If you are new to my website I use this section to share my travel journals with those who care to read them. They started out as journals to preserve memories for my children, but really they have evolved into my own memoirs. I share them happily with everyone online. You can always email me at gyswyth@netscape.net if you have any comments. The content of this page changes from month to month as we continue to embrace the RV lifestyle with frequent travel trailer trips.
About the Copyright:
There shall be no duplication of any part of these journals, web site or its contents and photographs at any time.
All rights reserved by the author and publisher, as associated with Microsoft Office Live Small Business.
Hans J. Gyswyt
Thanksgiving 2008, Fort Stevens Oregon
It’s been a real busy fall for us and we haven’t been out camping since our last trip sometime in September, which I didn’t write a journal for, when we camped at Lake Easton in Eastern Washington. We didn’t know it at the time but it would be our last trip in our Arctic Fox, which we had owned for ten years when we bought it new in 1998.
I won’t forget the trouble it caused our marriage when I insisted on getting a newer and larger trailer. Years from now as anyone who might read this journal will wonder, why it would be a problem for a family to get a new trailer when it is something this family has been avid about for so many years. Sandy has always been comfortable with our old trailer; it served us well for many years. The world economy is in the dumps and none of the problems facing our nation can be attributed to just one person or reason at this time, but it’s safe to say we are all scared of how the future is going to turn out from this point going forward.
Maybe it wasn’t the best timing buying a new trailer, spending money when we should have been saving. I know Sandy was scared we wouldn’t be able to sell our old trailer, and we would be stuck with two trailers for some time. Neither of us knew we would sell our old trailer in just one hour to the first person who called from Idaho, and that our phone would ring with cash offers sight unseen for several days until I pulled the ad from Craig’s List. I had no idea our old trailer would be attractive to so many people. 
I also found our new trailer on Craig’s List and after driving north to Redmond to look at it I liked it. Sandy was not impressed though she let me make an offer on it. The owner countered with a bottom line and we agreed on a price. He even delivered the trailer to our home, saving me one more trip to Redmond. It’s hard to tell where the value of used RV’s should be, but I felt like we got a real fair deal paying several thousand less than blue book value.
We once again bought another bunkhouse model trailer, with the kids having a separate and totally private bedroom in the rear of the trailer, and again our bedroom up front. Functionally the trailer is very sound, everything works as it should. But soon after buying the trailer I was possibly faced with buyer’s remorse, anxiety, something I can’t put a finger on. I continued to have to defend my decision with Sandy, all her feelings were valid, and though the trailer had not been misrepresented to us in any way, we found many little things lacking in our new trailer that were so well taken care of in the old one.
Most of my problems with the new unit were more about the way I take care of things, like not leaving it outside, and doing routine maintenance, something that is easy to do if it’s in a garage at home. The first two owners never had that luxury, having had to store it out side in a RV storage lot. I spent half a day on the roof, so many abrasions and a few tears that had not been sealed with the proper sealant. The underside of the trailer had numerous holes in the water proof barrier, plus one mouse hole. There were a couple of plumbing issues, leaking connections that left unattended would create serious problems down the road. As I went along my punch list of things to repair I was convinced that the trailer probably didn’t have a lot of miles or use on it. The fact that the bathroom didn’t have a toilet paper holder or single towel rack, why would a frequent user not fix that discrepancy? Anyway, I’ve spent many hours doing all the little things to this trailer to make it ours and we finally got the chance to use it.
I got off work just a little early by working through my lunch and coming in an hour earlier than normal after letting my customers know I would appreciate all the help I could get to make a fast start to the holiday weekend. Sandy and the kids were waiting at home when I arrived and after a few last minute animal chores we were headed down the road. I had heard on the radio that traffic was bad on freeways the direction we were going so we stayed on back roads from Buckley to Scatter Creek, driving through Yelm and re-joining Interstate 5 just north of Chehalis.
From there it was 60 mph until we stopped for an early dinner at the Texaco truck stop. It was so cold out, Nora and I walked the dog before going in and I was just shivering. The food was good, and I bought new LED side turn signals for the trailer fenders before leaving the truckers store. I still plan to add those and some good back-up lights to the rear of the trailer. It wasn’t until we pulled into our campsite, backing in without backup lights that I really missed the good lights I installed on the old trailer.
The trailer towed nice all the way, not really that much different from the old one, but I could feel the extra weight for sure. Once in our site we set up as fast as we could. Colton was all too anxious to hit the button to extend the slide out, wow what a treat to have all that room, it truly is like a second home for us now. While I was outside plugging in the trailer and putting down the stabilizers I heard growling behind me in the bushes and when I turned around with my flashlight I saw two large raccoons. These creatures live well all winter in a busy state park, they were huge.
First priority is turn the water heater on for evening showers, though Fort Stevens has wonderful private showers in all the new bathrooms, and you can stand under warm water as long as you like since they are free. The bed heaters warmed our familiar queen mattress we swapped out from the Arctic Fox before selling. I couldn’t get the new digital tuner to lock in any TV stations from the antenna, but we brought several good movies along so we still had video entertainment on board. It wasn’t that late when we were finally settled in, but we all went to bed early, everyone had their books and got cozy. 
The kids are real happy with their new accommodations, more room for all their stuff plus a solid door from the rest of the trailer gives them the privacy they like in their own room. Now Nora occupies the upper bunk, which is a twin size bed. Colton has the lower bunk which is the size of a double bed, so he has much more room for his huge sleeping bag.
I installed a 12 volt port for them so they can power all their electronic toys that don’t run on 110V AC, and Colton has his familiar 12 volt oscillating fan he enjoys blowing on him. Nora got a nice wall organizer screwed to the wall next to her bunk so her I-Pod, books and small stuffed animals are always close to her. 
Thanksgiving Day morning we were up early, watched a nice sunrise through the trees. Colton got up early as well, enjoyed leftovers from the restaurant for breakfast and was outside gliding along on his scooter before most people were even having their first cup of coffee for the morning. The sun left us fast and we soon were in a steady rain that would last the rest of the day. 
We hiked down to pay our camping fee and also stop in at Tim and Karen’s campsite in the “H” loop. They had made reservations in the full hook-up loop, and that is nice but Sandy and I prefer the “G” loop and we didn’t have reservations. Our trailer has three holding tanks so a four day stay shouldn’t be a problem not having a sewer dump in our site. We had never seen Tim and Karen’s new trailer, I’m not sure how long they have owned it now but it sure is nice. Sandy and I both loved the colors on the inside, plus they have two swivel rockers that makes for very nice social seating. If I had not wanted another bunkhouse trailer we would have looked for a floor plan like they have.
We enjoyed a nice long visit and only after we were getting ready to leave did we realize that we had interrupted their breakfast. Since it was raining the whole day we only went outside long enough to walk the dog several times, and a quick trip to Fred Meyer in town to get a few things we hadn’t packed from home. In the afternoon Sandy and Nora began preparations for the big meal, and the dinner was a huge success, as always. Everything turned out perfect. As usual for our Thanksgiving meal we dined with sparkling cider in wine glasses and two lovely candles for ambiance. 
I was just finishing the dishes when Tim, Karen and Sarah came over to see our new trailer. We visited for quite awhile, they brought pictures from a big trip they had made last summer to the east coast and Colton was able to show all the pictures on his laptop for everyone to enjoy. Colton made me so proud; one of the pictures in the slide show was a picture of a statue of General Eisenhower, and he recognized him right off. That’s my boy I’m proud to say, he knows his military history well.
He loves aviation for sure, in fact my close friend who’s a pilot for Alaska Airlines called our cell number to see if Colton could go flying this weekend with a friend back in Auburn, too bad he missed an opportunity to go flying, but I digress, I wouldn’t be surprised if some day he makes his living as an educator of some sort, or voluntarily joins the military.
After our company left we enjoyed the movie “American Graffiti” before we all retired for the night. Friday morning we slept in a bit, and though I didn’t get out of bed right away I did see another red sunrise from our bedroom window. I pre-made up the percolator coffee pot the night before so all Sandy had to do when she got up was turn the stove on to get the coffee going. I walked Olive outside for her morning duty before the coffee was even done.
We met a neighbor camper who had lost their dog two days earlier and were still looking for it nearby. The poor dog was a rescue dog they only adopted a couple months ago, and it is afraid of humans in general, but likes other dogs. It had a harness on, dog tags and it was chipped. Sandy had read somewhere when traveling with a dog to always carry pictures of your dog so we have flyers already made up with pictures of our dog, our address and phone number God forbid something like that would ever happen to our little corgi. What a nightmare for those folks, who had to leave with out knowing what happened to their dog. Even the ranger at Fort Stevens had never heard of a dog being lost and not found in the park.
Breakfast was real good; we copied the idea from Karen the previous morning, baking fresh biscuits, frying pork patties and adding scrambled eggs and cheese to make the most wonderful breakfast sandwiches. When I went to the back of the trailer to take the bikes off the rack I noticed that they were hanging a bit low. After removing the extra large heavy black plastic bag I use to protect the bikes from weather it was obvious the bike rack had broken, and thankfully one of the things I had done to the new hitch receiver on the back of the trailer was to add a vertical pole with an eye bolt to attach a ratcheting 1 inch strap as a security device for our old and over loaded bike rack. This strap prevented the arms that hold the bikes from dropping down and spilling the bikes on the roadway behind the trailer.
After unloading the bikes I was able to get new bolts from my tool box and repair the part of the rack that had broken loose. Some times I feel like MacGyver, I can fix just about anything. We rode our bikes to the North Fort where Colton revisited a gun turret that he’s able to access through a rusted out floor panel, I’m sure most people are not aware a person can get to the inside. Nora and I walked through a bunker that was used to store munitions, the insides have been maintained well by local volunteers and the boy scouts. We then spent some time in the museum before returning to our campsite, both Sandy’s and my bike needed air in the all the tires. Neither bike had been used much since the last camping trip in September. 
Sandy made a wonderful turkey soup for lunch and the kids followed that with a long scooter ride to Coffenbury Lake and back, but sadly the weather wasn’t much better than the previous day so the kids returned to the comforts of the inside of the trailer. Sandy and I stayed warm by propane heat under the awning while the drizzle continues to fall in soft sheets of gray. I reflected on this time of year, while thousands of people are losing their jobs and there isn’t a whole lot to be thankful for in terms of the economy, Sandy the kids and I remain comfortable and happy, we’re still able to enjoy the things we do for fun, and I’ve tried to be generous with local charities that help those who have so much less than us.
In my late forties now I’ve come to change my mind on many things, it’s obvious to me capitalism in its purest form isn’t working for most Americans. The greed and lack of conscious by big business has caused undue hardships on the working class, many of whom have not been personally responsible with their own finances, and our government removed many of the safeguards that protected it citizens from corruption in the past. Our country has been at war for years now and the whole thing has been financed as our children’s debt to worry about in the future. I’ve included my thoughts in this journal because years from now it will be interesting to read, I don’t know if we are heading for good times or bad.
But through it all at this time of year when we reflect what we are thankful for, I’m still mostly thankful for the fact my parents were brave enough to immigrate to this country so I can live this wonderful life with my wife and children and enjoy the freedoms we have that many other people in other societies don’t have. The freedom and choice to roll down the road with a big tow vehicle and travel trailer because it’s what I like to do. 
Friday evening we went down to Tim and Karen’s campsite to enjoy the campfire with them. It had been years since we camped with them, and it seemed like old times sitting around the camp fire. Tim knows how to keep a fire running hot, so important in the winter if you are going to be outside. Several times my shins got too hot and I had to back up a bit. The local raccoon gang came out of the woods and startled us all by joining us at the campfire. They got driven back into the shrubs, we don’t like raccoons begging and getting too close.
Our kids came down to visit with Sarah and Travis. Travis is a couple years older and he’d really rather have been with his girl friend back home than camping. Sarah was good company and even joined our family for a bike ride to the beach and back earlier in the day. We stayed until late in the evening and when the weather turned to a heavy drizzle we went back to our trailer. I had hoped I could reciprocate the camp fire the next evening. 
Saturday morning we woke to more gray and rain. We had already decided we were going to spend the day at Seaside, do a little shopping and take in a movie and some bumper cars. So after a late breakfast we drove into town, checked the theatre for movie times and then went to the touristy part of town. Colton and Sandy enjoyed a military surplus and second hand store. Sandy found an old book that she just loves; she’s such a big spender exchanging a dollar for her new treasure. From there we did some window shopping while waiting for the “bumper cars” and “tilt a whirl” to open. The kids went twice on the bumper cars, still an affordable few minutes of fun for only $2.00 a person. And we bought some sweets at a candy store on our way back to the theatre.
We watched the movie “Twilight” and I really enjoyed this movie that is so popular with the young crowd right now. I may even try reading the series of books now that I know what it’s about. As always, a show in a movie house is always so much better than something on TV at home. We stretched the large popcorn between the four of us with two refills along the way, what a healthy lunch. After the movie we went back into town, Sandy had seen an art show at the convention center she wanted to attend and the kids and I wanted to find the leather store where nothing cost more than $20.00.
I bought a new tapestry carry on bag, Nora bought a new coat and carry on bag, and Colton bought a new leather hat and a carry on bag as well. I was feeling generous since fuel was once again so inexpensive for us. We filled our Suburban for the return trip for only $75.00 and that was premium gas. By the way, we still got just over eight miles to the gallon so the new trailer doesn’t make a big difference in fuel even though it’s several thousand pounds more in weight.
While we were in town Tim text messaged me they had enough of the weather and were going to head home. I don’t think their kids were having as much fun as ours. I was sad; I had picked up snacks and beverages and had hoped they would hang out around our camp fire Saturday evening. Sandy was hoping she would get invited for pumpkin pie; she doesn’t get it very often since she’s the only one in our family who likes it. But we returned to our trailer in the rain late in the afternoon, where we enjoyed dinner and followed that with another old movie on DVD, “It’s a Mad Mad World”. As bad as the weather was it didn’t really hurt my feelings too much, both our kids are such devoted book readers they happily spend hours reading every day, and having their laptop computers they can play games also.
The new trailer is so nice with the kids having their own space. I know now what I have been missing for years. Colton thanked me several times; it was such a struggle for him to get into his upper bunk in the old trailer. It was easy when he was a little guy, but this new setup has him living comfortable again. We’ll add privacy curtains to the upper bunk also like we did in the old trailer, so reading lights and open windows aren’t such a problem for two people to share a small space.
Saturday evening before bed we ran out of capacity on the forward gray water tank, we’d gone three nights with everyone taking showers in the trailer. But I have a special valve I can use I bought at Camping World and with this extra valve hooked up I can open up my dump valves and transfer gray water from one tank to another. Our trailer has two gray water tanks and there was plenty of available capacity in the other one so we were fine for a few more showers and dishes in the morning.
Hover girl!
Sunday morning I slept in longer than I had planned. Turned out it was the nicest morning yet, we could see the fog burning off and giving way to the sunshine. We drove out to the beach, only so Colton could fire his potato gun a few times. He was using old apples for ammunition and it was impressive to see how far that gun actually sends a round of apple down the beach. The seagulls didn’t mind either, they got to eat the spend ammo.
We then rode our bikes down to the other end of the camp ground; we saw where many trees had been blown down and removed from a huge storm last year. Then it was time to pack up and head for home. As usual, Sandy prepared things inside while I did the outside things. We used the dump station before leaving for home and got lunch in Astoria since it was already noon when we were under way. Traffic was heavy everywhere, I used the slow lane on all the hills even though I was going the speed limit up them, but no one wants to be behind an RV so it’s a mad rush for everyone to get around us when there are multiple lanes.
Back on I-5 north it was busy and people were following much too closely in the fast lane. I did have to dynamite the brakes once when a couple cars took my following space by changing lanes in front of me, but the trailer brakes work better than they did on our old trailer, and we were able to avoid a bad situation. Even the car behind me stayed way back after that. We all took turns reading Colton’s play with him, he has the largest part in an up coming play for his drama class and he had been trying hard to memorize all his lines. (The following Monday he tested at school and was the only student who was able to recite all his lines from memory.)
At home we unpacked, the kids helped with every aspect. I washed the trailer and flushed the tanks. Animal chores were done and five loads of laundry were folded before I sat down to watch “60 Minutes” Sunday evening. The Wildcat trailer really feels like ours now. I’m so happy it’s ours, and though Sandy won’t admit it I’m sure she would have to agree as far as winter camping goes having all the extra room is so very nice for everyone. I can’t wait to go out with it again after the Christmas Holidays are over. Love Dad (Hans)
Summer Vacation
Oregon trip, August 2008
We enjoyed one week of my summer vacation at home, the recent illness of Colton kept us tied close to his doctor and Mary Bridge Children’s hospital. Colton had been suffering from ITP, a strange disorder where the body destroys its own blood platelets resulting in bleeding and hemorrhaging. But after a month of treatment and just before my scheduled second week of vacation his body finally responded to Steroid treatment and the doctor gave us the go ahead to enjoy a family vacation as we typically enjoy, exploring new places with our travel trailer.
This year we were invited to join my oldest sister Wilma and her family, (husband Chris and daughter Siobhan) at a time share condo in Newport, Oregon, on the coast. We selected a State Park near the condo called South Beach where we’ve stayed before and could easily drive back and forth from. We would also be bringing mom along, picking her up at her house and taking her to Oregon where she would stay with my sister in their Condo.
We planned to spend two nights in the Newport area before continuing on our own to Grants Pass and back to Crater Lake and home through the Mt Hood National Forest where Sandy worked for the Forest Service before I met her. We had reservations for most our stops, though everything we reserved was picked from our trusty Trailer Life directory and we only hoped that the choices we made would turn out to be good ones. We left home on Friday afternoon and joined the hordes of summertime travelers heading out of town at the same time.
Anyone familiar with the traffic situations in the Seattle/Puget Sound area knows we have bad traffic almost everywhere and it’s just a fact of life that if you are going to be on the freeway leaving town in any direction you will likely encounter stop and go traffic, so it’s best to let the rude and aggressive drivers just go by, enjoy some good music on your radio and try to be relaxed.
We arrived rather late in Shelton, and mom was waiting and ready to go. We discussed dinner options; everyone was ready to eat so we drove across town to Denny’s where we knew we could get a good dinner. We even met friends of mom and dad there before we left. The drive south from Shelton to Ridgefield was happily easy, with only a few slowdowns along the way. I pretty much try to drive in the right lane, often one or two miles per hour slower than the posted speed limit so I can use cruise control, and just let the people trying to go fast go around.
We pulled into Paradise Point State Park in the dark. It was close to bed time when we arrived. I leveled up the trailer but left everything hooked up since we would shove off first thing the next morning after breakfast. Mom and I walked a quick little loop around the park in the dark; I had to hold her hand because we kept bumping into each other as we walked.
Paradise Point is mostly a tenter’s destination, we saw a lot of young families most likely from the Vancouver area which is the nearest large city. Lots of people were enjoying camp fires and the warm summer evening. Back at the trailer Nora set up her bed on the folding couch, Colton stayed in his bunk, and Mom took Nora’s bed which is the lower bunk.
It’s a tight squeeze for mom to get into the bed with the ladder for the upper bunk blocking part of the access, but once in she says it’s plenty comfortable. Like the rest of our family, mom also likes to sleep with the windows wide open. I know I went to bed with a book to read but I don’t think I read more than one or two pages and I was having trouble keeping my eyes open. For me this is one of the best things about vacation, I look forward to sleeping in our trailer, family close by and knowing I will not have to wake up with an alarm.
We heard rain during the night outside our trailer and it really rained hard, quite a change from the warm dry weather we’d had all week. We couldn’t help but feel sorry for the majority of the campers in the park who were tent camping. After our breakfast of toast, coffee or tea we took a quick walk through the campground again and saw the misery some people had brought upon themselves by going to bed and leaving everything out in the rain. I saw several tents that are all mesh at the top with no rain fly installed, I wondered just how wet those folks got.
But we packed up quickly and got under way heading for McMinnville Oregon, the sky had cleared and we enjoyed good weather through downtown Portland and the suburbs to the southwest. I’ve never spent any time in Portland, always just passing through but someday Sandy and I will explore the city.
We were using Mom’s TomTom GPS for help on this trip, and I’d already put in the address of the Air Museum where we were going to see the Howard Hugh’s Spruce Goose, but Sandy was also navigating for us using the map and recollection. Her directions were conflicting with what the GPS was telling me and after driving all the way through McMinnville and not seeing any signs for the museum I noticed that the mileage to the destination was getting bigger, meaning we were traveling away from it at that point. So we started following the GPS directions and it took us right to the museum in short order, but it did misdirect us to the wrong entrance, which is probably an out of date map since mom’s TomTom had never been updated on the computer at home.
To our surprise at the Evergreen Air Museum they were also having live battle re-enactments from WWII with U.S. Army, German and Russian soldiers all dressed and playing the parts very authentically. There were three camps behind the museum in a park like setting, representing what each would have looked like, and wonderful replicas and original equipment on display by each of the countries represented.
Colton being the military buff that he is was soaking up all there was to see and for a time it seemed like we would hardly have to enter the huge museums we’d come to see to make him happy. But we’d come to see the huge Spruce Goose and we did finally pay our way in. We did spend most of the day at the museum; mom got tired after awhile and spent some quiet time at the trailer by herself, making herself at home fixing a cup of tea.
It was funny and she laughed about it later when she tried to figure out why she couldn’t get the microwave to work, forgetting we were in a parking lot not plugged into power. We all enjoyed lunch in the trailer, watched a battle re-enactment between the German and the Russian soldiers and followed that with a tour through the space museum that’s adjacent to the air museum. I did enjoy the museums very much, but it was expensive to enter. They are full of planes, rockets, and artifacts, and if you have the time more than a full day could be spent trying to read and enjoy everything there is to see at this wonderful location just outside of Portland, Oregon.
We drove the nice two lane highway from the museum straight to the coast stopping along the way for bathroom breaks and calling Wilma on the cellular phone just in time for her to get some extra things from the grocery store and treat us to dinner in the Condo our first night on the coast. We dropped the trailer in our site and drove back to the condo for a pasta dinner everyone enjoyed.
The following day the Flanagan’s and mom came out to our trailer for the afternoon, we enjoyed the beach and I fixed dinner right over the campfire cooking hamburgers for everyone. We played dominoes on the picnic table and enjoyed a camp fire.
We originally intended to spend only two nights at South Beach State park, but we did have Monday free of reservations anywhere else so we checked with the ranger if we could stay an extra night. Our site was reserved by someone else but we were able to get a site on the other side of our loop for an extra night, and we wanted to spend one more day with mom, my sister and her family. It’s kind of a dicey situation moving from one site to another with conflicting check out and check in times. The site we were moving to was occupied in the morning, but around 9:00am I looked and it was empty.
A motorhome had been there and was gone when I looked. So I went back and we quickly pulled the trailer over to the site and set it up. I left our pay stub in the front window of the trailer. Only after everything was set up did I realize that a clothes line had been left in the site, and that made me wonder if the people had really vacated the site or had just gone somewhere in their motorhome. But we had plans back in town to meet with my sister for the day so we left with Olive (our dog) and the bikes on the back of the Suburban, knowing we wouldn’t be back until evening.
Shortly after we left the people with the motorhome came back to find their site taken by our trailer, several hours before they had to be out of their site. To make matters worse, the ranger put the wrong date on our receipt, and the motorhome people had paid for their site for one more night. But we weren’t there to move our trailer to another site so the folks with the motorhome were given another site. Mistakes were made by the ranger and us for moving into our new site before we should have, but another lesson learned. 
And that wouldn’t be the only trouble we got into that day. We went to the Condo to go for a bike ride with my sister. It was cool and foggy out so we were comfortable leaving Olive in the Suburban since we knew she wasn’t allowed in the Condo. We did enjoy a nice bike ride to the nearest light house where we even got to go inside it. And after the bike ride we all went for a long walk on the beach below the Condo’s.
What we didn’t know was that dogs were not allowed anywhere on the resort property, not even in a car or on the beach. We were confronted by the staff as we returned to the Suburban from the beach, and told we could be fined $250 if we did not leave immediately. They even followed us to my sisters Condo to make sure we didn’t take the dog in.
I was real uncomfortable with the situation, I surely didn’t want my sister or her husband to get in trouble, I didn’t want any one to get fined, and sure enough as I looked around there were signs everywhere stating no pets on the premises. I was upset that we had taken our dog for the day knowing most of it would be spent alone in the truck when she would have been just as comfortable in the trailer, and I don’t like breaking the rules of private property owners.
It was late in the afternoon when we got back to the trailer, that’s when we found out we weren’t really supposed to occupy the site we were in even though we’d paid for the night. The ranger had double booked the site, the motorhome people came back after having breakfast in town only to find our trailer in their site. The campground host came over when we returned and asked us to straighten things out with the ranger. I immediately went down to the pay station, there wasn’t much we could do that late in day, but I still felt bad that the other people were forced to move sites.
We returned to town, we’d agreed to split the cost of dinner at a seafood restaurant in the old part of town. Driving down to the historic waterfront I was worried we wouldn’t be able to find any parking close by but we found two parking spaces just a half block from the restaurant we planned to dine at. The water front is still working harbor as well as a tourist destination, and it was so interesting to be eating dinner and watch large fishing boats coming in to unload right in front of where we we’re dining. Mom ended up treating all of us to dinner, and every one had a wonderful meal.
After dinner we went window shopping but our window shopping turned out to be real purchases before we left. Colton got a real nice letterman style suede leather coat, Nora and Sandy got new hooded long sleeve sweat shirts. I didn’t get any thing to wear, but I did buy myself a new kite, it’s actually a glider you fly up on a string and if you pull the string the glider releases and glides back to earth. I never even got a chance to use it on the trip but it will be brand new the next time we are on the coast or some other large open space with wind.
After shopping we said our goodbyes, we planned to return to our trailer and make an early departure in the morning for Grants Pass.
The kids had received birthday presents earlier from their aunt, uncle, and Oma and my sister had given me her new but unused TomTom so when we got back from our trip I could give mom’s back and start using the new one. I still have GPS in my laptop also but the small units are much more practical from a space perspective. While I don’t really need navigation help that much while on vacation, I really do like other aspects, like estimated time of arrival and miles to destination. It’s also nice to see the layout of the road ahead when traveling in unfamiliar territory.
I felt like we hadn’t spent any time at the park, since were so busy visiting and doing things with my sister, I never even said hello to any of the neighbors. But we did enjoy our time in Newport sharing our vacation with mom and my sister.
Tuesday morning we departed South Beach State Park and started working our way down the coast. The Oregon coast is one beautiful view after the other, it shouldn’t be rushed. We stopped for fuel and enjoyed an easy drive as far south as Reedsport where we turned inland on a delightful two lane road following the Umpqua River to a small town called Elkton. We stopped in town alongside the river for some lunch and a chance to stretch our legs. It was a lot warmer inland than it was at the coast.
While we were stopped a young man with a gas powered bicycle came in for a break also and I had to check out his wonderful bike. He had claimed that his powered bike had taken him on several long journeys, including a trip through the desert southwest for several thousand miles. He was working nearby on a sheep ranch and had run to town for supplies when we saw him. I took a picture of him and his bike I was so impressed.
From Elkton we left Highway 38 and picked up Highway 138 heading in a southeast direction for Interstate 5 just north of Roseburg where we would take the Interstate into Grants Pass. Interstate 5 is beautiful through this section of the state; it’s all rolling hills and thick forest land until Grants Pass where the climate changes slightly to a more arid geography.
Once again the GPS hosed me up but this time it wasn’t the GPS, it was the incorrect address I put in it. One digit missing on a house number can send you miles off course, and this cost us dearly by routing us through Grants Pass instead of around. That and the fact my wife was reading the directions from the Trailer Life directory and I insisted we follow the GPS instead of the printed directions created some marital tension to say the least. When the GPS showed us on site at the river in a business section of town nowhere near a campground it was then I realized I had put in the wrong address. Once I got the correct address entered we drove straight to the campground.
We were delighted when we arrived at Bridgeview RV Park in the town of Rogue River just outside of Grants Pass. I had picked this location out of the directory and based my decision by the advertisement. I was worried we might not have a reservation because when I called six months ago they didn’t want a credit card and didn’t give me a confirmation number. The park staff was great at the check in, escorted us to our riverfront site and even offered to help set up. We had cable TV and WIFI service that worked flawlessly.
The sight was level and all paved, and after having spent three days on the coast tracking sand into the trailer we were delighted to have this wonderful site on the bank of the Rogue River. It was much warmer inland than what we were used to at the coast. The air conditioner was running right away and Colton found himself parked in front of the TV watching Discovery or History channel. Sandy and I made ourselves comfortable under the awning in the heat of the afternoon enjoying wine and whiskey, Sandy likes the wine and I prefer whiskey mixed with lemon lime soda. That and a spicy or salty snack is a good way to embrace the happy hour of the day.
I later made my way down to the river and rearranged some rocks close to shore to create a little soaking pool in the swift current. The Rogue River is not like the Kettle River we so enjoy in Canada. Its ice cold, like it hurts it’s so cold, and it’s very swift and deep. Not really something for the kids to play in. There are safe swimming areas for sure, just not right in front of the RV Park. I did manage to cool down by lying in my small pool on my back and getting a good soak. Then it felt good to come out into the 100 degree air again.
The next morning we left to explore, but first we had to acknowledge Colton’s 15th birthday. We were so happy he was well enough to travel and enjoy this holiday. His big present was waiting for him at home, a brand new Dell laptop computer. But he got a card, cake and a couple smaller presents, and we always take the kids out to their restaurant of choice.
After breakfast we drove into the small town of Rogue River, which was just across the bridge we could see from our campsite. Sandy had read about a pedestrian suspension bridge over the river and we were trying to find it.
Well, we were on the wrong river for the bridge, but our drive into the country took us to the Oregon Vortex, which in my opinion wasn’t that amazing, really the only thing I found amazing was how easy they lightened my wallet for the admission. But for the gullible or those easily persuaded, it is an interesting diversion for a couple hours. The whole thing about this place is they try to make you believe that the laws of physics don’t apply, that people or objects grow longer or shorter depending on where they stand. I think the things people see in the Oregon Vortex could be duplicated anywhere.
Our guide said that wild animals never enter the area, and horses could not be convinced to enter the area in the old days. But as we were leaving (and Sandy and the kids believed most of what they saw) I struck up a conversation with the old man who owns the property across the driveway and he was complaining about how the deer eat everything in his yard. Well, that was only 60 feet from the Vortex area so believe what you want…..
We drove through more of the country on back roads and more than once we saw wild turkeys. We then took the freeway back to our trailer, but first we stopped at the local grocery store to get fresh food. Nora, Sandy and I went on a short float ride on the river in the heat of the afternoon. We filled two air mattresses and one inner tube and walked up the street to a city park under the bridge in town. We got in the freezing cold water and held on to each other as we floated back to the campground. Just a short ride but long enough to drop our body temperatures. The river is just too cold and swift to be enjoyed. We all wore life preservers just in case.
Later in the day we drove into Grants Pass. Colton had seen a military surplus store he wanted to visit with some of his birthday money. He didn’t find much, just a WWII hand grenade, but I did find two more flags that I wanted for our collection at home. The girls took off for some antique shops where we later caught up with them.
We continued to celebrated Colton’s birthday at a Chinese Buffet that evening, bought our house sitter a gift of Toffee at the factory where it’s made and had birthday cake back at the trailer. I had looked into a jet boat ride earlier in the day, but they were all booked and it was very expensive, maybe the next time. I really enjoyed not doing a whole lot and having some quiet time. Sometimes I feel like I’m trying to do too much every day, so I convinced myself not to feel guilty for not taking the family on a jet boat ride.
After our second night we left Bridgeview RV Park for Diamond Lake just north of Crater Lake. The drive north was spectacular. Very relaxing and the scenery is wonderful. So much new territory we had never seen before. The sparsely wooded landscape of Eastern Oregon is so different from the evergreen forest we’re used to near the coast. Large sections of land are covered in grass and Oak trees. The higher we climbed the more we saw Lodge Pole and Ponderosa Pine trees. And climb we did. 
We stopped at one park along the way, called Natural Bridge, where the Rogue River flows into a lava tube and back out a short distance later. It’s just east of Crater Lake and can be found on the scenic State Route 62 between the small towns of Prospect and Union Creek. This highway follows the Rogue to the headwaters of the river. Just North of Crater Lake we arrived at our next campground, Diamond Lake. We stayed at the private resort across the road, knowing we would want full hookups. Because of the elevation, 7000 feet it wasn’t quite as hot as Grants Pass, but still it did require us to use air conditioning in the trailer.
Again we were escorted to our site by an attendant who helped me back into the space, not really necessary, but nice just the same. We didn’t have cable TV, but we did have good WIFI service again, compliments of the campground. After setting up the trailer I unloaded the bikes, they hadn’t been used since the coast and this looked like a great place to bike. I also set out sunflower seeds for the small chipmunks and squirrels that were running around. It didn’t take long and the kids were feeding one brave little chipmunk from their hands. It had a little scar on its back so we knew it was the same one that visited our site repeatedly. We gave him enough sunflower seeds over the next two days to make it through the winter if he stored them all.
Right along the east side of the lake shore was a huge campground that I think was a Forest Service campground and our private campground was above that with views of the lake through the trees. We walked down to the lake and stopped at the little store to ask where we could go for a swim. We were told a good place to swim was the north side of the lake where the water flows out the lake through a weir.
We later drove there in the Suburban and it was great place to swim. Very shallow sand bottom and the water was warm. But because the wind was blowing north all the stuff that floats on the surface of the water was coming to this end of the beach. The little Damsel flies that emerge from the water leave behind a skin from when they lived below the water and the millions of those were all in this one area were swimming. But we enjoyed the swim and returned to our trailer refreshed. We stopped at a visitor’s center to learn more about the lake and area.
It was just too warm out in the evenings for fires, and close to bedtime Colton shared his new DVD of Hogan’s Heroes with us. Again in the afternoons I enjoyed my own happy hour under the awning of our trailer. This whole trip I hadn’t made friends with any of the people we were camped next to, I kind of missed meeting new people. Friday morning we set off for Crater Lake. I had never been there before and neither had Sandy so it was all new to us.
I was amazed by two things that day. Of course the lake, but also by the many bicyclist who come to ride the 33 mile rim road. I know I could ride that distance easily, but there is a loss and gain of 4000 feet of elevation along the way and it was near 100 degrees out. Add to that the very high elevation (thinner air) and it would be a real challenge. Some day I will ride the road. We stopped at almost every lookout there was as we made our way around the lake.
The scale of the lake is hard to comprehend from high above, it wasn’t until I started using the binoculars and looked at things closely did I realize how far above the lake we were. The emerald blue of the water is hard to describe with words and even digital photography doesn’t do it justice, Crater Lake is one of those places everyone should see for themselves.
Back at Diamond Lake in the afternoon we ventured out with our bikes. What I didn’t realize until we took off on the bike trail around the lake is that Diamond Lake has no private residences anywhere on the lake with the exception being a resort at the northeast corner but I’m guessing it’s one of those 100 year lease type arrangements since it’s all in the Umpqua National Forest. The paved trail around the lake is 12 miles with no significant hills and it’s through pristine high country timberland with views of the lake and surrounding mountains.
Our first time around the lake took just over two hour’s; it took all my patience with Colton pedaling at an incredibly slow rate. In all fairness, he had been under doctor’s orders not to do anything that could jeopardize his health, and the steroids he’d been taking have not been kind to his body. But Colton is incredibly out of shape for a 15 year old boy and it’s a real struggle for the rest of the family.
I spent much of the afternoon under the awning and in the air conditioned trailer uploading pictures to my web page and reading news from home on the internet. The kids being book hounds spent many hours every day reading the books they brought along on the trip.
Friday was also our anniversary, twenty one wonderful years; at least that is my perspective. We treated ourselves out to pizza at the little store just down from our campsite; it was the only place we could eat out.
The next morning Nora, Sandy and I went on a bike ride around the lake without Colton, and we made the twelve mile loop in just over an hour. On the west side of the lake the paved trail is right along the shore of the lake and millions of tiny toads had hatched in the lake and were migrating across the paved trail. Hard as we tried to miss them while we rode, it was impossible to miss them all. Nora was sad when she knew she had run over a couple, but it was inevitable when the path way covered with the tiny creatures.
The grass along the lake shore was tinted blue in places from the damsel flies that clung to the green in the early morning wind. Nora spotted a deer along the path. She parked her bike so she could cross a creek that feeds into the lake on a fallen tree that created a natural bridge. There were trails leading off the paved trail that had we had more time we would have loved to explore, but it was Saturday morning and we had a long drive to get to our next and final night of vacation, Detroit Lake, which is just east of Salem Oregon in the foothills of the Cascades.
We stopped in Bend, Oregon for fuel and groceries and then continued on west taking Highway 20 to Sisters, then State Route 22 up over Santiam Pass through both the Deschutes and Willamette National Forest. We passed by a very pretty resort that caters to the golfing type of vacationer and Sandy remembered Don and Kelly had stayed there years ago. The pull over the pass was a warm one, with outside air temperatures going just over 100 degrees again. At the top of the pass we could see a gigantic forest fire had devastated the area a couple years ago and just now things were starting to turn a little bit green again, but it would be many years before the forest returns.
We lost elevation quickly as we descended the west side of the mountains to Detroit Lake. I had picked this lake because I know I had been there as a child camping with my family, though I have no recollection of it. And it was close to where Sandy worked for the Forest Service just out of school before I knew her in the early eighties. As we pulled into the State Park we could see this was a popular place, the campground was full with no vacancy signs posted on the highway, and our first view of the lake showed it was a crowded boater’s paradise.
The lake is man-made because of a dam on the North Santiam River, and we happily discovered that the water was very warm. The swimming areas in the park weren’t that great, and though I would have enjoyed motoring around the lake with our boat I opted not to unload it for the one night we would be staying. I did see lots of sailboats on the lake and I thought I might like to come back here someday with our sailboat, though skinny mountain lakes aren’t always the best for sailing.
On our first swim I got in trouble from Nora and Sandy because I offered run back to the trailer to inflate the air mattresses. While back at the trailer as I was filling up the floats I figured what the heck, may as well enjoy a drink. By the time I got the floats filled and started back to the beach Nora had come looking for me. Lucky it was still near 100 degrees out and being in the water was the place to be. I enjoyed another stiff drink with dinner that night I was feeling pretty loose the rest of the evening. We all walked around the campground and the kids and I went for one last swim just as the sun was going down.
Our last night in the trailer would be another night we left the air conditioner running the whole time. Sunday morning we left real early, pulling out before most people were even up. We went back to the town of Detroit and took a small two lane road that’s designated as Scenic on the map heading north into the Mt Hood National Forest. It’s a steep climb up through the mountains but once again the scenery is unbeatable. The kids missed most of it with their faces buried in books.
After the summit we descended back down to towards Portland. We stopped at what was the Forest Service Office, only to find out it had been closed and turned over to a private vendor. But we did drive back around to the government housing area where Sandy lived while she worked there. While were walking around and listening to Sandy we felt our first rain drops, what a change from day before when it was sunny and 100 degrees out. Overnight the weather had changed completely. But we were glad to be heading home. We drove into Estacada and then hooked up with Interstate 205 heading north around Portland, over the Columbia River back into Washington.
As we passed Paradise Point State Park we saw that a small grass fire from the freeway had grown and jumped into the State Park where we had stayed our first night out. The fire had jumped the entrance road cutting off the campers from any escape route. That would have been a scary experience to be trapped by a small forest fire in a park.
At home we found our farm and animals all healthy and well cared for by our house sitter. It was so nice to come home to a clean home. The very next day Colton went in for a blood draw to see how his recovery was progressing and we got good news that his platelet count was well over 200,000 which is in the normal range.
I went back to work on Monday but already looked forward to the following weekend when Colton and I planned to take the sailboat out for an overnighter, and we celebrated Nora’s 13th birthday mid week. She too had already received her new Dell Laptop computer and she looked forward to a birthday party with friends that included a movie with friends at the local theatre on Saturday.
Friday right after work Colton and I went down to Redondo with the sailboat. I had done a lot of work on the boat and this was the first time this summer the boat was going to be in the water. We launched on the Sound but it was completely flat out, no wind. We motored out a ways and we did pick up a slight breeze. Colton had brought his light fishing pole and a tackle box that Opa had given him. He rigged his line with a lure that looked like it might work. We could see that the real fishermen were using downriggers and fishing deep, all we had were simple lead weights and the lure so we would be fishing real close to the surface.
We joked with each other what we would do if we actually caught a real fish, we didn’t even have a net. And then bam! The fishing pole which was sitting on the seat almost flew over the transom of the boat, Colton caught the handle at the last second and we had a fish on. He had let a lot of line out and it took a long time to reel in, but sure enough he had a small salmon on the line. I stood by with the camera to get a picture as he brought it alongside the boat. Just as he was going to haul it up it fell off the hook and swam away. 
But we did get a good look at it. We were excited now and vowed to be better prepared on the next trip if we should actually catch a real fish again. We made a note to always have a fry pan on board, some margarine for frying and a spatula to help with cooking. By the time we got to the west side of Murray Island and set anchor it was almost dark out. We made dinner on the stove, using the new cooking station I had made that leaves more space in cockpit. Plus I feel better about having propane gas being used over the side of the boat rather than in the passenger area. The new gas tank cover also adds to the seating options in this very small boat of ours.
By the time dinner dishes were done we were ready to crawl into the V-birth for the night. Both Colton and I like that our small boat has fully functional Nav-lights so we left them all burning bright as we settled in for the night to watch a show of Dallas on his new laptop. We were anchored close to shore since we decided not to go into Quartermaster Harbor. We wanted the wave action from the Sound and to enjoy the pretty city lights of Tacoma far away across the bay.
But what we didn’t know was that we had dropped anchor on a shallow patch of sand and at two o’clock in the morning we would be touching the bottom with the keel. Luckily Colton noticed it and woke me up. We jumped out of bed in our underwear into the cool night air. I cranked up the keel and had the motor running before Colton had a chance to pull the anchor up. He yelled at me to stop the motor until he had it off the bottom, it was set well in the soft sand. With a flashlight we could see the crabs scurrying around beneath our boat. We went out another hundred feet and let the anchor go. This time it didn’t seem to dig in, but I believe the steel anchor and chain weighs enough to hold our boat even if it is just lying on the bottom. We crawled back in bed and slept the rest of the night.
We were real close to two yellow buoys where last year we had seen an old derelict tug anchored, and I suspected the buoys with flashing yellow lights marked the underwater obstruction in the shallow area. I was up before the sun and had coffee brewing by the time Colton got up. Breakfast consisted of three donuts and Sunny Delight juice. Two Kayaks came paddling by and they stopped directly over where we thought the tug was and we could hear them talking that they could see features of the tug under the water.
After Colton got up we motored slowly back to Redondo, and once again Colton had another fish on his line, but just like last time, as he brought it close to the boat and I was standing by with the camera if came off the hook. It was disappointing we didn’t get to do any real sailing; the Sound was a gentle place to be.
Last Friday night we returned to Redondo with our boat, this time with Nora along for the cruise. We were well provisioned; Colton had upgraded fishing gear this time bringing a salmon pole and rod, along with a net and even a shrimp pot we were going to soak overnight as they say in the series Deadliest Catch. But the wind was howling on the Sound, in fact boating was under small craft advisories. We rigged the boat on land for stormy seas, main sail half reefed and a storm jib in place of the normal full size one. Looking across the bay we could see the waves were much smaller on the leeward side of Murray Island and we hoped we could sail fast over there and find quieter water.
It was mean launching the boat, we all got wet from the huge swells crashing over the dock. After I had parked the truck and come back to the boat I leaned over the tiller to start the motor and the tiller handle split in half in my hand. I had repaired it earlier in the season but obviously I had not done it correctly. Not having any way of repairing it we sadly pulled the boat back out of the water and went back home.
I worked in the garage that evening fashioning a new tiller handle from an old oar that I had cut down. That was Colton’s idea when I mentioned I was going to use a handle from a wheel barrow. Before the night was over I had it on the rudder and two coats of verathane applied. I shortened the old tiller handle and drilled new holes for the bolts and threw that in the hold of the sailboat should there ever be another incident of broken tiller handles.
Saturday after lunch we returned to Redondo and again launched the sailboat. We’re getting real good and fast at rigging now, plus the kids have done it enough times that they know much of what needs to be done so they are a big help. I can back the boat in the water, with Colton and Nora aboard and they start the motor and clear the launch while I go park. Then they just swing by the dock, I jump on and away we go. But Saturday the weather was completely flat out again, no wind at all so we started motoring over to Vashon Island. Colton put out his salmon pole and I put out my little fishing pole with eight pound test fishing line.
I was using a Canadian Wonder we found in Dad’s old tackle box that another fisherman at Jarrell’s Cove told us was the thing to use in the Sound. Wasn’t long and that little pole of mine almost bent backwards, I had a fish on the line. It was exciting to reel in the small salmon, but it wasn’t big enough for a meal and Colton noted it had its adipose fin so we knew it was wild run and threw it back in the Sound. As we approached the southern most tip of Murray Island we raised our sails and caught a gentle breeze that had us moving nicely through the water.
A large tug and tow was coming into Tacoma and we were on converging paths so we jibed towards Browns Point away from our intended destination to give a wide berth to the tug. We then purposely jibed back in a gentle turn since we were trolling as we were sailing, tacking could tangle our lines behind the boat. We passed just behind the barge which left a very small wake.
Close to the shore but still in forty some feet of water Colton baited his shrimp trap with canned cat food and tossed it overboard for an overnight soak. He was using an old yellow float with his name and address on it. He had looked up all the regulations on line and bought his first Combination License on line as well. 15 year olds are required to be licensed in the state of Washington.
We then did some good sailing heading into Quartermaster Harbor, but the sun went down and it got cold fast. We returned to the exact same spot we anchored the previous week and got set up for the night. We cooked hot dogs for dinner, followed by dessert. By the time I had everything cleaned up from dinner it was time for us to crawl in for the night. Nora and Colton got the V-birth, there was some complaining about foot room, but I was comfortable with my bed that extends back under the cockpit on the Starboard side of the boat. My feet aren’t crowded and the bed is over seven feet long so there is room to stretch out a bit.
We watched another show of Dallas, again on Colton’s laptop, this time well protected by his new carrying case he got from his Uncle Kim and Aunt Kathy. After the show we talked a bit and I tried to scare the kids by thumping my foot on the hull and asking if it was one of them making the noise. Of course this got every ones heart rate up just before bed, but Colton and I quickly fell asleep while Nora later told me she was up for hours because I was snoring. Oops! We all slept in though, this time I didn’t get up to see the sunrise like the week before with Colton.
We made a wonderful warm breakfast; crumbled Jimmy Dean Pork sausages fried, then add scrambled eggs and cook the whole mess up. Put that on flour tortilas with grated cheese and it warmed up our insides on a cold marine morning. We also brewed up hot coffee and warm cocoa. This time I had enough dishes to wash that I actually boiled water on the stove just for doing dishes. I’ll bet dad would get a laugh out of all the use that old two burner propane stove he gave me is getting used these days. I know mom has very little sentimental value for things, she cleaned the house and garage of many of dad’s things, but I am grateful for the few things I inherited from him and continue to use, even the old tackle box that Colton and I have caught fish with using his old gear.
After breakfast still no wind, but with a full fuel tank we left Vashon Island across Dalco Passage heading for Gig Harbor. It was an out going tide running at full strength, I have never run the boat through such turbulent water as we encountered in that area. All of the water from the South Sound comes shooting out of the Narrows and splits into Dalco Passage to the south and Colvos Passage running north along the west side of Vashon Island. I could feel the churning water grab the keel of the boat and I would have to counter steer hard to get through the whirl pools and eddies created by the swift current.
But the little four horse Evenrude moves our boat along and we made headway even against the strong tide. I was amazed at how narrow the opening to Gig Harbor is on a low tide. Our depth finder was telling us it was only twenty feet to the bottom, not much for the size of some of the boats in there. Most people’s tenders are worth more than our sailboat, but it was fun to motor slowly through the tangle of hundreds of boats moored on buoys and on docks surrounding the harbor. At the far west end we ran the boat aground trying to get a closer look at a seal, but I was able to help Colton power the keel off the bottom just by leaning out sideways hard while he hit full throttle. I’m going to relocate the depth finder to a better location this winter when I have time to make a suitable bracket for it. I’m also going to install the bilge pump permanently and would like to add a marine radio.
We left the harbor after admiring the many multitudes of boats there; Gig Harbor is not on our list of destinations. I’m afraid we might get in trouble for exposing ourselves every time we pee in a bottle rather than using the porta-potty down below. We really don’t mind roughing it on our small sail boat, but Colton remembers fondly the one and only sail boat trip we made when my good friend Mark still had his big sailboat, which was well equipped to go pretty much anywhere in the world. And if we only use our boat a couple times a year then we can cost justify keeping it whereas some people have to spend hundreds of dollars a month on moorage and still don’t use their boats. 
Colton handled the boat by himself all the way back to Murray Island to pick up his shrimp pot. Were not sure what happened, but we didn’t find it where we left it. We doubled back over the area we left it, all eyes scanning the area for the faded yellow float but it was nowhere to be found. I then suggested we follow the shoreline in case the tide had ripped it loose and it had traveled north along the shore. After following the shore a distance we headed out into the channel. Colton was still up front with the binoculars when he spotted his float bobbing in the waves. We’re fairly certain the pot was just hanging from the float and it was free floating at this point, we didn’t bother to look at the depth finder to see if it was truly deeper than the rope he was using. Colton was glad to have his shrimp pot back, even though it was empty.
We motored all the way back to Redondo, this time Nora did most the steering, and I enjoyed for the first time a nap down below while under way when Colton was driving and then just sitting up on deck while Nora was driving. The wind picked up nicely just as we were approaching the dock, figures. One overnight on our small boat is enough.
Now it’s the end of Labor Day weekend. Summer vacation is officially over for the kids and Sandy as they start a new year of school. Sandy is a Para-educator at another school this year, Nora is in her final year at middle school and Colton starts his second year of high school as a sophomore.
Love Dad.