Movin' East - Day 58

Friday, October 31 (Happy Birthday, "AJ"), Day 58 - The Grand Canyon, South Rim.

As you can see by the photo, we finally did make it to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. This was truly worth the trip. The scenery from the South Rim was fantastic. The only unfortunate thing about today is that the sky was not as clear blue as we have seen the past few weeks. Today, the sky was partly sunny, with lots of big, white, puffy clouds, which cast shadows over the scenery, making it difficult to see the detail in the shots. In addition, it was a bit hazy, which also contributed to the limited visibility today. Anyway, check out the album, as most of the photos came out pretty well.

After visiting the South Rim (we used the free shuttle buses here, also), we returned to the motor home and picked up the dogs, then we drove into the town of Williams, Arizona. This is a neat little town, with a flavor of the "old west". Lots of "saloons" and cafes, and they all looked pretty inviting. We were scouting out the location of the only Catholic Church in town, St. Joseph's, which is way out in the far end of town. We will attend the 8AM Mass on Sunday, then we will have breakfast at the "Route 66 Diner" in town before pulling out and heading east for Albuquerque, NM.

Tomorrow, we will head down into Sedona (again), and on to Jerome for a visit there. I don't know what we'll have for pictures tomorrow, probably shots of Sedona and Jerome, but be sure to check back tomorrow for details and photos of that trip.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay58GrandCanyonTheSouthRim?authkey=hMqvcQNlCyg#

Movin' East - Day 57

Thursday, October 30, Day 57 - Sedona, Arizona.

I know, I know, I promised that we would do the South Rim of the Grand Canyon today. However, because we stayed in a Wal-Mart parking lot last night, we had to move the motor home to a campground today. We had made arrangements, on line, to stay at a KOA in Williams, AZ for the next few days, and Williams is about 30 miles west of Flagstaff. By the time we got there, it was after noon, so we didn't have enough time to do the South Rim today. Instead, we decided to drive down to Sedona, about 50 minutes south, and walk around for the afternoon. We decided that one two-hour stint was not nearly enough time to spend in Sedona, so, we will return for the day on Saturday to spend more time there, and maybe do a "Jeep Tour". The web album has photos of the drive down to, in, and returning from, Sedona. Be sure to check out, as the scenery is amazing.

Tomorrow, we hope to get out early and get up to the South Rim for a few hours, or so. Check back tomorrow for all the details.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay57SedonaArizona?authkey=whvrnIHt8Oo#

Movin' East - Day 56

Wednesday, October 29, (Happy Birthday to John Borsetti) Day 56 - the Grand Canyon, North Rim. Another beautiful day out here in Arizona for driving out to the Grand Canyon. We departed Page, AZ shortly after 10AM, destination, Bitter Springs, AZ. Our plan was to park the motor home somewhere in Bitter Springs, but when we got there, we discovered that there was no place to park this behemoth! So, we drove the motor home as far as Jacob Lake, where we found a place to park. We loaded the doggies into the car (against their wishes), and made the drive, some 45 miles, into the National Park. As the sign below will attest, we made it!

As we drove the last few miles into the park, we decided that it reminded us of Yellowstone, because of all the trees and open meadows we passed on the way in. However, once we arrived at the North Rim Visitor Center, and began to walk out to the Bright Angels viewpoint, we knew we weren't in Yellowstone. Be sure to check out the web album to see what I mean.

After leaving the North Rim, we headed south toward Flagstaff, AZ. We hoped to find a campground along the way, before we got to Flagstaff, which was still 110 miles south from Bitter Springs. We began calling several different campgrounds, but they were either full, or closed for the season. We could not find a campground along the road, so we had to settle for one in Flagstaff. We found the Woodlands RV Park, just west of Flagstaff, on "Route 66!". We programmed the GPS to take us there, knowing that it would probably be dark when we got there. The manager told us that he would leave the information on the door if we arrived after 6PM. We finally arrived at 7:15, and it was pitch dark. There were no lights in the park, so finding our site was going to be a chore. I got the information (a map of the park, showing where our site was) off the office door when we arrived, and we entered the campground. After trying, for at least 30 minutes, to find the site we were assigned, we both decided that even Wal-Mart would be a better choice than this place, because it was all DIRT! There was NO GRASS, nothing but DIRT! So, we reprogrammed the GPS to find us the nearest Wal-Mart, which she did. It was only 1.7 miles from the campground. So, we are camping out at Wal-Mart in Flagstaff, AZ tonight. Tomorrow, we'll find a better campground and head out to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for the photos and details of our trip out to the South Rim. We actually took 97 pictures today, but I only uploaded the best 28. Enjoy!

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay56TheGrandCanyonNorthRim?authkey=in43FMjyQns#

Movin' East - Day 55

Tuesday, October 28, Day 55 - beautiful Lake Powell at Page, Arizona. As the photo, above, shows, this is truly a beautiful, majestic lake. "Impounded behind the Bureau of Reclamation's Glen Canyon Dam, waters of the Colorado River and tributaries are backed up about 185 miles, forming Lake Powell." The only unfortunate thing about being here is that we can only see a very small portion of this lake. The only way to truly explore the wonders of Lake Powell is by boat, since there are no roads which completely surround the area. We happened to visit the area during the "off season", so we were unable to take a boat tour. Of course, the tours only give you a small taste of the beauty of this area, since they only last four hours (1/2 day tour), or over 8 hours on the all-day tour. Since the lake stretches 185 miles between Arizona and Utah, with many smaller "fingers" protruding into the landscape all along the way, it would take many weeks by boat to truly explore the whole area. That is why houseboat rentals here are so popular. Just in the area we are in, alone, there must be about one thousand houseboats available to rent, ranging in size from small boats to huge "mansions on water". Be sure to view the web album for more pictures of the lake and surrounding sights.

Tomorrow, we will be heading south, and west, to the north rim of the Grand Canyon for our first look. We hope to have some pictures of the Canyon from the North Rim for you in the next web album. Until then....

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay55LakePowellAZ?authkey=mq_cgj5Cc-8#

Movin' East - Day 54

Monday, October 27, Day 54 - leaving Hurricane, Utah for Page, Arizona. As usual, another beautiful day in Utah, with clear blue, sunny skies. A great day to travel.

The picture above is the site we were staying on in Hurricane, UT, at the Willow Wind RV Park. Except for the palm trees, this place reminded us of Outdoor Resorts in Port St. Lucie, FL, as it had concrete pads to park on, with grass on each side. This has been one of the best parks we have had the pleasure to stay at since we left. And leave we did, driving east to Page, Arizona, in the Lake Powell area. Again, the scenery along the way was fantastic (see the web album).

We arrived in Page, AZ in time for lunch, which gave us the opportunity to pinpoint the directions to the RV park we will be staying at, since our GPS didn't recognize the address. A quick call got us the exact directions, so we finished our lunch and proceeded to the park.

The picture, above, will give you an idea of what this park is like. Although the sites are not paved, the roads are, and we have a nice shade-tree on our site. The motor home is looking great, as we had it washed in Las Vegas (it was FILTHY!). And the rates here are very reasonable, even though it's not a Passport America (1/2 price) member park.

After getting settled here, we drove back to the Glen Canyon Dam, which we passed on our way into Page. This dam was finished in 1963, and its completion formed Lake Powell, which is fed by the Colorado River, which continues from here into the Grand Canyon. The water level in Lake Powell is down at this time, due to the lack of rainfall in the area. The distance from the dam to the Hite Marina, where the Colorado empties into Lake Powell, is 127 miles! This is, to say the least, a very impressive lake. Tomorrow we will try to take a cruise on the lake to take some photographs and videos, as the scenery surrounding this lake is, in a word, breathtaking.

Be sure to check back tomorrow for the details of our cruise on Lake Powell.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay54DrivingFromHurricaneUTToPageAZ?authkey=Vv1Dl8ak2kQ#

Movin' East - Day 53

Sunday, October 25, another gorgeous day for sightseeing in Utah! The picture above is the entrance to Zion National Park from the east. We took a scenic drive around Zion, through Colorado City and Fredonia, AZ, into Kanab, UT, and finally into Zion on Rt. 9. The first 40 pictures were taken just on the way to Zion, on Rt. 59, then Rt. 89A. I will apologize before-hand, for all of the pictures (165) in the web album, but we just couldn't help ourselves, the scenerey was just so beautiful. I only captioned a few of the pictures, just for reference. The rest will speak for themselves, because this place is just soooo majestic! As you will see, in some of the pictures, the sky was clear blue. The temperatures today reached the mid-80s by mid-afternoon, with just enough of a breeze to keep it comfortable.

I don't know if anyone noticed, but, as this was Sunday, we did not begin the day at Mass. That is because the only churches within reach from here are Mormon (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints). Keep in mind that we are in Utah, where the Mormon Church pervades every walk of life. Here, if you are not Mormon, you are in the minority.

Tomorrow, we will leave Utah for Arizona and Lake Powell. We have been told that this is another gorgeous area, so we will probably be there for a couple of days. Be sure to check the blog again tomorrow night, as we will probably have pictures of the drive to Lake Powell.

Here's the link to today's voluminous web album (165 pictures):

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay53DrivingIntoAndInZionNationalParkUT?authkey=zNTCtBu7ybw#

Movin' East - Day 52

Saturday, October 25, Day 52 - Leaving Las Vegas, destination Hurricane, UT. Another beautiful day out west, a great day to travel. Although we hated to leave Vegas (Kathy wanted to stay another night and try to get into the Donny and Marie Osmond show at the Flamingo), we decided to head east into Utah. As we traveled east into Arizona, the scenery changed from desert landscape to mountains, canyons and mesas, as captured in the photo below.

As we crossed into Arizona from Nevada, we were amazed at how much the scenery changes at almost every turn. The trip through Arizona was short, but beautiful. We can hardly wait to get to the Grand Canyon.

The picture, above, was supposed to be the sign reading "Utah State Line", but I think I grabbed the wrong one. I think this one is when we entered St. George, UT, a few miles beyond the state line. Anyway, it shows the contrast between the cities and the wide-open spaces out here. We are simply awe-struck with all the beautiful places we have seen, so far. The best part of all of this is that we have been able to take the time to appreciate all the places we have seen so far on our trip.

The photo, above, shows the entrance to the park where we will be staying for the next two days (or more, should we decide to stay longer). This park is a lot like our Resort Park at Port St. Lucie, in that the sites are all concrete pads, surrounded by grass and shade trees, and the roads are all paved. We have already met several new people here who spend the winter at this park. All the sites are rentals, only. Nothing here is for sale. The rates here are quite reasonable for such a beautiful park. The monthly rate is $300, and the daily rate is $30. From the information I have been able to gather in speaking with our next-door neighbor, there are other places which have even lower monthly rates! I suggested to Kathy that perhaps we should sell our lot in Florida and come out here for the winter. She was not very receptive to that idea.

Tomorrow, we will explore Zion National Park and Kolob Canyon. We will travel south into Arizona, through Colorado City (a mormon community), and Fredonia, before heading north into Kanab, UT, and finally into Zion from the East Entrance to the park. This will a 75 mile loop, returning to Hurricane. Later, we will travel north to Kolob Canyon to explore that park. Be sure to check back tomorrow for pictures of that adventure.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay52DrivingToUtah?authkey=FUjQTlbwtGE#

Movin' East - Day 51

Friday, October 24, Day 51 - still in Las Vegas. Actually, the title of this blog should be "Still in Vegas", because we have not left yet.

Today we awoke to another beautiful day in Las Vegas. The sky was as clear as the large intestine just before the colonoscopy! But seriously, folks, it was a beautiful day out here, with temperatures in the low to mid-80's by afternoon. We spent the morning and afternoon on the strip. We bought 24-hour passes on "The Deuce", which is a transit system (bus) that cruises up and down the strip, stopping at all the major Hotel/Casinos along the way. The 24-hour pass is just $5/person - the best deal on the strip. These buses are great, because they are "double-decker" buses, so one can sit on the 2nd level and see everything along the route. See the web album for pictures of these beauties. We had lunch in New York, New York at Greenburg's Deli. We shared a Corned Beef Reuben on Rye, which was more than enough for both of us. Next, we crossed the strip to the MGM Hotel/Casino, where we visited the African Lion exhibit (pictures in the web album). From here, we caught "The Deuce" back to Circus Circus and the motor home to attend to the doggies, who, by the way, have been absolutely wonderful so far. We also needed to take a nap before going out to see Danny Gans tonight.

The above picture is the ad in front of the Mirage Hotel/Casino for Danny's show. We drove to the Mirage and parked in the garage to save time. Some of the pictures in the album were taken from atop the garage, the view was so good. From here, we made our way into the theater to see the show. If you have never seen, or heard of, Danny Gans, then you are missing out on a truly GREAT performer. It's no wonder he has won so many awards since he began appearing here in Vegas 14 years ago. This has to be THE BEST SHOW I/we have EVER seen! Danny does impersonations of famous people, but he does it is such a way that you would swear the person was actually there, on the stage! In addition, he is a marvelous singer in his own right. He captures the subtle gestures of each of the personalities he imitates as he does their voices and material. If you ever come to Vegas, be sure to put the Danny Gans show on your agenda. Make your ticket purchase ahead of time, because EVERY SHOW is SOLD OUT!

After the show, we cruised up and down the strip taking pictures of the glitz and glamour offered here. Lots of them are in the album.

Tomorrow we will leave Las Vegas for Utah and Zion/Bryce National Parks (I think! Kathy is thinking about staying another night to go and see Donny and Marie at the Flamingo!). Be sure to check back tomorrow to see how this plays out.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay51LasVegas?authkey=M9kxTc4toOc#

Movin' East - Day 50

Thursday, October 23, we finally leave California for Nevada on our way east. This day is another beauty. Our destination was to be Zion National Park, however, as we continued east toward Las Vegas, we decided to spend a couple of days here, then continue toward Zion on Saturday.

Here we are, entering the GLITZ capital of the world. We have reservations to stay at the Las Vegas KOA, which is directly behind Circus Circus on the Strip. The day is perfect, 77 degrees at noon, with a nice breeze. First, we have to do a bit of grocery shopping, and we will try to get tickets to a show.
As we prepare to enjoy our stay in Las Vegas, here is Wilson, living life "in the fast lane". C'mon Willy, this is the city that never sleeps! Get up, man, let's go for a walk! Nothing doing! He's on the couch to stay. Oh, well!

After our grocery run, we decide to take a trip into "Downtown" Vegas, the "old" part of town. Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention that we did score two tickets to see Danny Gans at the Mirage tomorrow (Friday) night at 8PM. Downtown Vegas is not a glamourous as "the Strip", but it has its own character. We decided to return this evening for dinner and a walk down Fremont Street to see first-hand "the Fremont Experience" that everyone talks about here.

We had dinner at the Bay City Diner in the Golden Gate Casino at #1 Fremont Street. This is the oldest hotel/casino in Vegas. It opened in 1906 at its present location. In 1951, it was sold to the family who owns it today, an Italian family from San Francisco, hence "The Golden Gate Hotel". After dinner, we began walking down Fremont Street, which, to the uninformed, is like a pedestrian mall, no vehicles allowed. As we walked, we passed Binion's Hotel/Casino and the Fremont Hotel/Casino, where we discovered that there was a Dunkin' Donuts inside, so we had to go in and get a cup of coffee. It was the same as the coffee we got at DD on Elliott St., in Bevely!!! Imagine that! Mmmm! Delish! Be sure to check out the web album for all the pictures of Fremont Street. Of course, seeing it in pictures is nothing like the experience of being there, with the music playing and the pictures on the ceiling - fantastic!

Tomorrow, we will do "the Strip". Stay tuned for pictures of that adventure.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay50LasVegas?authkey=nNaMzqC6FFQ#

Movin' East - Day 49

Wednesday, October 22, Day 49 - another beautiful day in California! Are you tired of hearing me say that, yet? OK, today we left Oakhurst, destination Barstow, CA, in the Mojave Desert. As the picture above shows, we had to travel through mountains, again. This will be the first test of the motor home since we had it serviced on Monday. Guess what? We made it through the mountains without a hitch. The motor home didn't even come close to overheating today, even though the temperatures were in the upper 80's. We were also able to maintain enough speed going up, that we were able to pass some slower trucks! Before the service was performed, the same S-L-O-W trucks were passing us like we were standing still.

We are currently in a rest area on I-15, about 20 miles west of Baker, CA. Tomorrow morning, we will leave California after spending 23 days here! I think 22 of the days were warm and sunny. We only had rain on October 2, driving from Klamath to Santa Rosa - by the time we got to Eureka, the rain had given way to sunny skies. So, unless it rains tomorrow (which it will not) we only had about 1/2 day of rain in 23 days!

Check the blog again tomorrow. I'm not sure what we'll have for you, but it will probably be something interesting, again. NOTE TO COB: it was the hydraulic fluid - I added about 1/2 quart and the alarm has stopped.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay49TravelingTowardUtah?authkey=F4QaOKMYvTs#

Out West - Day 48

Tuesday, October 21, Day 48 - Yosemite National Park. Another beautiful, sunny day in California. As promised, today our adventures take us into Yosemite. Kathy asked me today which National Park was my favorite, and I honestly can't pick just one. Every one of the parks we visited on our journey has its own natural beauty. If I have to pick just one, I guess it would have to be Yellowstone, because of the variety of spectacular scenery and wildlife. That said, each park offers its own spectacular scenery, and they are all different. Yosemite offers some very spectacular views of granite cliffs, waterfalls and valleys, along with its own Sequoia grove, called the Mariposa Groves. We only took one picture here, because we overloaded on sequoias on Sunday, at Sequoia National Forest. However, I will say that the sequoias here are just as spectacular.
Next, we drove deeper into Yosemite and headed for Glacier Point, where the views of the mountains and Yosemite Valley are breathtaking. We also tried to take some photos with a perspective of how high up we were at Glacier Point. The only drawback to making this trip at this time of year is that the waterfalls are almost non-existent. The only way we could see them was with binoculars, or with the video camera.

From Glacier Point, we continued our drive down into Yosemite Valley, which was some 6000 feet down. We got some beautiful views and shots of El Capitan, which stands like a sentry watching over the valley. El Capitan is a sheer slab of granite, rising almost straight up from the valley floor. The river, which winds its way through the valley, is crystal clear, and very deep in some spots. Another thing we noticed was that, although there were people visiting the park, the places of interest were never crowded, nor was there any traffic to contend with driving through the park.

Unfortunately, all good things must end, and we reluctantly left Yosemite. Leaving via the south entry takes us directly into the Sierra National Forest. See the sign, above? That is the back side of the "Yosemite National Park" sign, which heads up this blog entry. So, you go from one National park into another. Our campground in Oakhurst, CA, is 17 miles from the south entry to Yosemite. The drive south to Oakhurst is on a winding, two-lane highway through Sierra National Forest, with beautiful scenery all the way.

Tomorrow, alas, we begin our trek eastward. Our next point of interest will probably be Zion National Park, in Utah. However, we have to travel through the Mojave Desert to get there, so we will probably have pictures to share as we head toward Utah.

Be sure to check back each day, as you never know what you'll find.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay48YosemiteNationalPark?authkey=xV-z_LozTEU#

Out West - Day 47

Monday, October 20, Day 47 - Fresno, CA.

Today was a beautiful day, weatherwise. We left the campground in Kingsburg at 7:30AM, destination, Fresno Truck Service, the local Freightliner Oasis Dealer, to have work done on the motor home. We dropped it off at 8 o'clock this morning, and the service department told us that it would take most of the day to peform the work. My first thought was, "Hmmm, this is going to run into lots of money." The sign above the service desk read "Labor Rate: $94/hr." Holy cow! But, since we have no choice, we have to accept the consequences.

We packed the doggies in the car (they do not like being in the car!), and they started whining almost immediately. Next, we found a nice cafe for breakfast (if you're ever in Fresno, be sure to stop in at "Irene's Cafe", on Olive Street. Good food, nice, clean restaurant, open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, with a friendly staff. After breakfast, we had to find a place to buy dog food for the pups. We found a Petsmart and got the food, and we also bought them a new "COW", as the old cow was disgusting! The next order of business was to find a new table-top propane grill, since our other grill was destroyed when the tire blew. We checked out a Home Depot, Target and Wal-Mart, but they all said the same thing, "It's a SEASONAL item, and we're gearing up for Christmas." Imagine, grills are a "seasonal" item in California! Hell, we use grills all year long in Massachusetts (everyone I know does, anyway), so how come it's a seasonal item in CA, where the weather is nice year-round? Doesn't make sense to me. So, we started looking for Wal-Marts in the area with the GPS. It lists the telephone number, as well. We started calling various Wal-Marts to see if they still had any. We found one, 31 miles south of Fresno, in Hanford, CA. Since we had nothing better to do, we ended up driving there, much to the dismay of the dogs. Did I mention that they HATE being in the car? Anyway, we got there and checked the grills, and guess what? No table-top PROPANE grills, only charcoal! How did we know that was going to be the case?

Anyway, we returned to Fresno, checked on the motor home (not ready yet), then went in search of a car wash to wash the filthy beast! We found one, only Kathy was not feeling too comfortable about the neighborhood. We heard on the news that there have been several shootings in the area in recent days, so we got out of there quickly. On the way back, we stopped at a Camping World store here in Fresno, attached to a motor home dealer (Paul Evert's RV - a Monaco Coach dealer). We had stopped here yesterday afternoon and checked out the grills, but they only had grills priced at about $100 and up (Kathy checked on these). Today, we had decided that we were going to have to "bite the bullet" and pay the $100 for a grill. When we got there, I went in to look at the grills and I did find a grill for under $30, so we bought it. Now, we have a grill to cook on.

We returned to the Freightliner Service center and found that they had completed the work on the motor home. I had to wait around for about 45 minutes for them to figure out the bill, thinking "Damn, this can't be good." I was right, it wasn't good! I will not bore you with the details, but suffice to say it was another arm, leg, and a little bit of heart! However, I have been assured that the problems I was experiencing will be eliminated now. Great news! We still have lots of mountains to cross before we reach Florida.

The trip from Fresno to Oakhurst, CA, was uneventful. We did encounter some "hills", which raised us to over 3,000 feet elevation, but the motor home took them in stride, with the car in tow. We are now restfully ensconced in a campground in Oakhurst. Tomorrow we will travel into Yosemite, about 17 miles to the north of Oakhurst.

Stay tuned for details of our adventures in Yosemite National Park.

Sorry, no pictures today, as there was nothing to take pictures of.

Out West - Day 46

Sunday, October 19, Day 46 - Kingsburg, CA. Another beautiful day in California. We started the day at 8:00 Mass at Holy Family Church in Kingsburg, about 5 minutes from our campground. We arrived at the church at 7:45 and took our seats. There weren't very many people in the church, but they continued to trickle in. This is an older church, and the pews reminded me of the churches back in Beverly - dark-stained wood with thin kneelers. Have I mentioned before how laid-back life is here in California? Unless you are on the freeway, that is. I say that because 8 o'clock came and went this morning, the church is now full, and Mass has yet to begin. Finally, at about 8:09 or so, they start the Mass. And nobody is upset, antsy, or ready to leave, including the children attending. Everything proceeds slowly, each song gets all four verses sung, the priest takes his time saying the Mass, and his homily seemed to drag on forever. Just when we thought he was finished, he begins to read excerpts from the Pope's letter to Catholics regarding Mission Sunday (today). Still, everyone, including the children, listen to his every word as if he is telling a story and they are fully engrossed. We left the church after Communion (our usual practice), and went to find a place for breakfast. We had been seated at a restaurant for about 10 minutes, when I decided to go get the Sunday paper out front. I then saw most of the people from the Mass waiting to be seated for breakfast. Wow! Now that's devotion for you!

OK, back to the trip! Today, we decided to take a trip into Sequoia National Park, about an hour from where we are staying. If you have never been to Sequoia, make sure you check out the web album, as we took lots of pictures of giant redwood sequoia trees. These trees are truly giants. We made it to "General Sherman", the largest tree known to exist. It is not the biggest, nor is it the tallest, but in sheer mass, it is the largest tree in the world. It stands 270 feet tall, and it is as wide at the top as it is at the bottom, about 3 feet up from the base.

This is the "General"! Note how it maintains its girth as it rises. We could not get a shot of the top of the tree because it is so tall! The "General" has stopped growing, as it's top has died (so the sign says), at its present height of 270 feet, or about the height of a 21-story building! The main characteristic of these giants is that they maintain their girth as they grow, and they will continue to grow as long as they remain healthy. Forest fires usually do no harm to these trees, as their bark can be up to 2 feet thick, and their pith wood will not burn. If they fall, due to overpowering forces, such as wind, or avalanche, the sound has been likened to that of a roaring train, or avalanche. These are magnificent trees to see, tall and stately, and a gorgeous red color that these pictures just do not do justice to. Being among these giants makes one feel so insignificant in the whole scheme of things, to know that these trees survive for hundreds, and some even thousands, of years. That is the reason why they can attain such great heights and mass.

Tomorrow, we take the motor home in for service in Fresno, CA. If it will be tied up or a good portion of the day, we will attempt to visit Kings Canyon. Be sure to tune in tomorrow to see if we make it. After that, it's on to Yosemite!

Enjoy the photos in the web album - lots of shots of redwoods, but we couldn't help ourselves!

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay46SequoiaNationalPark?authkey=ZPNrk2dSK5U#

Out West - Day 45

Check out the above photo - this is what a "blowout" looks like on the highway, at a speed of 60 MPH.

As I said last night, yesterday was the "day from hell", but today was much better. After we finally got underway last night, we spent the night in a Rest Area on Hwy 99, just south of Toulare, CA. It was a very nice rest area, but it bordered farmland, and the smell of manure was overwhelming!!! Fortunately for us, it was a cool night, so we could keep the windows closed! This morning, we drove into Toulare and parked the motor home at a Wal-Mart (which we had originally targeted to stay at last night). We saw a sign for the "Black Bear Diner" on our way into Toulare, so we headed there after parking the motor home.
This was, by far, the best breakfast we have had since we left Beverly, hands down! We LOVE diner food, and the Black Bear Diner did not disappoint. Thanks to Sandy and Mark Reese for letting us in on this "hidden gem" in CA. The good news is, they have multiple locations in California, so we may get to enjoy their food again, soon! While there, we purchased a gift for Aaron, but I can't disclose its identity.

Today, Saturday, October 18, we traveled as far as Kingsburg, CA, where we are staying in a campground until Monday morning. We will try to visit Sequoia National Park tomorrow, after Mass (8:00AM), and, time permitting, Kings Canyon National Park, just north of Sequoia. This afternoon, after getting settled at the campground, we headed in to Fresno to try to catch the Forestierre Sunken Gardens (thanks to Neal Goldstein for informing us about this hidden treasure). When we arrived, we found out that the exhibit is only open on Saturdays and Sundays, and the tours run one per hour from 11AM through 2PM. We arrived at 3:30PM - closed!! So, on the way back, we stopped at a couple of RV Dealers lots and looked at new RVs. Not to worry, we did not buy a new motor home - we really didn't see anything we liked (or could afford). Next, we stopped at a Wal-Mart in Selma, CA (THE Raisin Capital of the World!), and picked up a few grocery items, AND more Oak Leaf Chardonnay ($1.97/750L bottle). Oh, yeah, we also picked up a 12-pack of Corona Extra ($11.02). I'm liking California, Muy Bueno!!
Jeez, did I say that? The Spanish influence is getting to me!

OK, it's 8:20PM (Pacific), and the Sox are up 4 - 2 in the top of the 8th inning. I'm going to sign off now so I can concentrate on the game (Chad is texting me the score, inning by inning).

Be sure to check the blog DAILY (even though I might say there may not be a post for a particular day), because, if I can get a connection, I will probably post.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay45LAToFresnoCA?authkey=GZKhlQv7uGE#

Out West - Day 44

Friday, October 17, Day 44 - driving to Yosemite National Park.

This day could just as well have been a "Friday the 13th" for the trouble we've encountered since we left the LA area this morning. Before we even got out of the LA area, we had to climb several loooooonnnngg hills. At one point, the engine temperature warning light and alarm went off, so I had to pull over to the side of the road on a hill and shut everything down for about 20 - 30 minutes to let the engine cool down before we could resume. I was able to keep the engine temp from climbing to "alarm" levels, but at one point I decided to pull off the highway (I-405/I-5) to get fuel and to let the engine "rest" awhile. This turned out to be a disaster of epic proportions, as I caught the car on a post as I was pulling into a tight turn to get to the diesel pump. The passenger side front and rear doors are a bit dented and scraped, but the doors still work. We had to disconnect the car from the motor home to get it away from the post, and that took some doing, since the car was wedged against the post, thus twisted, and I was not able to release the hitch pins without the help of a couple of gentlemen who were kind enough to assist. They were also helpful in directing us to a truck repair shop in the town where we stopped. I wanted to get the radiator steam cleaned to get the "gunk" which was clogging the fins off. I was certain that this was the cause of the overheating. This took a couple of hours, but we got it done and got back on the road by 2:30PM. Everything was fine until about 5:15, or so, when we blew a rear tire!! I called my RV roadside assistance company (like AAA), and reported the problem to them. They contacted a tire dealer, and a tire repair truck showed up at about 7:00PM. The mechanic got the outside right-rear tire off and changed the blown tire with a new tire. Then, before he put the new tire on, he checked the other tire, the inside rear tire, and it was blown, as well. Great! Now I need to buy another tire. He had to call his garage to let them know that he needed another tire, and they got that one out to us in about 1/2 hour. They changed that tire, as well, and got us back on the road shortly after 8:00PM. We are now parked in a Rest Area on CA 99, hoping that the worst is over. We have an appointment at a Freightliner Truck Repair center in Fresno at 7:30AM, Monday, to have the radiator checked, and have the "gunk" problem resolved (we hope!). In the meantime, we will be checking out Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Park. After we get the motor home worked on, we will continue our trek north to Yosemite National Park.

I don't want to bore you with minor details about HOW F---ing MUCH THIS DAY HAS COST US, so let's leave it a "an arm, a leg, and then some!".

I have no pictures for you today, as we don't have time to post any (who wants to see pictures of a damaged car and motor home, anyway?).

Tune in again tomorrow (maybe) for more exciting details of our trip!

Go Red Sox!!!

Out West - Day 43

Thursday, October 16, Day 43 - still in LA.

Today we decided to visit the Getty Center, a museum envisioned and built by J. Paul Getty. There are several buildings at the Center, including 4 buildings housing various works of art acquired by Mr. Getty during his lifetime. He built the Center to exhibit this art, which includes photography, sculpture, and oil paintings by various "masters" of their art forms. We have included some of the art in the web album. It is impossible to take in the entire museum in one visit. We were there for approximately two hours, and we only got to view two of the buildings, as we only had a couple of hours before we had to head back to the motor home to attend to the dogs. We plan our sightseeing trips to last about 5 - 6 hours because of the dogs, who would much prefer to stay in the motor home while we gad about. They do not like traveling in the car with us, so we accommodate them by leaving them behind, and they appreciate it.


On the way back to the motor home, we picked Chad up in Pacific Palisades, and he joined us for dinner at the motor home. Lauren was working until 8PM, so we had a chance to get some quality time with him. Before leaving to meet Lauren, we took the above picture of the sunset sky here on the beach. We have seen some of the most beautiful sunsets here since we arrived.

The picture above is of the sign indicating the addresses in the enclave where Chad lives with the Goldsteins. There is a walkway leading in, with separate walkways up to each of the six front doors. This is how the neighborhoods are set up here, with multiple homes, grouped together in enclaves.

This entry is late because I was not able to post last night. When we arrived back at the park after leaving Chad and Lauren, we were unable to get in the gate. Apparently, the office had changed the "gate code", and so, we were unable to open the gate to get to our motor home, and, naturally, the office was closed. We went back to the security station, but the person on duty was not able to give us the new code, since they had not yet been informed, either! Great! I told the guard that we HAD to get in, because our dogs were alone and we both had to use the bathroom! Fortunately, the woman from the office had not yet left the park, and I happened to catch her as she was leaving and got the new code, and we finally got in, after waiting around for about 20 minutes, or so.

Anyway, there will not be an entry tonight, for Day 44. Today we did nothing but chill out at the motor home. We did, however, get the freezer defrosted. Tonight will be our last night in this area, so we will have dinner with Chad, Lauren and the Goldsteins at their home (Kathy is bringing dinner - her famous "Chicken/Broccoli Divine". Can't wait!

Tomorrow, we have decided to head back northeast to Yosemite National Park. After seeing photographs of the park at the Getty Center, we HAVE to GO! We will leave tomorrow morning after the traffic has had a chance to subside a bit.

Not sure when our next post will be. Maybe tomorrow, or maybe not, depending upon whether we have a connection, or not. Stay tuned.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay43?authkey=4o198-0ULhs#

Out West - Day 42

Tuesday, October 14, Hollywood - Day 42. Another beautiful day in sunny California.

Today, we traveled into Hollywood, as the photo, above, will attest. We drove on Hollywood Boulevard, through the main part of town, past the famous "Kodak Theater", where the Oscars are awarded. We walked to the intersection of Hollywood and Vine, where we took some photos (see today's web album for all the "juicy" details!). Next, we drove up to Mulholland Drive, where we were able to get a few more great photos of the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles. In case you wondered, Mulholland Drive was built by, and named for, William Mulholland, an engineer. The road was built to take "Angelinos" from the crowded city out to the seashore. I'm not sure of the distance, but Mulholland Drive begins in North Hollywood, and continues its winding way through the Santa Monica mountains, ending, finally, at Leo Carillo Beach, at the northwestern border of Los Angeles County. We only traveled a portion of the Drive because we wanted to get back to the motor home to sit out in the sunshine, before heading out to meet the Goldsteins and Chad and Lauren for dinner in Sherman Oaks.


Above, is a picture of me wading into the Pacific Ocean for a swim. I had promised myself that I would do this while we are out here, and so, I am fulfilling that promise. I have to tell you that, no matter what they tell you, the Pacific Ocean is COLD! I now understand why all the surfers here wear wet suits. You just can't be in this water for more than a few minutes. I thought the Atlantic Ocean in New England was cold, but this water might be even colder!


This evening, we met Cindy and Neal Goldstein, Chad and Lauren, and another couple, Nikki and Bob (friends of Neal and Cindy), for dinner at El Torito in Sherman Oaks, CA. If you look on a map, Sherman Oaks is north and a bit west of LA, but still a part of LA. The city of LA is HUGE, to say the least. When you hear about places like Santa Monica, Venice, Manhattan Village, Sherman Oaks, Beverly Hills, Hollywood, Marina del Rey, and on and on and on, these are all part of the city of Los Angeles! The traffic here is unbelievable!! No matter the time of day, these freeways (?) are jammed with traffic, going, who knows where.

Anyway, dinner was very nice. Chad had suggested that we get together with Nikki and Bob, because Chad really likes them, and they really like him. He had promised them that they would get to meet us while we were out here, and this was the best way to accomplish that, since we wouldn't have been able to get everyone together in the motor home last night at dinner.

I have to say that I can understand why Chad likes California. It seems that, everyone we have met, to date, really likes him for who he is, and we are very proud of that. We are thinking, now, that, instead of going further south into San Diego, we may spend more time here in LA.

Stay tuned for our decision.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripHollywoodDay41?authkey=u-R9qymqk_4#

Out West - Day 41

Monday, October 13, Day 41 - Columbus Day in California.

Today, we decided to just chill on the beach here where we are staying. Kathy wanted to invite Chad and Lauren and Neal and Cindy to dinner at the motor home tonight, so we went to a market to purchase the items we would need for dinner. One of the items was dessert, an apple pie. So, we purchased Granny Smith apples at the market, and this afternoon, after a relaxing morning in the sun, we began peeling and slicing apples for the pie. Be sure to check out the web album for those exciting pictures! As you can see in the above photo, Beasley was quite happy to see Lauren again!

Neal was the first to arrive, on his bicycle, which he rode from Pacific Palisades to Playa del Rey. Cindy arrived next, and we had some time to show them the motor home and chat before Lauren and Chad arrived. Dinner was shrimp risotto, salad, bread and wine. Simple, yet delicious! Dessert was the pie....
As you can see, it was perfect (again). The ice cream we bought to go with the pie wasn't as good
as the pie, but we enjoyed every bite despite that. We have decided to stay in the area through Thursday, at least, because there is so much to see and do here. Tomorrow night, we will get together with Neal and Cindy, Lauren and Chad, and another couple, friends of Neal and Cindy, whom Chad really wants us to meet. During the day, we will probably try to get into LA/Hollywood for pictures.

Be sure to check back then for further details.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripInLADay41?authkey=Ta6cjQpHGhY#

PS: Friday night dinner which was wonderful, Lauren was the cook and Chad was the assistant.. Sorry, Lauren!

Out West - Day 40

Sunday, October 12, Day 40 - In LA

Today started out sunny and cool (so, what's new for southern CA?). Last night, we where guests at Neal and Cindy Goldstein's home, where we were treated to home-made pizza. In the above picture, you can see Cindy making the dough. See the web albun for additional pictures of our pizza feast.

This morning, we attended the 8AM Mass at Corpus Christi Parish in Santa Monica. We were invited to present the "gifts" at the Mass, which we were honored to accept. The Mass was attended by mostly "silver tops", which is what we are used to as parishioners at St. Margaret's in Beverly. However, the cantor at this Mass was quite an exceptional young man, vibrant, enthusiastic, with a great voice - we guessed that he was in his early 20's.

Later, after Mass and breakfast, we moved the motor home down to Dockweiler State Beach RV Park, in Playa Del Rey. We are on the beach, on a level, paved site. The park is relatively quiet, since most of the guests left today (this place is PACKED on the weekends). After getting settled here, we met Chad and Lauren and headed to Lauren's grandparent's home for dinner.

This is a picture of Lauren's grandparents, Dick and Sally Greenberg, our hosts this afternoon and evening. I cannot begin to describe the warm welcome we received when we arrived. Sally and Dick are wonderful hosts and very warm, loving people. We enjoyed their company very much. In addition, we met many other interesting people, friends of Dick and Sally, who were equally warm and friendly. See the web album for pictures of everyone at the dinner party.

My most unforgettable moment today came while talking to Dick Greenberg, Lauren's grandfather, who told me how much he and Sally liked Chad, and were hoping that the relationship between Chad and Lauren would flourish. Lauren's grandparents made us feel so welcome in their home that we felt like family, and you all know how much family means to us both! Since we arrived in LA, we have been treated like family by Cindy and Neal, and now by Cindy's parents, Dick and Sally Greenberg. We certainly feel like we have known everyone out here forever, because they have made us feel AT HOME! We are going to have a hard time leaving this place, not only because of the weather, but also because of the "family" we have here. And most importantly because of the time we have had to spend with Chad.

Tomorrow, we will probably just spend most of the day here chilling on the beach. At some point, we hope to have Chad, Lauren, Cindy and Neal here for dinner, so be sure to tune in tomorrow for details.

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripInLADay40?authkey=rzTT6mY2b5Q#

Out West - Days 38 & 39

Friday, October 10, Day 38 - we finally made it to LA!

From the Malibu Beach RV Park, we drove the few miles down the Pacific Coast Highway to Pacific Palisades, where Chad and Lauren are living. We arrived around noon and got the motor home unloaded, then we parked it up the road from the house at 16883 Avenida de Santa Ynez. We will be spending the next two nights here, as there are no sites available at any of the RV parks in the area this weekend. We spent the afternoon cruising around with Chad and Lauren, seeing some of the sights. We had lunch at a little bistro called "Toast", which was very nice. In the evening, we had dinner with Cindy and Neil Goldstein, Lauren's mom and step-dad, at their home, which is where Chad and Lauren are living. Chad cooked a delicious seafood pasta, with shrimp, scallops and mussels over spaghetti and we sat around just getting to know each other and enjoying the company.

Saturday, October 11, Day 39 - in LA. Today was dog-grooming day. We had made an appointment to bring the dogs in to have them clipped and bathed here in Santa Monica, and they really needed it! We dropped them off at 9AM - Kathy was not happy about the grooming salon, since it was at the back of a Pet Store, which brought back memories of their "Happy Tails to You" days in Beverly. We were told that they would call us when the dogs were ready, so we left them there and found a neat place for breakfast, Cafe 50's, in LA. Then, we met Chad and followed him to the Health Club where Lauren was working, to bring her coffee and tour the facility. Then, we were heading out to scout ut where we would be moving the motor home to on Sunday afternoon, but the groomer called and said that the dogs were ready o be picked up, so we turned around and went back to the Pet Shop to get them. They had only been there for two hours, but we figured that would be long enough!

From there, we dropped the dogs off at the motor home, then headed back to Santa Monica for lunch at a "Boston Sports Bar" Chad found, called Sonny McLean's Irish Pub. Everything in the place is Boston sports-related, Red Sox, Celtics, Bruins and Celtics. We had a great lunch and a couple of beers (Sam Adams October). After lunch, we headed back to the house so we could get ready to watch the Red Sox game.

Be sure to tune in for tomorrow's entry, as we will be doing more sightseeing in the area with Lauren and Chad.

Here's the link to the web album for Days 38 and 39:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripInLosAngelesDays3839?authkey=_j8CxRFvkp0#

Thursday, October 9, Day 37 - Malibu Beach, CA

Our travels today took us from Marina to Malibu, CA. After a wonderful visit with Mark and Sandy Reese, we left Marina this morning, destination - Los Angeles. During our trip south, along US 101 and CA1, we saw lots of amazing California shoreline, and we took a lot of pictures. However, we have only included a few of them in the web album tonight, because they are repetitious. Hope you enjoy them!


We arrived at the Malibu Beach RV Park at about 5:30PM. From our site, we can see the ocean, but we are really up on a hill, across CA1. A nice spot, albeit expensive (for us). We did talk to Chad, and this is one of the most solemn of jewish holidays (Yom Kippur), so we could not get together with him and Lauren tonight, even though we are only about 20 miles, or so, north of Pacific Palisades. If you look at the above picture, you will get an idea of what we see when we look out the front window of the motor home.

Tomorrow, we WILL meet with Chad and Lauren! We will probably park the motor home in front of Lauren's mother's house in Pacific Palisades to unload their stuff.

Check back tomorrow night for details of our reunion!

Here's your link to the web album:


http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripDay37#

The Trip - Day 36

Wednesday, October 8, Day 36 - Monterey, CA.

We met with Sandy and Mark Reese at 5PM in Carmel-by-the-sea, CA (the town where Clint Eastwood was Mayor). Sandy and Mark took us on a tour of Carmel, where we saw beautiful beaches (free to the public), beautiful homes overlooking the Pacific, and a couple of places Clint Eastwood owns (a beautiful Inn overlooking the Pacific, and the Hogs Breath Tavern in the downtown area of Carmel). Next, we drove North to Monterey, where we walked around the city and down to the harbor area. We had dinner at a nice restaurant on the waterfront, called the Old Fisherman's Grotto. The food and wine were excellent, as was the company. Mark and Sandy were such gracious hosts on our visit to the area, that it will be hard to thank them enough for their hospitality (they treated us, against our wishes, to dinner).

Here I am with Mark and Sandy, on the waterfront in Monterey, CA. I think that, of all the places we visited, we wish we could have spent more time here in the Monterey area, and spending more time with Mark and Sandy. We had met Mark once, 2 years ago at the 4th of July party at Dick and Elaine's in NH, but we never really got to know him. I found that Mark and I had much in common. We both joined the Air Force, right out of High School, and both attended college after our 4-year tour of duty. Mark is planning on retiring next year, after 32 years with the U.S. Army (as a civilian) at Fort Ord, California. Sandy also works at Fort Ord, so they get to commute to work together, and they both work in the same building! It was so good to have the time we spent together, getting to know each other, that we began to regret that we were not able to meet sooner, last weekend at Cottonwood, where they own another home, and their daughter, Stephanie, was visiting at the time. Stephanie, we found out, goes to school at Sonoma State College, and she works in Santa Rosa! We spent a weekend there, but it was the same weekend she was in Cottonwood.

I have to say a special "Hello" to Mark and Sandy. Thank you, both, for a wonderful time in Carmel and Monterey. I want you to promise to let us know when you will be visiting New England. We want to reciprocate your kindness, and we will not take "NO" for an answer! In fact, if you do decide to visit Mark's sister in Punta Gorda, you MUST let us know - we will meet you there, if it is before April 15th, or so. Keep in touch!

On Thursday, we travel to the LA area, and CHAD-O!! Stay tuned for the details!

Here's the link to the web album for today:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripMontereyDay36?authkey=G5z4o7ejBN0#

Notice to All Readers of this BLOG

Good news!

I have finally figured out why readers have not been able to comment without signing up for an account, and I have corrected the problem.

Now, if you wish to comment on the blog, you may sign your comment by selecting the "Name/ID" option, or by selecting the "Anonymous" option. If you select the "Anonymous" option, please identify yourself at the end of your comment, unless you really wish to remain "anonymous" (chicken!).

So, go ahead and comment away! We look forward to your input.

Out West - Day 35

Tuesday, October 7, San Francisco - Day 35. This post will cover two days, #34 and #35, since I was not able to post a web album last night. The above photo was taken yesterday, Monday, in front of Pier 39 (Chad - see what I'm standing next to?). We walked out to the end of the pier, where we were able to get some photographs of the sea lions which take up residence on the docks between Piers 39 and 41. See the web album for these shots. We had planned to cruise out to Alcatraz today, but we were not able to get tickets for the 1:45 sailing, so we decided to stay another day, and take the cruise tomorrow (Tuesday). We made our reservations on-line, for the 11AM sailing tomorrow morning.

Above is a picture of one of the Alcatraz cruise ships. This morning, our plan was to leave the campground about 9:30AM in order to get to the harbor for the 11AM cruise. First, I had to go to the campground office and pay for another night. When I got to the office, I was told that the campground was full, and my site had already been reserved for Tuesday night! Crap! I now had to move the motor home to another location (Wal-Mart, anyone?). As I was disconnecting the water, sewer and electric lines, the woman from the campground office came over to tell me that she had a site that I might be able to get into, but it would be tight. I went over to look at it, and I assured her that I could get into it. So, I moved the motor home onto the new site, set it up, and we got on the road to SF by 10AM. We had 55 minutes to get into SF, find a place to park, pick up our tickets, and get onto the ship. As luck would have it, we hit traffic on the way into SF - construction delays! To make a long story short, we made it on time, but we were the last two people to board the ship for the 11AM sailing. We got some great pictures, so be sure to check the web album.

Upon returning to SF harbor from Alcatraz, we walked over to the Fog City Diner, above, for lunch. We sat at the little table on the right of the door in the picture. Lunch was great here, albeit, a bit expensive ($30 for a burger with fries, onion rings, a glass of lemonade and a lime rickey). But, the food was good, hot and fresh! After lunch, we wanted to take a ride on one of the Cable Cars for which San Francisco is famous. However, time was not in our favor, as we had to get back to the motor home for the dogs - they've been alone since 10AM, and it was now 3PM, and it would take us at least 45 minutes to get back. Sooooo, we'll save the Cable Car ride until the next time we visit SF.

Tomorrow, we leave for Monterey, and a date with Sandy and Mark Reese. Stay tuned for details of our visit, with pictures too, we hope!

Here's the link to today's web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripAlcatrazIslandDay34?authkey=aJ6CvQSZkEU#

Out West - Day 34

No pictures today! We did take some, but we never got to see Alcatraz. Tomorrow, hopefully, we will get onto a tour boat out to the island.

Today, Monday, October 6, we drove into San Francisco at 11:30AM and tried to get onto the boat to Alcatraz. By the time we got about 1/2 way through the line, they announced that the next available tour would be at 3:20PM. Since the tour takes 2-1/2 hours, we knew we couldn't do it this afternoon, so we walked about 1 mile down to a little lunch place called "Taylor's Automatic Refresher", which was highly recommended by Chad. We had a light lunch there, then walked back to Pier 39 (to walk off the lunch!). We did take some pictures, but nothing I want to share tonight. We will post some pictures the next time, because we are staying here one more night - tomorrow we will get to go to Alcatraz (even if I have to rob a bank to get there!).

Usually, Monday's are BAD days, that is, if you have to WORK! However, today has got to be a great day for Boston - the Sox knocked the Angels out of contention! The Angels - the best team in Major League Baseball this year! Most of you probably went to bed early, but we get the game out here at 5:30PM, so we get to watch it all. The Sox won it in the bottom of the ninth, 3 - 2. Jason Bay scored the winning run on a single by Jed Lowrey. Fantastic!!

We made contact with another family member today. I spoke with Sandy Reese, Lol's daughter, and we will see Sandy and her husband, Mark, on Wednesday evening for dinner. We will probably meet somewhere in Monterrey, CA, since that is where they both work. We are looking forward to it.

I have to go, now. I have to celebrate the Sox win. Check back tomorrow.

Out West - Day 33, Part II

OK, I managed to get the link to the web album. Here it is:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripSanFranciscoDay33?authkey=sQO6KJwFg2E#


Be sure to read the journal below before checking out the pictures.

Out West - Day 33

Sunday, October 5, Day 33 - as you can see, above, the day promised to be a good one! We started out at 7:30 Mass in Santa Rosa, followed by breakfast in town at a great place for omelettes - Don Taylor's Omelette Express. We had breakfast here on Friday morning and we really liked it, so we came back today. We then returned to the RV park to pack up and get ready to head toward San Francisco. We called several RV parks before we found one close enough to SF that we were willing to pay for. We called one RV Park in SF, but their daily rate was $74.00 +tax!!! We are now staying in Novato, CA, at the Novato RV Park, which is a "Good Sam" park, so we get a discount.



As you can see by the photo above, we did make it into San Francisco this afternoon. We drove in across the "Golden Gate Bridge". The toll on the bridge (one-way) is $6.00/car. Fortunately, there is no toll going out of SF. Once we arrived in the city, we drove down Lombard Street to Hyde Street, then took a left toward the harbor area. We were following a car from Arizona because he seemed to know where he was going. As it turns out, he did. We found a free parking place on the waterfront, just below Ghirardelli Square. It was just after 3PM when we arrived, and one of the restaurants on the waterfront just happened to start its "Happy Hour" at 3PM!! All beers and selected wines, $3/glass!

We walked all the way down to Pier 41, catching the sights and sounds and smells along the way. We made mental notes of places we wanted to re-visit tomorrow, when we come in to town for a longer stay. We did stop at "Boudin Sourdough Bakery" and shared a clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl. It was delicious, as was the bread. Would have been a lot nicer with a glass of Chardonnay, but they didn't sell wine there, so, we settled for ice water (free).

I attempted to create a web album, but for some reason, I could not get to it to get the link. I will try again, but there will be no link with this entry. Check back tomorrow for details of our day in San Francisco.

PS to Mary Lawler: We tried to contact Bob, but he did not answer his phone. We did leave a message, but have not heard from him.

Out West - Day 32

Saturday, October 4 - Santa Rosa, CA. Today started out a bit overcast - it rained all night - with a few scattered showers, but the sky began to clear as we got ready to head out for some scouting of the area. We went out in search of a Best Buy, so we could get a web cam for the laptop. I plugged "Best Buy" into the GPS, and it only found 2, but they were 55 miles away!! What the heck? Anyway, we went into Santa Rosa, to the Santa Rosa Plaza, which is a downtown mall, because there was a DELL Direct store there, and we thought we could score a web cam there. However, we discovered that the store had closed recently, so we asked the girl at the Information kiosk if she knew of a Best Buy in the area. We found that, indeed there was, and it was located almost right behind the Fairgrounds, where we are staying.

Saturday afternoon we spent at the Harvest Festival inside the Fairgrounds (across the street from the RV Park). I believe that I mentioned in yesteday's blog about the cost of tastings at the various wineries, so the festival was a great take. It was $4/person to get in, plus $7/person for tickets to the wine tasting. The $7 got you a free wine glass (nice glass, too!), and two tastings inside. Every one of the wineries in Sonoma Valley was represented (over 200 of them), so we got to try several different wines, all in one place! We also visited the Cooking Demonstrations booth, where the chef was demonstrating how to stretch pizza dough, and how to make a simple, delicious pizza (it was dough, butter and a sugar/cinnamon mix). We all got to try some of it and it truly was delicious! Next, he demonstrated how to make pizza on the grill!! This was a very simple thing to do - you only leave the dough on long enough on each side to get it crispy, not black!

After returning to the motor home, I began to work on my laptop, because I can only boot it up in "Safe" mode, due to a graphics driver conflict with Windows Vista (did I mention that I HATE VISTA!!!). If you don't see any entries for a day or so, it's because I have to back up all our pictures and files to CD, then reformat my hard drive and go back to Windows XP.

Tomorrow (Sunday) after Mass, we are heading south to get closer to San Francisco. I hope we will be able to get some good shots there, and will also be able to enter another journal.

Sorry that we do not have any pictures today, but I don't want to put any more on this "p-o-s" computer until I get it working right again.

Out West - Day 31

Thursday, October 2 - Day 31. When we awoke this morning in Klamath, CA, it was POURING rain! We got up, showered, dressed and had breakfast, and the rain would not let up. So, our plan for the day, which was to do a bit of sight-seeing in the area, was scrapped. We decided to head south toward wine country, where the weather promised to be better.

We started out with me driving the motor home, and Kathy driving the car, as we wanted to put some fuel into the motor home, and getting in and out of the gas stations here is almost impossible, and that's without towing the car. One thing that disappoints me about California, so far, is that they sure don't cater to RVers. The filling stations where Diesel fuel is sold are so tight to get into and out of that we thought we would try it without having the car in tow. We ended up driving BOTH vehicles about 50 miles before we found a filling station where we could get into and out of it easily, and the price wasn't exhorbitant. After fueling, we parked in a mall parking lot to attach the car. Before doing that, however, we decided to find a place for lunch. We went to a little place in Eureka, CA, called Katrina's. We decided on splitting soup and a sandwich - Turkey Club/Pea Soup. I have to say that the pea soup was one of the best we have tasted, other than home-made! The Turkey Club was excellent, as well. In all, we were very satisfied with the food at Katrina's and recommend it to everyone (if you ever find yourself in Eureka, CA).

We finally made it to Santa Rosa at about 6PM. As luck would have it, we ran smack into "rush hour" traffic, and the road conditions for about 10 miles approaching Santa Rosa were as bad as some of the worst roads back east!! Everything in the motor home was "walking" off of the counters, or shifting in the cabinets and fridge. We had to remind ourselves to open everything verrrrryyy sloooowwwlllyyy!

So, we are now in "WINE COUNTRY"! We plan on spending at least a few days here, visiting the various wineries in the area and tasting the wines. Who knows, we may NEVER leave!! On the way in, we passed the Parducci Winery, the Kendall-Jackson Winery, and a few others we have not heard of. We hope to visit the Tisdale Winery, but that is over in Modesto, about an hour away, to the east. To anyone who has never been to the Napa Valley in Sonoma County, it is very beautiful here. Santa Rosa is a very nice city, and it is quite large, from what we could see on our way through. We are currently staying at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds RV Park, where we have full hookups at a reasonable price per night. Not the finest campground we have visited, but it is OK for tonight. Tomorrow, we may try to find another place while we are out and about. (Aside to NAB - the KOA in Petaluma wanted over $60/night!!! Probably not anywhere close to what you paid when you were here!)

Be sure to tune in tomorrow for an update on our adventures in WINE COUNTRY!

Here's your link to the web album:

http://picasaweb.google.com/cbenoitiii/TheTripToSantaRosaDay31?authkey=TEmfUWIJ0jY#