Category Archives: Epic Road Trip

SURVIVED THE TOP OF THE WORLD HIGHWAY!

Posted on by under Alaska, Alaskan Highway, Author, Dawson City, Epic Road Trip

After a lovely dinner with our friends, Tom and Linda, we went back to our RV to drink a little Tuaca. That stuff tastes great, but is dangerous! Count on a headache the next day for sure. The next night we had dinner at our RV and the halibut Lennard caught was simply delicious. Mostly it was the company. We will miss the stunning landscape of Homer.

With sad hearts we left Homer and stopped at Kenai on our way to Alaska. It is a historical town with lots of preserved old cabins and a lovely restaurant where we had an outside lunch. There is also an Old Russian Orthodox church in operation since 1841.

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Then we had a brief stop back in Anchorage with Dennis and Sandy, and then off across the Glenn Highway to Glennallen for the night, before heading to Chicken, Alaska for the Fourth of July. Lennard taped heavy plastic to the front of the RV to protect it from the gravel we knew we would incur. Along the Glen Highway we stopped to see the Mantanuska Glacier which is 27 miles long and at its widest 4 miles wide. It is beautifulP1010964 P1010954 P1010985

Chicken is the stop prior to the Top of the World Highway, and it is the highway I had steadfastly declined to go on and had relented the night of the Tuaca debacle, due to Tom’s urging. Chicken is also where the miners did a lot of gold mining.

We arrived in time to hear the music and went to bed early, only to be awakened at 11PM by the cannon outside the bar. They shoot it off when they get a pair of underwear to use as powder. Silly tradition, but effective in waking up the whole RV Park in the middle of the night.

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The Top of the World Highway is about a 125 mile stretch of mostly gravel, narrow road with pot holes, bumps, wash board, no shoulders or guard rails, and thousand foot drops. Fun…no. I was terrified most of the way, but Lennard stayed calm in spite of my muttering about “the end is coming”! We crossed the border into Canada at Poker Creek, the highest border crossing in North America to add to the ambiance of the trip. We survived it and I was happy.

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When you get to Dawson City, you have to take a ferry across the wide, Yukon River. It is fairly small and we just fit in our lane with the tow car. That was fun too. By the time we got to the other side, I had completely disintegrated into a small, sniveling ball.

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Our Gypsy had eaten some Foxtail and was coughing like she could not get her breath, so we found the RMCP office and asked for a vet. They told us about John, the local vet, and he was kind enough to see her at his house and gave us some antibiotics. The next day she was better, but we still have to keep an eye on her. I’ll get back to this tomorrow and tell you about Dawson City.

HOMER SPECTACULAR HOMER and SELDOVIA

Posted on by under Alaska, Epic Road Trip, Homer, RV, Seldovia

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As we crested the viewpoint hill just before Homer, our breath was taken away with the beauty of the mountains across from Homer and the Kachemak Bay. It was just spectacular. And that was after the beautiful drive to get there along the Kenai Mountains and past Cooper Landing, Soldotna, and Ninilchik, where we saw tons of people fishing for Salmon in Deep Creek. It was a beautiful clear day and we had the whole day to get to our camping site on the spit.P1010554 P1010557

The spit is a long, narrow protrusion 4.5 five miles into the bay with lots of tourists’ attractions. (Halibut and Salmon fishing, eating, drinking, camping and boat trips across the bay.)

IMG_0511 Heritage RV park offered us parking right on the bay. From our front window we could see the water and the mountains on the other side of Kachemak Bay. The beach was just below us.

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The next day was taken by mundane stuff as we had now been gone six weeks and traveled over 4,500 miles. The dogs got washed, the clothes got washed, we got haircuts at “Legends” and the RV got cleaned up. Eventually you do have to clean up a bit.

Seldovia called to us, so we took the Rainbow Cruise across the bay to the historical town settled by Russians prior to America buying it from them along with the rest of Alaska.

P1010709 IMG_0507This waterfront town can only be reached by boat or plane. That’s right- no roads to there. We passed Gull Rock on the way to see various types of birds including the lovely little Puffin with its black and white feathers and orange beak. We also saw red footed pigeon Guillmots, new to us, but common in Alaska.

P1010672  P1010643Seldovia was quaint with lots of flowers and eagles. They were so many eagles, making so much noise, we were surprised and loving taking photos of them diving to pick up salmon. Sometimes they choose unwisely and can’t get up into the air with their catch, so they fly/paddle to shore with their prize.

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That night we had the best dinner we have had in Alaska at Cups Café in town. This small, eclectic, art, restaurant serves local fresh fish and they did an outstanding job. It was delicious.

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Lennard was off to Halibut and salmon fishing on Mike Manns’ Artic Addiction the next day at 5AM. Of course I did not go. I stayed home to document our travels here! It turned out to be a very COLD, WET morning, but cleared up during the day.  Lennard caught his two allowed halibut, some rock fish and some pink salmon.  We had it flash frozen but shipping was prohibitive, so sorry everyone.

Homer is know for eagles and these two roosted on the light pole right next to us every day.

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Going down on the boardwalk on the spit to the famous Salty Dawg and to get Lennard his fish and chips dinner.

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Inside the Salty Dawg

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Lennard getting his local Cod fish and chips

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All in all we have had a wonderful week in Homer, and are looking forward to meeting up with Tom and Linda again tonight for dinner.

I appreciate all of you who are following and in particular your comments.  Please remember to like this on Facebook.   Till the next adventure I’ll see you soon.

Anchorage and the Beautiful Portage Area

Posted on by under Alaska, Anchorage, Epic Road Trip
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Portage glacier area

I thought Anchorage might be the capital of Alaska, but that is Juneau. However it is the most populist city in Alaska. We parked next to Dennis and Sandy’s home downtown Anchorage. It was so convenient for us and we so appreciated their hospitality. The first day we “did” downtown and the museum which was extremely well done and informative with four floors of exhibits. We went to dinner at a local tourist place and stopped at the gift shop across the parking lot to see the world’s largest chocolate fountain and a Polar bear of course.  Mandatory tourist stuff! P1010417P1010411

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Anchorage’s population is over 300,000. Can you imagine? Sitting on the Cook Inlet, it is within 9 and ½ hours flight time from 90% of the industrialized world. That makes it a very strategic city for business. The inlet is named for Captain Cook.

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Captain Cook statue

The next day we ventured out to Portage and Whittier. Portage boasts several glaciers and the views from the road were to die for. The tunnel to Whittier (The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel) is the second longest in the US at 2 and ½ miles. We did not expect it to be so crude. There were lights, but the sides were pure rock. As it is one lane only, you go through one direction at a time on a schedule. Scary! Whittier is a small town on the gateway to the Prince William Sound. Several cruise ships stop there.

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Entering the tunnel to Whittier

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Lennard at Whittier docks.

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Bella and Gypsy at the glaciers

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Fortune smiled on us the next day as we were able to get our water pump fixed so we could dry camp. Later Dennis and Sandy took us out to their lake house on Big Lake where we met their talented and polite grandson, Kyle. If you love photography check out his website www.kylelavey.com. The lake was like glass and the day was warm as we rode around on their pontoon boat looking at the scenery and houses around the lake. The view from their cabin was to die for. We were so fortunate to have shared the day with them. We will see them on the flip side when we start our long journey back to the lower states.IMG_0477 IMG_0467

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On NO the usual roadwork on the way to Anchorage.

ALASKA THE VAST WILDERNESS

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, RV, Talkeetna

P1010415Alaska is a vast land of wilderness and beauty. You can drive, walk, bike, hike or boat for miles and not see a soul. It is also a land of friendly faces and people. We have met some lovely people on our journey these past few weeks and among the have been our current RV neighbors, Tom and Linda, from Arizona.

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Tom and Linda sharing happy hour with us.

After taking a jet boat cruise up the Susitna River today to the area where it begins to have class V rapids, they asked us to join them for Moscow Mules. Never having had them before we were pleasantly surprised. Served in a copper cup, they were delicious! The conversation was even better. We certainly hope to see them again along the road in Alaska.

Moscow Mule:       4 OZ. Ginger Beer

1 and ½ OZ Vodka

1/6 OZ Lime Juice.

Garnish with Lime slice and serve over ice.

Talkeetna is a lovely little town with several great restaurants and a local brewery. We had a late lunch / dinner at the Wildflower restaurant and it was terrific. The population of Talkeetna is 876 and is a mixture of old town and new. This time of year everyone puts out their rendition of a decorated moose, which makes a lovely addition to the already quaint town. It is located on a spur road only 14 miles from the highway, about half way between Denali and Anchorage. We stayed at Talkeetna Camper Park, which is located close enough to town (3/8 mile) to walk and right next to the train depot.

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The Hurricane train runs from Talkeetna to Hurricane Gulch. It is the only flagstop train left in America. That means you can get on or off anywhere you want just by flagging it down or letting them know where you want to be dropped off. Lots of campers and people rafting down the river use it to get out into the wild. It runs five days a week during the summer. (Thursday-Monday) It is a two hour, 55 mile route…well depending on how many stops it makes. Round trip ticket costs $96.00.

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Our RV camp was managed by a terrific couple, Noreen from Ireland and Trevor from Britain. They were helpful, friendly and funnier than heck. We loved our spot near the train tracks. It was a bit tight, but we had trees near us and the camp was clean and quiet, except for us of course. I highly recommend anyone touring Alaska to stop here.

The jet boat tour today took us about 65 miles up the Susitna River towards Mt. Denali to Devils Canyon. It was a very smooth ride until the rapids and then was a little bumpy. Our Captain, Eli, did a great job of keeping the boat in place while we took photos of the rapids. The naturalist on board, Emily, took us on a short walk in the forest to see an authentic trapper cabin and native Dena’ina Indian encampment. She carried a rifle with her in case of bears. She also pointed out several dangerous plants that we should avoid. It was a great day.P1010356 P1010315 P1010297 P1010391

It’s Father’s day so I took Lennard to the Roadhouse for breakfast. We met one of the mountain climbing guides, Tomas Ceppi from Argentina. He had just led a group to the top of Mt. Denali.

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Family style breakfast at the Roadhouse. Lucky me got to sit next to a mountain climbing guide. Tomas Ceppi. Note small meals served here

Tomorrow we are off to Anchorage and meeting our friends from Vegas, Dennis and Sandy who also have a home and business in Alaska.

WHEN DOES THE SUN SET? OR WHAT HAPPENED TO THE MOON?

Posted on by under Alaska, Alaskan Highway, Arctic Circle, Epic Road Trip, Mt McKinley
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Mt McKinley

As we travel north and get closer to the summer solstice on June 21, we have more and more daylight. We haven’t seen night for over a week now. It is so strange to be out at 11PM and it’s still daylight.

Well, so much for the Alaskan Highway being a great road, which it was up to Tok. The road from there to Fairbanks was fraught with road work, pot holes, frost heave and gravel! But, taking advice from our friend, Frank, we drove slow and survived it. We did see a grizzly and some beautiful scenery along the road though. Can you imagine Lennard’s face when he saw how dirty the RV and tow care were? Yikes!!

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Our RV park in Fairbanks was terrific. We had a site right along the Chena River with lots of space and trees. I was able to do laundry there in a clean laundry room.

We took the Discovery Paddle Boat up the Chena River with views of Fairbank homes along the river bank, an example of the local Athabascan Indians camp, salmon preparation demonstration,and a show by mushers and their sled dogs. Susan Butcher was the second woman to win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in 1986. She won four out of the next five sequential years. Her daughter, Tekla, carries on her tradition taking care of the descendants of her sled dogs. Her lead dog, Granite, was a hero among sled dogs. Unfortunately, Susan succumbed to cancer in 2006, but her tradition lives on

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Thirsty after the sled run!

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Discovery Paddle Boat

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Soon to be sled dogs.

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Tekla and her sled dogs.

Lennard and I both joined the “Turtle Club” and got “turtled” at a local restaurant.  You have to answer four questions to join.  For every question you can’t answer, you have to drink a shot. ! Luckily, we figured out all but one question.  We have our friend, Sam, to thank for this experience! We are now certified turtles with club cards.

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Sam the best bartender!

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The last day in Fairbanks we boarded Bella and Gypsy out to “Holy Dogs” and took a tour to the Arctic Circle via the Dalton Highway. We left at 6AM and returned at 11PM. It was a long day, but only one percent of all the tourists who visit Alaska cross the Arctic Circle. Along the way we stopped at a trapper store, saw some wildlife and the Alaskan Pipeline, and several lookout points. We got to walk on the tundra which is soft and dangerous for walking because it is very uneven. Underneath the tundra is frozen ground. And No, there wasn’t any ice or snow there in the summer. I was surprised about that. We had a little celebration at the demarcation line. I was expecting champagne, but got tundra chocolate cake with snowcap whipped cream on top. Nice.

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Alaskan Pipeline There are over 800 miles of it.

Our next stop was the exquisite wilderness of Denali Park. It is home to the highest spot in America, Mt. McKinley at 20,320 feet above sea level. The locals call it Mt. Denali. In Denali we stayed in a virtual parking lot. I shouldn’t complain, as at least it was only a mile from the park entrance. We should have stayed in the park and dry camped. Our mistake, but never mind.

We took an all day tour to see Mt. McKinley and it was a spectacular day. (Only 10% of visitors actually get to see it because of usual cloud cover.) We had the best day you can have for viewing the majestic mountain. Along the way we saw moose, caribou, grizzly bear, and Dall sheep. Dall sheep are the only pure white sheep in America. We stopped at several view points, but the last one was spectacular. We are grateful for that perfect day.

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The road to Mt. McKinley

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Grizzly

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That night we had dinner at the famous Denali Salmon Bake Restaurant. I looked in the kitchen and it looked like Hell’s Kitchen, with everyone yelling out the next items due up. The food was great, but as usual…too much of it.

The next day we took the dogs on a little hike, keeping in mind Pomeranians don’t necessarily realize they are appetizers for grizzlies. Later we visited the only national park sled dog kennel in America. The dogs here were different from the ones in Fairbanks. These were all huskies, bred to pull loads while the ones in Fairbanks that we visited were mixed breeds, bred to race. It was HOT in Denali that day and most of them were sleeping until time to hook up and they all went wild. They also had a liter of six puppies born just a month ago. Their mom was just about to the point of deciding she had had just about enough of them and weaning them off her milk. They had other ideas about that program.

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There is a heat wave here this week and everyone is loving the weather, as it usually is a lot cooler. I’m hoping it will cool down again. After all, that was one of the benefits of leaving Las Vegas for the summer!

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THE BEAUTIFUL, YET TERRIFYING ALASKAN HIGHWAY

Posted on by under Alaskan Highway, Epic Road Trip, Rv to Alaska

After completing the drive from the stunning Cassiar Highway, we started our journey to the great Alaskan Highway.

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The first stop was Dease Lake where we dry camped at Waters Edge RV Camp.

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Does a bear cross the road in the woods?

It rained all night and we prayed we could get up the dirt hill in the morning.   Next stop Watson Lake.  The Baby Nugget RV Park called our name, and we got an early start setting up.  (Allowing Lennard to clean the RV and car) We were lucky enough to see a bear crossing the road as a big wheel truck honked it’s horn along the way.

A short stop at Jade City was mandatory.  They actually export their jade to China and have it imported back after it has been designed into jewelry or art.  Who knew a lot of China’s jade comes from the Yukon?

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Can you believe this?

The next day we arrived in Whitehorse in the Yukon.  Our site was the narrowest we have ever seen at the Hy Country RV Park.  Lennard did a great job backing in… with my help of course.  P1000540

Dinner was at the famous Klondike Restaurant serving ribs and salmon. It is an eclectic place with crazy décor and smiling waitresses.  Along with the dinner fare they serve the largest deserts we have ever seen.  Did we share one?  YES!

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The next day we started sightseeing at Miles Canyon, which was a beautiful canyon with a river running through it and a bridge to the other side.  I stayed behind with the dogs and was lucky enough to have a chat with the world renown travel writer, Rosemary McClure.  She was there working on an article for the Los Angeles Times.  Her photographer had the largest lens I have ever seen. I’m looking forward to reading the piece and seeing the photos. She did ask me a few questions.  Will our story get in her article? I hope so. Never the less, it was a real pleasure talking with her.

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An old paddle wheel ship is located downtown.  The SS Klondike was used to transport goods and people in the  late 1800’s.  You can take a tour, but we just viewed it from the outside.

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After seeing the historic downtown, we ended the day with a trip to Walmart where the parking lot was crowded with RVs.  There must have been 50 of them  of all shapes and sizes, taking advantage of the free parking.  There was hardly room for cars to navigate.

The Yukon Wildlife Preserve is about 20 minutes out of town.  We opted for their 6 kilometer walk through the preserve the next day.  Our first stop was next to the bison area, where a mama bison was protecting her calf near the fence.  She rolled in the dust and  roared and grunted as we passed by.  After we passed, they did not let anyone down that pathway.  What? It was scary.  The rest of the park was calm and it was a great day.

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Mad Mama Bison and baby.

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Moose in field

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Elk

IMG_0145 IMG_0154 IMG_0168 IMG_0180 P1000598A last, but mandatory stop was made at the Yukon Brewery where we missed the last tour but bought the beer! Their newest creation was called Special Agent and was 8.1% alcohol.

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We were surprised to find that the Alaskan Highway was really a pretty good road without any pot holes, gravel or problems all the way to Whitehorse.  We were thinking about all the stories we had heard about it and wondering where the bad parts were.

Ha! we would soon find out the real truth next day on our trip from Whitehorse to Tok, Alaska.  But, that’s a story for another day.

VANCOUVER TO HYDER ALASKA AND FOOD STAMP THE 500 POUND GRIZZLY

Posted on by under Alaska, British Columbia, Epic Road Trip, RV Travels, RV Trip

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Sorry to have been so long, but we do not have the availability of internet everywhere. And when there is you can’t count on it. Beginning our journey from Vancouver we decided to take the Cassiar Highway towards Fairbanks and Anchorage rather than the usual trail beginning in Dawson Creek.  We were told this is a spectacular highway and so far it has proven to be true.  It has been one beautiful scene after another.Williams Lake Stampede Grounds was our first stop after Vancouver. They have an annual stampede there in June. Lennard was thinking he could get a job there in the cow chute. From there we went to Prince George and stayed at Mama Yeh Campgrounds outside town in the woods. That’s where we learned if you even dare to step outside without mosquito protection, you will be attacked in seconds. We have the ankle bites to prove.it. After a day of reorganizing and going to Walmart, and some Tim Horton coffee, we headed for Ksan RV Park in Hazelton, with spectacular views of the Kitwanga Mountains.P1000310 - Copy

The next day we began our journey on the beautiful, spectacular Cassiar Highway 37 through the Cassiar Mountains to Alaska. We took the 37A cutoff towards Hyder, Alaska as an extra stop. P1000314The drive was one of the most beautiful we have ever seen. Every turn was a new and breathtaking vista. We made a pit stop at Bear Glacier to take photos. P1000343 P1000346And… We saw a black bear on the highway. He just watched us drive by. As we neared the border, I got the passports out to cross the border and there was no border stop going into Hyder. What??? There was coming back into British Columbia.

Hyder is a town of 87 people with one general store, run by Wes who was super friendly, a post office, two bars, no police, no taxes and NO gas station. There also is no cell service for 280 miles. We parked at Camp Run-A-Muck for two days we liked it so much. The local 500 pound Grizzly Bear is called Food Stamp. Fortunately we did not meet him.P1000399

On the first night we had dinner at the “bus”, (an old school bus made into a restaurant) where Diana cooked fresh halibut her husband caught. It was delicious and we sat outside on school bus seats. It rained while we were having dinner which just added to the atmosphere under the awning. Diana and her husband married about 36 years ago after a whirlwind 17 day courtship. Then he brought her to Hyder!IMG_0397 IMG_2090

After dinner we drove to the bear viewing station outside town on the Salmon River, but it was too early in the season for the running of the salmon.

The next day we took the beautiful, but terrifying (for me anyway) drive up the mountain to Salmon Glacier. I finally refused to go any further and the road was even worse after I got out of the car. Lennard got caught in fog at the top, and I was standing on the road waiting with Bella and Gypsy all alone thinking “Isn’t this bear country?” We got the boxing gloves out after that. So far that is probably the stupidest thing we have done. By the way, Salmon Glacier is the fifth largest glacier in British Columbia.P1000381 P1000392

That evening Lennard got Hyderized at the local Glacier Bar. That means you drink a shot of 150 proof moonshine. If you can’t drink it, you buy everyone a drink. He made it of course. Dave, one of the locals, was sitting next to me and it was his birthday, so Lennard bought him a drink anyway!IMG_0394 IMG_0401 IMG_0410

Later we met Sam and Ben and their friend George at out camp site. They are moving from Fairbanks to Arizona. Some local gentlemen and ladies showed up with guitars and a drum and we had a campfire jam-fest till almost midnight. Hyder is one of the most unusual places I have ever seen. Gorgeous scenery, local characters and NO traffic. Counting the people we met while there, bar tender, Diana and husband, Wes, Sullie (our RV host), David, and the young people at the campfire, we now know about 1/5th of the town. If you ever get the chance to go, don’t miss it.P1000377 P1000376

SALT SPRING ISLAND MARKET

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, Market, Salt Spring Island

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BC FERRIES

We were lucky enough to have one day to go to Salt Spring Island while we were in Vancouver.  Saltspring Island is one of the Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia between mainland British Columbia, Canada and Vancouver Island. You have to take the ferry to get there and that is about an hour an a half ride if you get the non-stop ferry. Saturday is market day with lots of vendors and artists.  Some lovely people we met in Coronado told us about it…so we went.  It is a beautiful island and we wish we could have spent more time there.

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Bugs!

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These two are favorites at the market.

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The weather was perfect so we had lunch outdoors at the Burger Bar 537.  The burgers, by the way were terrific! At days end we took the milk run ferry home and stopped at several islands, so we got to see some spectacular water scenery. We were really lucky to have this great day.

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SEATTLE PIKE’S PIER AND VANCOUVER, BC

Posted on by under Astoria, Cannon beach, Epic Road Trip, Pikes pier, Sky Train, Vancouver
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Astoria Column

Our last stop in Oregon was Astoria.  We traveled the winding, narrow Highway 101 up to Astoria and settled in for two nights.  The famous Cannon beach is just south of there, so we took a day trip to walk on the wide, sandy beaches after viewing Astoria Column and seeing downtown historic Astoria. The column is an artful summary of the trials and tribulations of settling the Pacific Coast. From the Chinook and Clatsop Indians to the Lewis and Clark Expedition, to the railroad connecting the land, the settling of the Oregon Coast is depicted in art on the column.

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One of many bridges we crossed.

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Cannon Beach

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Cannon Beach where there is a bird preserve.

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You may have to wait in line for 30 minutes to an hour to get these famous fish and chips.

Lennard had Albacore Tuna fish and chips from this landmark little ship.

Seattle is a vibrant, bustling city.  We spent two days there and got to go to the famous Pikes Pier on Memorial Day.  It was crowded, but so much fun people watching.  We did observe the “throwing of the fish”.  As in any city, there was a mixture of locals, tourists, and homeless.  Unfortunately, we did encounter a few addicts shooting up right on the sidewalk.  Nothing you, as a onlooker, can do about it.

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What?

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By chance, we had lunch at the Biscuit Bitch, which has been on the Travel channel.  They have marvelous, unique offerings like biscuit, maple syrup, bacon and eggs.  Or grits, gravy, eggs and sausage.  All healthy of course.

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Biscuit Bitch (The restaurant I mean, not Lennard!)

We made it into Canada without getting thrown in jail for having an extra bottle of wine on board. We were worried about the wine and we should have been worried about the space allowed to get through the border. We literally had inches on either side of the RV going through customs!  It was terrifying.  I’ve got my head out the side window and see the concrete barriers right next to us. Our RV park is in the woods of Tynehead near Jerry and Benita’s place. We will be spending five days here visiting Vancouver and our friends.

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Lennard taking a wrong turn at Pier 7

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Benita and Jerry took us on the sky Train and Ferry to North Vancouver.  It was a gorgeous day and we had lunch at Pier 7, taking advantage of Happy Hour of course. That night we had a BBQ at our “house”.  Steaks brought from Costco and Greek salad from Benita’s kitchen. Some nice wine, a few beers and great friends.  What more could you ask?

Moving up the OregonCoast

Posted on by under Epic Road Trip, Hiking, Oregon Coast, RV

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After a wonderful visit with my brother and sister-in-law, we headed over to the 101 via the 20. Oops, a little winding and narrow and harrowing.  We managed to get up the coast to the Willits KOA campground where two men helped us back into the narrow site. Lennard made beer drinking friends and played “Corn Hole”. (Something like horseshoes only with beer)

On Sunday we drove through the Avenue of the Giants in the redwoods.  Absolutely stunning. The redwoods are sentinels of time, withstanding fire and tree plagues. They can live for thousands of years, grow to over 300 feet and can be as wide as 20 feet.  The famous drive thru tree is 17 feet wide.

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On Monday the plan was to stay in the Jedidiah Smith State Park.  What was I thinking?  We almost got stuck in the entrance. The road was so narrow I had to get out to make sure we didn’t hit anything leaving.  We found a lovely campground just down the road…The Hiouchi RV resort.  We spent the rest of the day hiking through the spectacular Stout Grove of magnificent redwoods.
On the way to the redwoods, we drove along the coast and stopped at the Mystery Trees Visitor Center and took their one mile hike through the redwoods.
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The next day we drove back  Klamath to go to the drive through tree.  It is one of three in the world, all of which are in the redwoods.
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The rest of the day was spent back in Crescent City at the absolutely beautiful Battery Point Lighthouse, perched high on a hill.  It was first lit in 1856. You can only go over to it when the tide is at its lowest.  It was one of the first lighthouses on the Oregon coast. Dogs are not allowed, so don’t tell anyone we took them up anyway.
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On Wednesday we had Norwegian fish and chips along the highway.  They were fabulous.
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We arrived late at the Whaler’s Rest RV Park.  This is a Thousand Trails Encore Park and is set in the woods along the coast.  We love it here and got the Passport America discount too! They have a trail that leads to the beach which we took a walk along this morning.
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Just in case you were counting. We have now made it over two weeks, over 1,000 miles and seen three states.
On Thursday we went into historic Newport over the historic bridge and saw the harbor.
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Newport also has the oldest, wooden light house on this coast, set in the Yaquina Park.
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We also saw the Yaquina Head Lighthouse made of brick, which has been standing sine 1873. It was originally known as the Cape Foulweather Lighthouse as the fog was so bad on the coast.  We had a lot of foul fog today too! The lens was made in Paris and shipped to Oregon.  At least it made it! It is now operated by the Coast Guard and the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
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Since we didn’t have lunch, we stopped for dinner at a fresh Crab place on the highway. Lennard had oysters and fresh  Halibut.  I had chicken tenders.  What a wimp I am.
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By the way, we saw an example of some type of natural or environmental oddity on the beaches all along the coast.  We were told it was the largest dying off of jellyfish that has been seen in years.  Maybe we should rethink our environmental policies.
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A late Happy Birthday to Frank and sorry we missed the party!! Keep track of us on Life 360, Right Rich?
Take care!