Into California

     As we drove the last bit of coast in Oregon I have already planned to come back.  Each bit that we see is more spectacular than the last.  We have been staying in the state parks.  If you don't come in a camper you can stay in a "Yurt."  I think the reservations for these round tents on platforms would be hard to get at the last minute, but they look very comfy.  We also saw dozens of nice motels on the beach (as well as a lot of crummy ones).  We may not drive all the way back with an RV, but we really want to return.

     Highway 101 followed the shoreline very closely as we drove south from Bandon.  We kept stopping to look at the endless, sandy beaches that were nearly empty.  However, as soon as we passed into California the view became junked up with crummy trailer parks, old motels and lots of houses hanging off the cliffs overlooking the beach.  I think that Oregon has done so well in making this treasure of a coastline accessible to everyone.

    We finally got to Crescent City where the Redwood National and State Parks began.  Then the road went through tunnels of beautiful old trees.  The redwoods are not as big around as Sequoias, but they are very, very tall.  We will spend a lot more time in the next two days looking at these grand old trees.  One of the bits that I read as we drove into the forest is that the coastal redwoods get one third of their moisture from the fog in the summertime.  So I guess the fog is good for something.

    Our campground is a commercial one just along the Klamath River.  All the sites are nicely grassy with trees and picnic tables.  However, we already miss the huge, quiet, private spots that we experienced in the Oregon State parks.

    We arrived at lunchtime so we set up the RV, had lunch, and then went out for some exploration.  I found a "Coastal drive" just outside of Klamath for us to take.  HMMM.  Signs warned that neither trailers nor motorhomes should take the road.  It started out as a poorly maintained, narrow black top road that probably used to be the old 101.  This deteriorated into a gravel 2 lane, then a gravel 1 1/2 lane, then a bumpy, steep, mostly dirt one lane road.  It took us to a World War II coastal radar station.  Very interesting to see the old buildings which were designed to look like an old farmhouse.  If you didn't already know you would never guess that these were important military buildings.  Not much left to see but the buildings, but it was neat to remember the history.  We had very little view of the ocean due to the fog which was disappointing, but also masked the many drop offs over which we would plunge to our death if we started sliding a bit or met another car.  Rick had a great time.  I was happy that he was so into the drive. 

    We spent the late afternoon planning the last bits of our trip.  Some fun things still to come!