Traveling in the Hot Land

The Maineiacs (plus one Californiac) are back in motion. Yesterday we made the drive from Yreka to Sacramento going from about 85 degrees through about 102 degrees in Redding to about 105 degrees here in Sacramento. It’s hard to believe I used to live in this place – too hot for me!!

Not only too hot !! – way too many people driving way too many cars on way too few roads! When Peggy and I lived here – we lived on the north side of town, outside the city limits in what was sort of rural area. Not any more! Every man, woman, and child must own and drive a car here in the Golden State.

California must be in a long drought period. On the way down we drove over the I-5 bridge at Shasta Lake and saw the lake level down as much as I have ever seen. I think this is as low as the lake has been since the built the Dam!
Today we got a slow start, did a little local shopping for couple of watch batteries, visited my absolutely favorite Taco Joint – Jimboy’s Tacos – for lunch and then back to the motorhome for a siesta. We are going over to Peggy’s sister Robin’s house for a get-together with three of the “Durham” sisters. Tomorrow we will be going over to sister Terri’s house for a mini Durham Family reunion with all the sisters scheduled to show up and a bunch of the nieces and nephews too. This will probably not be as big a bash as the Evringham Family Reunion – but it will be great to see all the “Durham’s” nonetheless.

"Rig Coach for Drive"

Yesterday was "chore" day - with a bit more visiting thrown in. Peggy worked on the laundry and rearranging the inside motorhome storage to make room for Nan's "stuff." I changed the oil, took the motorhome to a local RV Park to dump the waste water tanks and fill the propane tank, and also helped put stuff away that needs to be stowed before we hit-the-road.

Today will be more of the same. I need to repair a broken cord on one of our window day-night shades, wash the car, and re-arrange the basement storage (again). Getting ready to travel in the motorhome reminds me a bit of my submarine days. We need to "Rig Ship for Dive" and then hear the Klaxton horn and the "Chief-of-the-Boat" holler "Dive-Dive-Dive." Or perhaps more accurately "Rig Coach for Drive" and "Drive-Drive-Drive."

I'll start looking for the Klaxton ....

Reno - Airplanes - and the CHP

Whew - things are almost back to sort of normal around here! After a crazy-fun weekend it was time for all the east coast Evringham's to head home soooo on Monday we caravaned over the 250 miles to Reno, NV with Peggy, Nan, Aunt Mamie, and I in one car, Brian, Nicky, Alyssa, and Emily in another car, and Eric, Jenn, and Stacy in the third car. All except Brian and his gang stayed overnight at the Silver Legacy Casino/Hotel in downtown Reno - "The Biggest Little City in the World." We were joined by my cousin Steven who graciously treated us all to a great meal at the buffet near the Silver Legacy. After filling our belly's once again the adults got in a little gambling (Mike was able to leave Reno with a couple hundred in winnings - but more on that later) before Brian and gang had to leave to catch the Red-Eye flight back to Philly.

After a pretty lousy night's sleep the Maine Evringham's (minus the Maineiacs) caught their flights in the morning - Steven, Aunt Mamie, Peg, Nan, and I had some breakfast and then started the treks back home - Steven and Aunt Mamie to Sacramento - Nan, Peggy, and I back to Yreka.

During the trip back to Yreka we stopped at a scenic point and captured some nice pictures of Mt. Lassen and Mt. Shasta from the same spot. Did you know that Mt. Lassen erupted in 1915? It must have been a pretty interesting event - the aftermath can still be seen pretty dramatically in Lassen National Park.

After our picture break we re-started our trip through the mountains and "Hat Creek" area along Highway 89. Did you know that the speed limit in the Hat Creek area on Highway 89 drops from 65 MPH to 55 MPH - well it appears that the local CHP (that's "California Highway Patrol" for you east coaster's) does and I didn't. No need for further details here but let's just say that my Nevada winnings will probably all be transferred to Shasta County California sometime in the next month or so.

Now that we have completed the Reunion fun it is time to get the Motorhome and its occupants ready to get back in motion and continue our adventure. There are groceries to buy and load, laundry to take care of, motor oil to change, and lots of stuff to repack. That should keep us busy for the next few days before we head for Sacramento on Friday.

Stay tuned - more fun and adventures to follow ...

Catching Up

OK - OK - I know I have been over due for a blog update but it got really busy around here all of a sudden! Since my last update we got busy doing pre-reunion chores around the resort here and then all the east coast Evringham's started to arrive and then tons of west coast relatives I haven't seen for a long time (30-40 years in a few cases) have shown up! Yesterday we had the big party and it was a big success thanks to the efforts of my sisters Marcie and Jamie. Not only did all the normal party logistics go off without a hitch - Nan was really surprised to see some of the guests that she hadn't seen in may years THEN she was presented with a beautiful hand made quilt made by my sister Marcie that had pictures of all her kids, grandkids, and great grandkids printed on fabric and made into the quilt. Awesome job Marcie.

After the big celebration, feast, and general visit - a bunch of us more redneck Evringham's snuck out to the local 1/4 mile dirt track for a rousing evening of down-home good-ol-boy dirt track racing - we even took the newly arrived foreign exchange student - I think we may have setback relations with Germany a few years! Jamie and Ernie only have about 10 months to repair the poor girl's first impressions of America.

Today is somewhat of a come down day as some of the relatives are heading home and most of us need the rest! Tomorrow my kids are heading back to Reno in preparation of flights back home. Since Nan never likes to miss an opportunity to play a few slots - Peggy, I, and my Aunt Mamie will also be heading to Reno to see off the kids, help Nan gamble a bit. After spending the night in Reno we will be driving back to Yreka to get some rest and prepare for the start of the Eastward trip back home with Nan.

Cool Air and Clear Skies

What a difference a day makes! Yesterday it was pretty warm here at around 95 degrees and there was a very noticeable haze resulting from the forest fires that are still burning here in Northern California. A front moved through last night that really cooled down the temps and cleared the air nicely! Today was very comfortable with temps in the 80s and it was nice to be able to see the surrounding mountains with clarity.

As scheduled - Sister Jamie and I drove over to McCloud today and met Sister Marcie and BIL Don to take car of some furniture acquisitions and then traveled back to Yreka for more visiting. On the way back I stopped in the city of Mt. Shasta to take a picture of the mountain. Although I saw this mountain almost every day for the 3+ years I lived at its base when I was in high school - it never ceases to impress me as a majestic sight. Even though it looks better covered in snow - the summer look is pretty nice too.

Upon my return to the Quiring Resort facilities I was treated to seeing my wife and mother covered in paint! It seems that Peggy was practicing for using face paint with the grandkids when they arrive and needed mom as a model. You just can't leave these two alone for very long and not expect mischief!

Chillin'

Except for finally getting the motorhome washed - today was pretty much a relaxation day here at the Quiring RV Resort, Bed & Breakfast, and Day Spa. I think today was more the calm before the storm as it seems the activity will start to pick up tomorrow with the arrival of Sister Marcie and BIL Don from Minden, NV. It looks like Sister Jamie and I will meet them in the old Evringham hometown of McCloud in the AM to help with moving some new furniture acquisitions and then back here to Yreka.

Since today was pretty much a goof off day - we (actually Ernie) did get a chance to watch the hummingbird feeder and get a few pictures of the bunch of hummers that hang around here as well as a couple of nice shots of a big Butterfly that happened by.

Meanwhile the preparations for the Evringham Family Reunion continue here in Yreka - it looks like the weather will be nice with temps just under 100 degrees - so we will be prepared for anything.

Peggy and I hope all is well with all of you.

We Made It!

After 14 days and 3521 miles we finally made it to Yreka yesterday about 2 PM. The drive to Yreka from Diamond Lake was nice and uneventful although the route we took through Medford involved a bit of curvy mountain road driving - but no big deal - all-in-all a pretty nice and pretty 130 mile drive, Unfortunately some of the beautiful scenery was a bit obscured by a slight smoke haze as we made it over the Siskiyou Mountains and down into Yreka. It was also pretty warm here when we arrived - a bit over 100 degrees! It is a dry heat - but a hundred is hot nonetheless.


Of course we had to visit a bunch after we got here so the Blog had to wait until today.



Preparations are well underway here for the big Evringham Family Reunion next week. It looks like it will be a somewhat gradual buildup in craziness as we have a few days of relative quiet until the New Jersey Evringhams show up on Wednesday, the rest of the Maine Evringhams show up on Thursday, a bunch more folks show up on Friday and then the big shindig on Saturday. Oh yeah - I forgot to mention - It's a long story but I guess Sister Jamie and BIL Ernie have decided to host a 16 year old foreign exchange student from Germany for the next school year. It looks like Kirsten will be showing up on Friday as well! This will be a real wild introduction to America!


Stay Tuned - this is definitely going to be an interesting week ...

Waterfalls

After a great nights sleep here in the Umpqua National Forest Peggy and I got a leisurely start to the day with a great late breakfast and then Peggy did some chores inside the motorhome while I did a couple of loads of laundry (yes - it is hard to believe but I actually did some laundry!) After that tough morning and bite of lunch we headed off in the Vue west on Highway 138 toward Roseburg, OR to see some relatively local waterfalls. During the 20 mile trip west we dropped about 3,000 feet in elevation and must have killed about 100 of the million or so monarch butterflys that seem to be swarming here in the higher elevations.

We visited 3 waterfalls - Clearwater, Whitehorse, and Watson. The first two were really nice small falls right off the roadway. Then there was Watson Falls - I don't know how I get myself into these situations but before I knew it I was trekking uphill again on a path to a waterfall that they said was only 1/4 mile away that seemed to be at least a mile - straight up! OK - I may be exaggerating a bit - but not much. Once we got there the falls were really neat with a 300 or so foot drop.




Peg is off finishing the laundry while I write this and then I think she wants to take me on another walk down to the lake. Unfortunately the walk DOWN to the lake will involve another walk back UP. We'll see?!

Well tomorrow it's off to finish our westward journey and settle in for awhile at the Quiring RV Resort. We are looking forward to seeing all our relatives over the next few weeks and visiting a bunch before we figure out how we are going to get back to Maine.





Look Out - Here We Come Again

America The Beautiful

America is truly beautiful - From Sea To Shining Sea. Today we were treated to some of that beauty as we bid adieu for now to Bend and headed south down Route 97. We didn't get far south of Bend before we pulled into the Lava Butte National Monument where we spent about 2 hours learning about the volcanic nature of the area, including Lava Butte. Although the internet connection is pretty slow tonight and I may have to wait to add pictures to this entry - Peggy got some nice pictures of the lava flow area as we took the interpretive tour with the local Ranger.

After leaving Lava Butte we passed the old Evringham haunts of La Pine, Rosland, and Gilchrist into Chemult where we found gas for $3.839 a gallon (pretty good for the Pacific Time Zone). We then headed over to Diamond Lake which is a very pretty lake just north of Crater Lake National Park - where we set up the RV and took the car for about a 50 mile spin around the rim of Crater Lake. For those of you who don't know - about 7700 years ago it seems Mt. Mazama here in Oregon erupted spewing bunches of cubic miles of lava and ash all over the northwest and then the erupting stopped and the volcano basically fell in on itself and formed this huge crater (actually a caldera) that later filled with rain and snow melt to form Crater Lake. At its deepest point the lake is about 3000 feet deep - although they never have been able to measure the bottom in a few places. This place is definitely on my top 10 list of places you need to see in America. Hopefully I can get a few pictures posted and you can see what I mean.

Speaking of pictures - you may not know that Peggy is the photo-journalist on our Maineiacs In Motion Blog. Thank goodness for digital cameras and lots of memory to store stuff. She took over 157 pictures today! Some were really good - some are good candidates for immediate deletion - but it sure kept her busy.

The RV Park here at Diamond Lake is very nice and we have decided to spend tomorrow here as well and do a little more exploring in the area. I think I may hide the camera though so Peggy gets a chance to enjoy the scenery!

In Search of Evringhams

Today was genealogy day. Peggy and I started the day by finding Pilot Butte Cemetery here in Bend and then quickly were able to find the graves of my Great Grandfather, William and his wife Carrie and two sons, Ernest and Harry. Considering I had never been there before and considering that Carrie, Harry, and Ernest were buried in 1919 (William in 1928) - I was pretty surprised that I was able to find the sites right off! The city of Bend maintains this cemetery and it is in very nice condition.

We then found the local historical society which is housed in the old schoolhouse built in 1914. They have a lot of interesting displays, some very helpful employees/volunteers, and a fantastic research area where we were able to find several mentions of my grandfather and his family living in and around the bend area from about 1908 and into the 1940s. After spending several hours in the books and looking at the displays we drove about 30 miles south to the small town of La Pine where my Great Grandparents had a 160 acre homestead in the early 1900s and my grandfather and grandmother lived in small logging camps in the 1920s and 1930s. We happened by the local library where we stopped in and asked if they had any local history info. They did have a book on the pioneers of the La Pine area which I took a look at and lo and behold - my grandmother and her family were mentioned in the book! Fortunately the book was available for sale so I was able to purchase a copy.

It certainly is amazing what one can come across on such an adventure.

Although I could spend many more days here in Bend searching for my "roots" I think I'll save some for another day and another trip. Tomorrow we are off to see Crater Lake. Peg and I have been to Crater Lake many years ago (1979 I think) and I remember it being really beautiful - so tomorrow we plan on a short travel day of about 90 miles and a tour of the lake.

TREES !

Finally, some trees! One thing about the route we took to get here to Bend - it may have been a good route for the pioneers but it certainly wasn't the most "scenic." Unless of course you enjoy hundreds of miles of high desert. Actually some of the scenery today was very nice - including being treated to watching a crop duster do his thing - these guys are amazing - I swear the wheels of this plane were touching the corn as he flew over!

Then there was the other 250 miles.

But now that we have reached Bend on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains we are amongst some nice pines along with the junipers we have been seeing along the way since we arrived in Idaho.




Well - we made it to the first destination spot on the 2008 summer trip. 10 days and 3300 miles - but we made it. It was another beautiful day as we traveled through eastern Oregon today with the sun out all day and the high only about 82 degrees. I see from the local forecast that the weather is going to continue to be nice but getting a little warmer each day.


We (I) decided to treat ourselves to a nice RV Resort here in Bend. Not that some of the other places haven't been nice - but since we plan on being here a few days I decided to stay at the Crown Villa RV Park - a condo-like park with all the amenities. Check out the huge site with the paving stone parking area. Every site here uses these pavers for the parking area! Makes my little 14' x 7' area I did at home seem pretty puny. Also notice my co-pilot in the picture - relaxing after a tough day of navigating!

It isn't as nice and amenity filled as the Quiring RV Resort in California will be in a couple days - but it will have to do for now.

Idaho

Today's trip into and almost through Idaho was mostly uneventful except for Peggy breaking off a piece of a tooth! It looks like a trip to the dentist may be in order for her before we make it back home. It apparently doen't hurt (yet) but we'll see how it feels as a bit of time goes on.

We had a nice sunny travel day and the temperatures even cooperated and didn't rise above the mid 80s. We noticed this sign at a rest stop shortly after we arrived in Idaho and then noticed this large and rather loud bird on the lightpole. I can only assume that this is a Ferruginous Hawk! I didn't disturb him/her but he/she did not seem to like us hanging around too long.

We landed for the afternoon/evening in Caldwell, Idaho - a bit north of Boise. It is weird in that it is now nearing 9:00 PM outside and the sun is still shining! Some of this phenomena must be due to the fact that the Pacific Time Zone in this area doesn't start until we get about a hundred miles into Oregon.

Tomorrow is travel day 10 and is pretty much the end of our westward journey. We plan on being in Bend, OR tomorrow and plan on spending a few days there doing some genealogical sightseeing/research and also getting a few days rest from the 10 day trek across America.

After a few days in Bend we will be heading south to Yreka, CA to visit our primary destination - The Quiring RV Resort, Bed & Breakfast, and Day Spa. We look forward to seeing all there again!

Searching for Louisiana

Yesterday got off to a bit of a rocky start but ended up OK after all was said and done. Peggy and I got up realatively early, had some breakfast, and pretty much followed our morning pre-travel routine. After all was prepared - we sat down ready to start our travels - when guess what? I turned the engine start key and got nothing back in return! I then spent about an hour checking things out and finally found a loose connection on the starter solenoid. Once that was tightened all was back to normal and we were on-the-road. We spent the next 6 or so hours finishing our drive through Wyoming and into Utah,, finishing our day in Brigham City - a bit north of Salt Lake City. I suppose western Wyoming is gorgeous to some but I admit that I didn't think the border was ever going to come.

Like many who spend a lot of time driving, Peggy and I play travel games once in awhile to help the miles go by faster. We start each of our long trips by trying to find vehicles with license plates from all 50 states. We understand that finding one from Hawaii is tough - but we keep looking. Last year it took us all the way to California to finally find our 49th state (Montana). This year the offending state was Louisiana. As we headed further west through Wyoming all seemed lost when all of a sudden - right before the Utah border a little Honda from Louisiana passed us by! Now if we can only get that elusive Hawaii!!

I told you we were Maineiacs.

The weather got a little exciting last night when a thunderstorm moved through about 3:00 AM. Lots of high winds, thunder, and lightning. But all is over now at 7:00 AM and the skies look pretty clear. I guess we better get ready for another day of adventure.

Today it is off to Idaho where we plan on stopping near the Idaho/Oregon border for the night.

The High Plains

Today we made it out of Nebraska - no easy feat - you may remember that I thought NY was a "wide" state - I had forgotten that Nebraska is even "wider." It is interesting to note the topography (and geology) changes as you head west from North Platte. The elevation in North Platte is about 3,000 feet and you don't really notice it for awhile but you are steadily gaining elevation as you head west. By the time you get just east of Laramie, WY you top out at about 8700 feet. You don't get the same sense of elevation as I imagine you would going over the rockies on I-70 but you sure can see the difference in the countryside. You start off with a combination of farms and pasture around North Platte, transition to mostly pasture by the time you reach the WY border and then you get into what I guess is called the high prairie. Although you still see some cattle grazing here and there - I think the economy here in WY is getting to be "Energy" based - you will see a number of oil wells, a good deal of coal in cars being shipped east and south, and a growing number of wind generators. The wind farm just east of Rawlins, WY must have at least a hundred generators and it has been pretty windy every time I travel through here. Although it certainly isn't the unique answer that a lot of folks would like to believe - wind energy has its place.

We are settled in here in Rawlins, WY for the evening. We traveled through some pretty good thunderstorms today and the weather looks a bit "unsettled" out there right now. Tomorrow looks like a bit of the same as we head for Utah - although I see the temperature forecast for Salt Lake City tomorrow is 93 degrees. Time to prepare ourselves for some rising temperatures and fuel prices as we meander further west ...

As you can see I have been more successful in posting some pictures (even a short video!). It appears to me that the quality of the internet connection makes all the difference in getting these pictures to upload correctly. Since this seems to be working - I have gone back and edited some of the previous posts. Check 'em out and have fun.