us to Weed, CA where we stayed two nights because we're finally into pleasant temps and gorgeous country. Friendly RV Park is just that, with views of Mt Shasta too!

We got a couple of the prettiest sites at Friendly RV Park in Weed, CA.
Decent site separation and Mt Shasta views out the back of the park.

While Rosie slept off the trauma of multiple long driving days the three of us enjoyed exploring the area around Weed and Mt Shasta City. We've stayed in Weed before briefly, and once again did not allocate enough time for this lovely area. Next time we've got to stay a week or more.

Disc golf at College of the Siskyous with Mt Shasta in the background of course!

Dad and I enjoying a beer at Mt Shasta Brewing.
The seasonal Sour Diesel (cherry) mixed with the Shastafarian Porter was excellent!

Dad and I walking through the forest alongside Lake Siskyou.

We couldn't have asked for a better day on Lake Siskyou.

We happened to time it right for Mt Shasta's summer concert series...held on Sunday evenings with the best backdrop ever!
The Brothers Comatose were so much fun!

On Tuesday we made it to Oregon where we intend to spend the rest of the summer bouncing around the state. First stop: Valley of the Rogue State Park, where we each had spacious full hookup sites.

Though Valley of the Rogue State Park is adjacent to I-5, we had sites that back up to the river and were the most distant from the freeway. The river is a good 40 feet behind us and the freeway noise was not too bad.

We spent two nights allowing us to enjoy a nice hike in Cathedral Hills Park and a delicious pizza at Circle J Cafe in nearby Grants Pass, OR.

Cathedral Hills has 10 miles of trails through oak and madrone forest and rolling hills.

Next up: a couple of weeks in Roseburg, OR visiting my daughter.

We're Still in San Diego...

My heartfelt thanks to our readers regarding my last post on my mothers passing. Your kind words and knowing we are not alone in this experience help ease the challenges we face as we move forward without her in our lives.

We're staying in San Diego until mid July, partly helping my dad with this transitional phase and also to house sit for some family members during an upcoming vacation.

One of our tasks is to make my dad's yard more low maintenance. The biggest project was to clear and level the former grass/dirt area in the center of the back yard and install Decomposed Granite. This new surface should prevent weeds for many years and will be a nice place to display some of the antiques my parents acquired during many years of travel.

Freshly laid decomposed granite...the job was easier than we expected!

We managed to do some hiking in our local mountains before a heatwave enveloped the entire South West. Martin, Estella and pup Chelsea joined us on a long loop in the Laguna Mountains where we were surprised to still find lots of wildflowers blooming.

It can be difficult to find good online maps of the trails in the Laguna Mountains. The late, great Jerry Schad's Afoot and Afield in San Diego County is the go to resource for all hiking around these parts.

Estella, Chelsea and Hans enjoy expansive views early in our hike seen from the Noble Canyon Trail.

More fabulous views from the Pine Mountain trail.

On warmer days we've headed to Coronado for walks along the beach.

Bayview Park is a cute little pocket park on the east side of Coronado that offers up wonderful views of downtown San Diego, a perfect spot for lunch!

We also enjoyed several good surf bands at the Surfin' Sundays Concert series at the Huntington Beach Pier.

Now that's a perfect venue for surf music!

There was more hiking in the local mountains, this time in Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. This is another San Diego County hiking area whose trails are poorly represented online. Again, Afoot and Afield in San Diego County is your best bet for trail info and maps.

Lots of flowers in mid June.

These two white horses got away from their rider (the second is a pack horse), and this woman called out to us to grab the reins of the horse in front...our good deed for the day!

Crossing a big meadow on the Dyar Spring trail.

Big views on the Juaquapin trail.

When the latest heatwave hit the best place to be was the beach, so back we went to Coronado which has always been one of our favorite beaches for strolling and it's a relatively short drive from our current home base at Sweetwater Summit Regional Park.

On a steamy hot Monday in June the beach is full of colorful umbrellas, happy folks playing in the 65 degree water with the Hotel del Coronado as a lovely background.

65 degree water was too cold for us to swim in, but it was perfect for a long walk!

After we walk the beach we take the neighborhood streets back to our truck, admiring the beautiful historical homes and lovely gardens all along the way.  Check out this very cool VW trailer...

Sweeeeet!

And finally a spectacular sunset over our cozy home on wheels at Sweetwater Summit.

Sunset from our site at Sweetwater Summit Regional Park.

A Tribute to my Mother

I got my love of gardening from my mother. We've spent countless hours together designing and planting and harvesting; bonding with the soil and each other. After we left San Diego and hit the road I looked forward to our return each fall and another opportunity to play in the dirt with her in her garden.

In January she was diagnosed with a Lymphoma brain tumor and started chemotherapy and our gardening dynamic changed. She would sit on the deck overlooking the backyard while I would do her bidding around the yard, using the healing power of nature to relieve our mutual stress whenever possible.

I also inherited a love of cooking from my mother. One of her joys while her energy was low these past few months was to spend hours going through her massive recipe collection, looking for interesting dishes for me to create each time I came to the house.

She'd help me start the cooking process but as her energy flagged she'd retire to the family room and I'd take over. Going through her cupboards reminded me where all of my cooking habits started. I suddenly realized where I'd learned to alphabetize my spices and the unique way I stored certain dishes or foods came from right here.

My love of travel came from my parents. In the early 1970's they bought their first RV. Soon afterward we took a memorable six week road trip around the US; visiting cousins in Arkansas and Tennessee, seeing the monuments in Washington, DC, scary lightening storms and the fascinating Amish lifestyle in Pennsylvania, amazing wildlife in Yellowstone.

Two years later we took another six week family trip to Alaska by RV, this was before the Al-Can highway was fully paved. The wonders experienced on this trip combined with many subsequent years of desert boondocking had both my sister and I hooked on travel at a very young age.

The night that Hans and I met in 2006 we talked about how my parents had just returned to San Diego after two years on the road in their RV. Clearly their decision to buy an RV when I was a kid was ultimately a factor in our decision to RV full time.

Amazingly, my mother could say she beat brain cancer. The chemo treatments she received over the past four months eliminated the brain tumor and she was in remission when she entered the hospital this past week. Unfortunately the pneumonia she was diagnosed with was too much for her weakened immune system and she passed away peacefully at age 75 on May 23, 2016 with her immediate family by her side.

Though our relationship had its difficulties like most any mother-daughter relationship, we also shared many fine traits and adventures and memories. Phyllis Lea McGuire will be missed but our time with her will be cherished forever.

My parents met us in Ouray,CO in June 2013.

My parents were a strong influence on our decision to RV so it was fun to be able to meet up with them on the road.

Out and About in San Diego County

We're making the most of our extended stay in San Diego. Along with helping out our parents we are visiting with old friends, hiking favorite trails and exploring new ones.

On one postcard perfect spring day we had brunch with former neighbors Graham and Carol, attended Earth Fair in lovely Balboa Park and walked on Coronado beach...a quintessential spring day in San Diego!

Fabulous brunch feast with Graham and Carol before heading to Earth Fair.

Earth Fair is held in Balboa Park every year for Earth Day and has grown over the years to cover most of this enormous park. There are displays devoted to every possible aspect of environmental awareness, plus the usual food and junk booths we see at every fair. I'll spare you photos of the variety of booths but will say that the people watching was fantastic, there were plenty of useful freebies and we enjoyed seeing the latest in environmentally progressive living, plus Balboa Park is always a nice place for a stroll.

Succulent Peace.

Hans under attack by the giant cactus monster!

Balboa Park's rose garden was at its peak.

Acres of stunning blooms!

Seen at the World Beat Center...

Drumming and hooping at World Beat Center.

The perfect end to a gorgeous spring day in San Diego: a walk on Coronado Beach.

We've had a few unseasonably hot days this spring, with temps hitting 90 degrees in the inland valleys, so one lovely week day we headed to the Laguna Mountains with Martin, Estella and Chelsea to hike the Sunset Trail.

With minimal elevation gain, a combination of shady forest and wide open views, granite boulders and a couple of ponds, the Sunset Trail and Big Laguna Trails are just an hour from San Diego and offer a nice escape from the city heat (it's 20 degrees cooler in the local mountains).

This pond is about one third full but we were happy to see any water in it due to the long drought.

Big views of Laguna Meadow.

Goofing around on the rocks with Big Laguna "Lake" in the distance.

Big Laguna "Lake".

In a city full of craft breweries it stands to reason that just about everyone must know a brewer, right? Our friends Martin and Estella happen to be neighbors with one of the newest brewers in town, Mike Maass of Burning Beard Brewing. We checked out their tasting room in El Cajon one evening and really enjoyed the robust Holy the Voyd Coffee Stout on nitro and Rye the Lightning Pale Ale.

Chris the brewer, Mike the co-founder, Martin, Estella and Hans.

One of the local weekly magazines, the San Diego Reader, features a hiking story each week. After living in San Diego for many years I am always surprised to discover a new place to hike. Crestridge Ecological Preserve is just such a place brought to our attention by The Reader.

We hiked a few of its 15 miles of trails which took us through rolling chaparral covered hills alongside avocado groves (both alive and dead), through oak groves shading morteros in granite indicating how lush this must have been at one time with a creek flowing and native people living here.

Local sculptor and architect James Hubbell built this straw bale visitor shelter.

James Hubbell mosaic sculpture.

This wide road/trail took us alongside avocado groves at times and provided expansive views
across the chaparral covered hills.

Our extended stay in San Diego allowed Hans' band, The Sand Devils, to play another gig. This one was a private party at Sand Devils guitarist Ran's new house in celebration of his new home tiki bar: The Reverb Cavern. Thanks Ran and Dale for hosting a fantastic party!

Lots of fun details cover every inch of this fantastic tiki room.

Mixologist Ran behind his new tiki bar.

The Sand Devils playing poolside.

Another excellent surf band, The Insect Surfers, played as well.

As you can see, it's no hardship to spend spring in San Diego!