It Rains in California

What a day.  We left Madera about 10 am and headed north on Hwy.99.  In Sacramento, we transitioned to I-5 northbound.  About an hour north of Sacramento, it started to rain.  Just a little at first, but as we went further north it became a steady rain requiring full time windshield wipers.  The last 100 miles or so of our trip was in the rain. 

The original plan was to get to Redding today, but that was a 306 mile drive.  So after studying the weather on my Weather App,  I decided we would stop in Corning, CA because it cut a little over 50 miles off the trip.  So glad I did; it would have been hell to drive another hour in that rain.  Then Barbie, our GPS, led us astray.  She took us to a farm field about 8 miles south of Corning and announced "You have arrived."   Well, I had scoped out the RV Park on Google Earth before we left and I knew right away this was not right.  She had us on the right road, just off by a few miles.  On the way to Heritage RV Park, I found diesel fuel for $3.989 at a station I could pull the rig through.  Anything under $4.00 is a good deal in California these days.

This RV Park is good for an overnight stay.  The sites are long and level, but pretty narrow.  Lots of long termers here though.  Set up in a light rain.  Was able to stay hitched to the truck so we can depart quickly in the morning.   It finally stopped raining after dinner, so I was able to take the pooches for a potty walk.  They were way past due what with 6 hours in the truck and very few places to stop along the way.

Rosie whipped up a great turkey meatloaf with baked potatoes and peas.  With a good meal and an adult beverage in the digestive tract, life is better.  Tomorrow we cross into Oregon.

Thanks for stopping by.

I’m Baaaaack!

I last posted on New Years Eve reflecting on the passage of 2013 and many of the things we experienced during that year.  It is now the end of March 2014 and we are on the move again after 5 months at the Ventura Oaks KOA near Santa Paula, CA.  It was a different experience staying in one spot for 5 months.  The Cedar Campground where we were at the KOA is the “long term” loop.  There are about 10 full time RV dwellers there with a variety of stories to learn.  One couple has been there for over 5 years; a single gentleman has been there about 3 years.  Our next door neighbors on each side have been there around a year each.  Most are working in the area having lost long term work in other parts of the country.  The couple in the site next to us just had their second child, a boy.  They have a 3 year old little girl and a really cute puppy.  She is a traveling nurse; he is a stay-at-home dad.  They just purchased a new fifth wheel with a 2nd bedroom and half bath to accommodate their growing family.  Living there was like living in a regular suburban neighborhood.

It was good to be close to our kids and grandkids for 5 months.  That is the longest time we have been geographically close since we left So. Cal. in 1993 and moved to the Denver area.  Our grandsons are growing up so quickly and getting taller every day.  They are now 12 and 15.  With a lot of tall people in my family and their parents being tall, they should top out well over 6 feet.  They are getting good grades.  The oldest is interested in Science and Art and is in a magnet school.  The younger one is very active in sports.  It is interesting to watch them mature into young men.

Over the last few days I checked out all the systems on the camper and the truck, including adding air to the tires, adding coolant to the truck, checked the water level in all the batteries, etc..  This morning when I pushed the buttons to activate the slides I wasn’t quite sure how they would work since they have been extended for 5 months.  But all went well.  We had stocked up on liquor and wine since they are cheap in So. Cal. and expensive in Oregon.  We also stocked up on some Trader Joe’s items since it will be 7 months before we see the inside of one of their stores again.

This morning we hooked up and headed up the road about 8:30 am.  We arrived at the Country Living RV Park in Madera, CA about 2:00 pm.  We had stopped for lunch in a Wal-Mart parking lot on the way.  We were amazed to discover about 45 channels of over-the-air television until we started going through channels and finding about 10 Spanish Language channels and 6 or so Home Shopping channels.  Anyway we have some entertainment on site.

Tomorrow morning I have a work assignment one mile from our campground (how is that for planning), then we hit the road for Redding, CA.  The Weather Channel forecast for our destination is rain showers and temps in the 30’s to 50’s this week.  I hope it warms up and dries out a little bit after that.

Thanks for stopping by.