Mojave Desert, at last!

I didn't want to spend a lot more time at the hot springs near Bridgeport, Ca, as the amount of sunshine (therefore warmth) during the day was limited, and I also didn't want to deal with any weekenders that might show up.

To make sure I had enough fuel to avoid buying any at the prices in Bridgeport (below), I dumped in both of my 5 gallon cans of spare fuel, and we headed south on the 395.

Little consideration was given to stopping at all the hot springs near Mammoth Lakes for some of the same reasons as above.  As well, the ski hill there was now open for the season - which usually means that crowds of skiers descend on the pools every evening.  And lastly, several years ago, BLM decided to block off the spot near the springs where I often spent a few days camping and soaking.

So we carried on down to Bishop, where the Paiute Casino gas station provided us with fills of diesel, propane at reasonable prices, and water for free!

Daylight was showing signs of fading for the day as we approached Lone Pine, so it was an easy decision to overnight up in the Alabama Hills where we have spent a fair bit of time in the past.

The area was getting a lot of use and abuse from a variety of user groups, resulting in lots of trampling, dust, and most likely a lot of human waste spread around.  So, even at our last visit two seasons ago, BLM had started to rehab some areas, and re-planting some vegetation, and closing some questionable routes.  This has obviously been continuing.  Heading up into the hills from town, virtually all of the admittedly lousy, uneven, roadside spots are now signed as 'no camping' from the landlord, LA Water & Power, who own most of the valley.  Up on Movie road, most of the easily accessible (dusty) roadside spots are now marked as 'no camping'.  And, the entire area to the west, favoured by rock climbers in their vans, tents, VW buses, is now marked as 'day use only'!  I can imagine the climbers are not impressed.  Sure, they can still camp in the 'open' areas and commute to their favourite climbing routes, but ...

I headed for my own 'usual' private spot, but it was already occupied (dang it all), and I managed to add some new grooves to the truck box getting the 5th turned around on the narrow, uneven roads :-(.

There are still a lot of available spots for vans or truck campers, but much less so for bigger rigs, unless they like to crowd together in the area where the pavement ends?  I don't.  We spent a quiet night in a previously scouted area - generally on the way towards Tuttle Creek campground.  Again, the weather was not that inviting, so it was only an over-nighter.  We had warmer places in our sights!

 

Next day, after stocking up on fuel and food again in Barstow, we aimed for a spot in Mojave National Preserve where we have previously camped and enjoyed several times in the past.

 

Decent warmth - finally!  Time to kick back, relax, stop driving and enjoy the weather, the scenery, and the Mojave desert.  Hailey loves it too.  She was eager to get out, hunt for some kangaroo rats, and prove that 3-legged felines can still climb trees.

And enjoy the sunsets!

In fact, this is the spot we came to relax and rehab after having her leg amputated in Vegas two years ago.

My 'new' method of satellite dish stabilization has now been tested for two years, and I no longer bother bringing along any other type of support.  Usually, I clamp the plank under whichever corner jack of the rig has a southern exposure, but this time the front hitch got the nod.  Even in strong winds, that dish is not going to move - unless the rig tips over.  Simple, free, effective.

This area has a lot of potential for exploring old abandoned mines and structures, old trails, mountains, caves and dry lake beds.

No one else camped within view, or for miles, although one night a jeep and a tent appeared not 50 yards away despite a thousand square miles of other options.  But, they arrived in the dark, were quiet, and left first thing in the morning.

I had the new e-bike out - cruising for miles across the dry lake bed and trails.  I think it will prove very handy down here this year.

Hailey, doing her morning kitty-yoga routine.

California Coast to the Sierras

 As we headed southward, we enjoyed a few days just parked on the side of the highway overlooking the ocean along the northern California coast.

 

 But the weather was starting to get cloudier and cool, so it was time to continue on southward.

We stopped in Fort Bragg for some fuel, than took the Comptche Ukiah road from Mendocino to Ukiah.  While the road was well paved throughout, and quite an easy drive for the first half, the second part became very winding, and narrow with many switchbacks and steep grades, with few views, so won't be on my itinerary in the future.  From there, it was across the central valley to Williams, then down the I-5 to Sacramento before turning east again along highway 50 leading through the Sierras and Eldorado National Forest.  We were kind of aiming for a little roadside campsite at Sand Flat, where we have over nighted a couple of times in the past.  Unfortunately, a huge wildfire passed through the area in September.  The campground wasn't burned, but it was closed because it was an access point for an obviously massive salvage logging operation.  So we had to continue on in the dark, and eventually just parked in a viewpoint along highway 89, just south of Lake Tahoe.

It's a pretty scenic route from that point, with some 8000' passes and very light traffic.

 

We stopped here for about an hour to have a snack and let Hailey out for a look around.  I think only two vehicles went by during that time!

We picked up 395 going down east of the Sierras, and got to Bridgeport, where the fuel prices again topped anything I have seen!

             Nov 2021                                             Nov 2019

We got our 'usual' BLM camp spot near Travertine hot springs, and spent a few days soaking in the wonderful hot water in a variety of semi-natural pools.  It was the first time this trip to actually un-hook, put out the slides, and really relax.

 

Some nice sunrises from the pools.

Next - Lone Pine - Alabama Hills and further south.

Southern Migration - Oregon/California coast on the 101

 We spent a quiet, but breezy night on the side of the road overlooking the John Day dam from the Washington state side of the Columbia river.  Normally, we'd be right down by the water, watching the tugs and barges going in and out of the locks on the dam, but that area is now signed as day use only area :-(  I guess things change when you are forced to take a year off from southern travel?

A few splashes of rain followed us down the I-84 on the Oregon side of the river approaching Portland, but it cleared up as we skirted the city on the south west side. 

 

It would have been nice to stop in at the Fry's Electronics store in Wilsonville, just south of Portland on the I-5, but unfortunately it appears that all those stores have closed down :-(.   Many stores were sadly getting bare shelves before we left due to covid in spring 2020.  

Making good time, the route took us further south-west to McMinnville, where we often overnight in the huge parking lot behind the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum.  It was early in the day, and I debated continuing on towards the coast.  Another 'new' sign helped make the decision.  I didn't check to see if there was a cost involved - and headed for the coast.

 

 Weather was a mixed bag, with frequent rain as we hit the coast at Lincoln City and headed southward.

  

 Next day, traffic was light on the 101, and the mixed bag of weather kept us moving along, ever southward, passing a number of spots where we typically stop for a night.  After getting diesel in Idaho for $3.25, it was a bit of a shock to see the prices along the southern Oregon coast. 

In Brookings, it was $4.99 at the Fred Meyer, and we managed to find the same price in Eureka, Ca.  But we saw some stations along the way showing $5.45!  I guess that's not bad (?) considering my Gas Buddy app shows the diesel price in Bridgeport, Ca at $6.29/gal!  Wow!

 Hailey was glad to be away from the snow; free to hunt seals and sea gulls again!

We made it as far as Orick, Ca. that day, and found our 'usual' private, ocean-view spot ready for us.  Too bad the locals (?) seem to like to dump their trash over the bank there ...

Next day was a short drive to the beaches near Fortuna.  The weather was now sunny and warm, with only light winds.  Time to slow down and smell the sea breezes!

 

Hailey, of course enjoys the endless sandbox of the dunes and beach areas!

Where to next?  Not sure, but it will be southbound for sure!

South of the 49th Parallel at last!

With three weeks to kill from the time the border opening announcement was made, till the border actually opened, there was plenty of time to get organized (and procrastinate) for the southern migration.  I doubt if I have ever been so well prepared - and impatient!  Since I have been using only the truck camper for all recent excursions, the 5th wheel needed to be brought back up to speed.

Batteries to be checked, fridge and furnace (never used) given test runs, see if the slides still work, stove, and moved the heater over from the truck camper.  Wiring checked and re-checked on the new 100W flexible solar panels and associated controllers.

 

Managed to get Hailey's vaccinations updated without anyone losing an eye or any blood.

Some of the tires were getting in fairly poor condition, and the spare was junk, so we hauled the rig into town to see if it still remembered how to tow, and to treat it to some new tires!

De-activated the home place, and spent the last night in the rig to make sure everything was up to speed.  Then, there was nothing left to do but pull out, and set up the high security gate to guard the place for the winter!

Still had a few days to kill, so we headed down highway 22 to Pincher Creek to check in on friends down there.  The highest winds were avoided, and a few world problems were solved.  Then we headed westbound, through the Crowsnest Pass, for the Rocky Mountains and British Columbia.

We pulled in to a provincial rec site for a night, so Hailey could get out for a bit - all while watching the snow line march ever lower on the nearby mountains.

The final night on Canadian soil was to be spent with friends near Cranbrook, BC, with a run for the border at some uncivilized hour in the morning - to hopefully beat the rumoured hordes of RV's and RV'ers who were reportedly massing along the whole southern border in eager anticipation of heading to warmer climes.  Guesses were that getting across the border could take hours or days, while negotiating the Covid restrictions, etc.  But I got a quick message from Wandering Willy, out further BC way that the border might actually open at 9PM BC time, instead of at midnight as expected!  I had already attempted due diligence, and phoned the US customs border station a week ago where I wanted to cross, but of course, it is impossible to get an actual person to answer the phone.  So, with best guess in mind, Ms Hailey and I said so long and headed for the border.  It was a pleasant hours drive, much of it through blowing snow and poor visibility, just to let us know what we would be missing while basking in the warmth of a Yuma and area winter!

She had already gotten back into the travel routine and re-established her preferred lounging areas in the trailer.

Much to our surprise, and contrary to a lot of the hype over snowbirds crowding the border approaches, we saw a total of two other rigs that might have been headed to the border!  There may have been more, but they were invisible in the lovely blowing snow!

There were no signs at the actual border, so we sat there and contemplated for a few minutes, wondering whether we should attempt the crossing and be turned back, or just go for it.  Another attempted phone call to the customs office we could now see - went unanswered.  So, with passport in hand and trepidation we went for broke.  Much to our pleasure, we were not turned back, and after a few of the usual questions on booze, vegetables and plans, "Oh, you're a snowbird", we were waved on through, and there was no one behind us!  We're off!

Because it was now about 10:30 at night (depending on time zone, daylight savings time, etc), and the periodic blizzards, we just drove about 5 miles into the US to the first roadside spot we could find and hit the sack.

It was a bit unnerving in the morning to see a speed plow go by on the highway, but a quick chat with the driver said that the roads were just wet, no snow.  So we carried on south through Bonners Ferry, Sandpoint, and Couer d'Alene, Idaho, then Spokane and southward to the Columbia River on the border of Washington and Oregon.  Looking forward to our 'usual' campspot on the river bank right by one of the locks, but was greeted by a new no camping sign as a welcome. :-(

So, we moved to a scenic, but exposed spot on the side of the road, and we'll see where tomorrow takes us!  Nice to be back on my unlimited, cheap, AT&T data plan after almost 19 months!  Despite the rumours of mass migration, we only saw one rig all day from BC, and a couple from Idaho and Washington state.  I guess we're leading the charge.  Maybe more will catch up in the next few days?

Stay tuned!