Morro Bay Memories

Morro Bay Beach

            

      

Montana de Oro State Park

   

The Spit

Happy Hour

              

Until next year....off to Anaheim today to meet up with Nick, Hayley and Jillian!

Morro Bay, California

(click on the red names of the areas for more information)

This is our 6th annual trek to the sun.  Each year we stop in favorite places and we also explore new territory.  One place we go every year is Morro Bay, California.  We stay at the Morro Dunes RV Park, right on Morro Bay.

There are all kinds of things to do in this area.  One thing we love to do is run.  We have several running trails we return to each year.  One of our favorites is the Reservoir Flats Trail in the Montana de Oro State Park.

Another is the beach about 2 miles North of Morro Bay.   I don't know the name but it's about 3.5 - 4 miles from end to end.  You can park at one of the many pull outs and enjoy the beach.  Dogs can run free on this beach.

So, what else is there to do in Morro Bay besides run?

You can drive to S.L.O (San Louis Obispo).  We enjoyed a hearty lunch, explored the town and did a little shopping.

You can drive to Pismo Beach and look at the butterflies.

You can drive about 30 miles North and look at the winter grounds for the Elephant Seals.

On you way, you might want to stop at San Simeon and visit Hearst's Castle.

If you go on Friday, be sure to stop at the Farmer's Market in Cambria.

And be sure to stop in Harmony, population 18, and visit the pottery shop and the glass shop.

These are just some of the things to do on the Central California Coast.

Road Trip

This past week has been filled with family and fun.  After a very long drive through Canada, 1000 miles in a day and a half, we crossed the border into the U.S. at Sumas.  We drove from Sumas to Birch Bay where we had a very nice visit with Uncle Carl, Aunt Bobbie, Augusta and Vinnie. It was fun to see pictures of Carl and to see lovely Quincy's engagement photos.  Augusta makes lovely Sami Jewelry.  Click Here to see her website.

We made our way to Anacortes and were there just after dark.  It was January 1st and American Heritage Storage wasn't open so we couldn't get our trailer.  We stayed in my mom and dad's condo for the night.  We like to run on the park trail when we are in town so we did that in the morning before going to pick up the trailer.  At the end of our travels last year, we decided to trade in our trailer and buy a model with a pop out.  We have owned this baby for a full year but haven't had a chance to travel in it.  I was pretty excited to move in and try it out.

(This picture is taken in California but it's the best I have of our little winter home)

 This photo is taken from the dining room...the pop out.  It's nice to have room to turn around without bumping into each other or the dog.  This trailer is only 1 foot longer than our last one but the pop out makes it feel like a mansion.

We always park our trailer at Fidalgo Bay for a night on each end of our trip.  The park is very close to where we store our trailer.  I highly recommend this park as the people are very friendly and the park is excellent.  There is also a trail for walking or running.  It's called the Tommy Thompson Trail.

After having our truck checked at the Toyota dealership, we were finally off.  The first stop...Family!
We arrived in Portland Friday afternoon and parked in Jendy's driveway in Vancouver.  We all drove to Amy and Ben's in Portland.  We all enjoyed a fabulous dinner of ribs made by Amy.

Ai, Tesla and Peter in Amy's Kitchen

Ribs!!

The next day, we wanted to spend some time with the kiddos.  The kids suggested lunch and the climbing wall, so.... where to eat lunch.  We walked over to Minnesota Street and found the perfect spot.

                             

                                        

Tess had a slumber party to go to so she didn't join us for the wall climbing activity, but Jendy did.  You have to have a belay card to belay so Jendy was available to do that if they boys needed her.  Here there are checking out the auto-belay directions.

First up...AI.  He climbed to the top and belayed with Peter holding the rope.

Next up...Peter, with the auto belay.

AHHHH.... the end of two busy days.  After a busy weekend, the kids relaxed at Jendy, Paul and Peter's house while waiting for dinner.  Jendy made mole chicken Sunday night.  It was delicious.  Monday morning the kids and Amy went back to school after the Christmas break.  Everyone else went back to work as well and we wandered South...looking for sun and more fun.

Fishing Documentary about Petersburg

This YouTube video was posted by a friend on Facebook.  The guest speakers in the video have all left this world for a better place so it was fun to see them again, talking about our town.  At the end  my high school principal, Syd Wright said, "Petersburg is the jewel in the navel of Southeast Alaska."  I love that.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year!!   My last post was more than a week ago, because we are on the road.  I plan to continue posting to my blog, but the posts will probably be sporadic for the next two months because I will only be able to post when staying in a place, or near a coffee shop or library with WiFi. 

I truly LOVE my little town but I have found a real appreciation of anything comes from being away from it for a while.  Doug and I have decided that to find happiness in our cozy little cocoon, we must become butterflies for a short time each year.  This is our butterfly time of year.  For the sixth year, we are escaping the cold, darkness of Southeast Alaska.  We hope to find many wonderful things in our travels and I hope to write about some of them on this blog.

Every journey from our home has to begin in one of two ways, either on a plane, or on a boat.  We travel via Alaska Marine Highway every year because we take our truck with us and it’s the only way taking the truck with us is possible.  So, we have a couple of options, we can go to Bellingham and be very near our destination or we can go to Prince Rupert Canada and be about 1000 miles from our destination.  In the past 5 years, we’ve done it both ways.  This year we rode the ferry from Petersburg to Prince Rupert and we will return via Bellingham.  We are mixing it up a bit. 

Staples for any travel...coffee making equipment!

It's easy to go to Prince Rupert.  No cooler necessary, just snacks and a change of cloths.

I had forgotten how tedious the drive from Prince Rupert to Anacortes was.  We began our drive at 3:00AM (2:00AM Alaska time)  when the ferry arrived.  We pushed through the small communities that dot the long ribbon of road between Prince Rupert and Cache Creek, BC.  The good thing was, no snow on the highway.  Other than a moose at about 4:30 AM, the highways were very clear.  The ride is really a blur as we were both sleep deprived and in a hurry to get to our destination.  Actually, in a hurry to get through Prince George before the storm hit. 

Cache Creek...just pulling out of Sandman Inn. BRRRR... It was actually the warmest it's ever been when we've been here, but it was still cold.

The hallway at the Sandman Inn in Cache Creek had lots of pictures of famous people like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Penn.  I asked the manager if they had stayed there.  She said all but Jennifer Lopez.  She said they make movies there.  She said, “Cause I guess it looks like Afghanistan.”

We didn't see any deer but we scared a moose off of the middle of the road early in our drive.

Afghanistan or Cache Creek, BC;)