Mt. Shasta, somewhere in Oregon

Monday, July 5, 2010

Today we did nothing but travel. We left from San Francisco and traveled all the way to Seattle, Washington. Sammy drove the entire 800ish miles all by himself. He didn't have to, he chose to. The only new picture for this day is the one of Mt. Shasta. The rest featured in today's blog are some that didn't make the first cut from previous blogs. Not long after we crossed the Oregon border, we stopped for supper at Shari's restaurant. The restaurant was crowded, but, somehow, we managed to get a room all to ourselves. There were two people eating when we walked in, but within minutes, they had disappeared. We didn't ask why because I am pretty sure we didn't want to know the reason. The waitress kept calling us family. "Okay, family, how is everything?", "Family, who needs dessert?", etc. It was a sweet reference, just different. Before returning to the interstate, we stopped to fill the gas tank. Sammy, not realizing it was against Oregon law, starting pumping his own gas. The attendant approached him with a puzzled look on her face and started writing numbers on a notepad and looking at the tank and looking at the RV then back to the tank. Sammy clueless to the reason she was there asked, "You checking out the tank?". She informed him that according to Oregon law, she was supposed to pump the gas. However, quickly being cognizant of his ability, she allowed him to finish the job which he had started. Since it was beginning to get late and everybody had full bellies, Sammy's master plan, that we all go to sleep, worked. Jake stayed up with Sammy until he could no longer keep his eyes open, then tagged me to take my turn. I tried to talk to him and keep him alert, despite my efforts, I kept conking out. I wasn't worried about Sammy nodding off, if he were to feel unsafe, there is no doubt in my mind that he would pull off the road rather than endanger his family.

Taken in the gift shop at the Hoover Dam


The Ballard children with their new hydration backpacks staying hydrated

One of Sammy's favorite pictures

See our reflection? I allowed Sammy to get just close enough to get this picture.

Sunday, July 4, 2010

We stopped for gas and started our day on the Pacific Coast Highway, California highway 1. The weather was cool and foggy and the views spectacular. I could have skipped everything else just to witness the beauty along this highway. Hoke claims he caught a glimpse of whales spouting in the distance. I was skeptical, but couldn't argue. Actually, I think I was jealous. While I had been scanning the horizon craving a glimpse of a whale, Hoke had his face buried in a handheld electronic gaming device. I begged him to enjoy the view and when he finally did, he announced he had seen a whale. I still want to argue with him, but I do believe I am just envious I didn't spot a whale. Our goal was to cross the Golden Gate Bridge and we made it. The traffic was so bad, we were beginning to wonder if we would make it. Parked in a campground just a few miles after this feat. When I use the term park I am refering to the fact that the camping spots were so small it was almost as if it were a parking space. It was the most expensive place yet and we were parked so close I wondered if we could open our door without hitting the camper beside us. After supper, Sammy took the kids on a walk through an open field, adjacent to the campground, that stretched to the San Francisco Bay. I did hear murmurings of no trespassing signs and recent pesticide application signs. Did that stop this crowd? Not hardly. They made it to the bay edge and lingered there until dusk. Sammy happened to notice a skunk about 15 feet off the path and they then decided it was time to return. Then another skunk was spotted just off the path on the other side. Their pace quickened and Sammy even dropped his phone in the retreat. After retrieving the phone and continuing their jaunt back to the camper, Sammy noticed, yet another, skunk. This one was located less than 2 feet off the path. The skunk didn't seem alarmed, so, armed with his smaller offspring in front of him, he urged them to walk cautiously and purposefully. Addie did say that when Sammy tried to pass, the skunk kept raising and lowering it's tail and they were certain their daddy would be sprayed. Alas, we were spared the episode of skunk spray removal. No doubt, Sammy would have had to sleep outside if not. We were hoping to be able to see some of the San Francisco fireworks from here but no luck. We could hear lots of noise just no lights.

Looking over the face of an oceanside cliff

Can't tell from the picture but there are elephant seals resting on the rocks

Alcatraz as seen from the Golden Gate Bridge while driving on a foggy day

Morro Bay, California

Saturday, July 3, 2010

We left Las Vegas early to beat the heat and headed to the California coast. Only stopped twice, once to fill up with gas and again to retreive gas cap. Something else that puzzled us was the number of spots along the shoulder of the highway that was obviously where a vehicle had been on fire. I suppose there are a number of reasons for this phenomenon, but I chose spontaneous combustion. It was unbelievable the temperature difference or delta T from the southern end of Nevada to the coast. The campground we chose is one we dubbed the Steele Creek campground of Morro Bay. Our camping friends should know what I mean. Sometime during the night someone's car horn kept going off. I am certain nobody in the campground was asleep.

One of our friends, we'll call him a non-idiot, told us to look for this exit as we entered California. Unbelievably, there actually was such an exit. My first thought was wondering how to pronounce such a word. I decided it would be pronounced like it is spelled. Sammy quietly said, "aww California, the land of fruits and nuts".

Addie on Morro Bay beach. It was actually cold there.

Sammy found something for Nina to eat.

We enjoyed the fire and cooking supper over it. We had to wear sweaters and didn't even turn on the air conditioner that night. Almost needed to turn on the heat the next morning.

Friday, July 2, 2010

Las Vegas, NV

Hoke took both of these pictures while cruising the strip in Las Vegas. He actually took many more pictures than this, these two just happened to be his favorite. We rented a mini-van for a day and were able to navigate the streets and parking decks with ease. During the day, we visited the New York, New York casino just to ride the roller coaster. Hoke decided he didn't want to enjoy the thrill of the ride so he and Sammy sat it out. After eating a late lunch we headed to our next destination, the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop featured on the television show Pawn Stars. We found it but were a little disappointed the stars weren't there. It was kinda neat seeing in person some of the items featured in some of the shows. Hoke bought an Old Man bobblehead and a bumper sticker signed by the Old Man. Weary from the heat and having soaked up all of Las Vegas we cared to soak, we head back to the campground. I dropped off my crowd and decided to use the last few hours I still had available with the rental vehicle to take a solo trip to the grocery store. It was dark by the time I finished replenishing our grocery needs and I forgot to make a turn on the way back to the campground. This could be part of the reason Sammy hasn't let me drive yet. Being lost wasn't too bad, I found a hot doughnuts sign. I forgot to mention a gallon of milk in Las Vegas only cost $2.19. I got extras for all of you. They're stored under the RV. Don't forget to pick yours up when we get home.

Pawn Stars

Upstream view of Colorado River from the Hoover Dam

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Started out today doing laundry. Headed towards Nevada and the great Hoover Dam. We arrived late enough that most of the crowd had started to fizzle. The temperature was 105 degrees and the wind literally felt like it was burning our skin. After our RV was searched for explosives we were allowed to cross the dam and park at one of the parkings lots way up the hill. Not sure of his sense of humor, I didn't mention to the fellow searching our vehicle that if we had any explosives we would have already used them on this RV. We took the $11 tour, took the standard pictures and left on our nightly quest to find a place to park. We ended up at the Oasis RV park in Las Vegas. Talk about a nice campground, Hoke has already asked if we could stay here for four days. We rented a mini-van and cruised the strip so the kids could see in person stuff they've seen on TV a million times. I am pretty sure there were millions of people on the streets of Las Vegas and they all wanted to cross the road in front of us. We've decided to stay here one more night to let our driver rest, then head out COD (crack of dawn) before the heat starts to suck the life out of us and the RV. We have realized that we aren't going to get to all the places we had hoped and are slowly marking attractions off our list. We are all starting to get tired and cranky and on each others nerves, that is why we are having to stop and chill more often.

Roads of nothingness

Local authorities herding long-horned sheep on route to Hoover Dam

Ballard offspring at the Hoover Dam or Dam Ballards

Know why God didn't see fit to have us break down here? Read the sign: lotto, gun, ammo and beer. If they only had livermush, Duke's mayonnaise and SunDrop we would have no reason to leave.

Grand Canyon

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Since Sammy has already posted about our trip to the Grand Canyon, this post shouldn't be lengthy. As I mentioned earlier, we heard the north rim of the canyon was less crowded and, perhaps, more spectacular. That is the direction we headed. There really did seem to be fewer crowds than what I imagine were at the south rim. We traipsed our way along a clifftop path to a spectacular viewpoint. Once again, they could have used way more handrails than provided. We would stop and "pull over" when passing somebody coming the opposite direction. None of us were used to the elevation and had to take it slow just to keep our breath. It was an overcast and hazy day. Which was good for not having to hike in the sun, but not so good for pictures. We drove to a higher elevation and were able to catch a glimpse of the Colorado river winding it's way through the base of the canyon. Gorgeous! To get to this viewpoint, we had to travel a road not designed for vehicles over 30' long. Good thing we were only 29.73' long. One curve was so bad, there was a roadside mirror used to verify nothing was coming the opposite direction so you can turn while using the whole road. When I use the term road, I am using it loosely. There wasn't a shoulder most of this "road". The side of the "road" was either a drop-off with no visible bottom or mountainside with rocks or brush protruding into our traveling space. Sammy, with his superior maneuvering skills, managed to ascend and descend unscathed. This while dodging mini-vans which liked our lane as much as their own. The highways to and from the grand canyon are the ones that go for miles and miles of nothingness. Not sure if nothingness is a word or not, but most of you will understand what it means. Time to get a phone signal and try to find a place to park for the night. We ended up back in Utah at the Temple View RV park. We have been very luckly with campgrounds and this one was no exception. Next stop: Hoover Dam.

Lots of forest fire evidence in around park

Sammy with his homemade European Shoulder Bag filled with water bottles

Wednesday June 30th

This is Sam. OK, so the blog may not be in chronological order. Today we visited the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. No pictures or words can capture the rugged beauty that our Creator has crafted. We went from 5000 ft to 9000 ft at the rim. The RV struggled a little, but we made it. We are now in St. George, Utah. The temperature went from 75 degrees at the rim to 105 degrees here. But it's a dry heat, uh huh.

Oh, and we had a 'mini-tow' yesterday. The RV had to be towed 1 block to the Road Runner Auto Mechanics. It turns out that the fuel pump fuse blew right in the middle of an intersection. I don't really know why. Everytime the engine hesitates, so does my heart. Is this the next breakdown?

Tomorrow we plan to drive through Las Vegas and visit the Hoover Dam. And then? We don't know yet. Somewhere in California.

Here are some photos.

You lose some quality during the uploads, sorry. The above photo is a cross-eyed 3D photo. Tilt your head upward and focus on the tip of your nose. The 2 photos turn into 3 photos. Slowly begin to focus on the newly formed middle photo. Keep trying until the middle photo turns 3D. Pretty neat.

You can barely see the people on top of the rock.

A desert flower.

My desert flower.