Monterey and Carmel
We arrived last Wednesday after a short, boring drive from Morro Bay. We settled into the Navy RV park on the grounds of the Monterey Pines Golf Course. It’s all part of the Naval Postgraduate School and the Defense Language Institute. The park is a bit primitive but suits our purpose. We aren’t here for the park; we’re here to experience the area. But the really cool thing about the park is the super-tame-and-friendly turkey that roams the grounds. She walks up and looks at you and talks, making cute little turkey sounds. She’s quite the charming bird.
Our first touristy stop was Cannery Row, made famous by Steinbeck’s novel novel of the same name. It’s pretty much a tourist trap, but fun anyway. The Monterey Aquarium is the centerpiece of the area. We planned to visit the aquarium but didn’t—terrible tourists, you know. Instead, we wandered around enjoying the great weather and the scenery, stopping at the Cannery Row Brewing Company (which doesn’t brew beer!) and having lunch at Paradiso Trattoria, a great little Italian restaurant on the water’s edge.
On Friday, we drove down the coast into Big Sur country. It’s a beautiful coastline, surprisingly remote and natural. Then, around noon, we returned back up to the coast to one of our favorite towns, Carmel by the Sea. We “discovered” Carmel in 2008 on our first fulltiming swing down the west coast and fell for it. It’s way too crowded and way too expensive, but it’s also one of the greatest little towns in the U.S. We had lunch at the Hog’s Breath Inn, once owned by Clint Eastwood. We wandered around visiting little shops, spent an hour or so on the beach, did some wine tasting, and generally enjoyed ourselves. If you haven’t experienced Carmel, put it on your bucket list.
After our day in Carmel, we had a great evening with friends from Castle Rock, CO, our former next-door-neighbors, Ron and Vicki, and their family. We truly love Ron and Vicki. They’re about the best humans you’re ever likely to run across. They and their family were in town for the Big Sur marathon. Ron, in particular, is an impressive runner. This year, he came in twelveth in his age group, quite an incredible accomplishment considering the world-class competition. Ron and Vicki—we miss you! (Unfortunately, I left my camera at home so we have no photos from the evening.)
On Sunday, we traveled upcoast to Santa Cruz to visit friends we met in Denver several years ago. Ann worked with Deb at Sports Authority and became fast friends. Ryan and I hit it off, since we’re both pilots and motorcycle riders. Ryan and Deb moved to Santa Cruz a few weeks ago and are renting a great little bungalow near the beach. We had lunch on the deck at the Seabright Brewery. Good food, great beer, great friends—it doesn’t get much better.
Our other brew pub visit was to Peter B’s Brewpub, located in the Portola Hotel near the beach in Monterey. They brew their excellent beers on site—it’s not your typical hotel pub.
Tomorrow, we head north to the Petaluma area, where we’ll park at the Coast Guard Training Base west of town. While there, we’ll celebrate Ann’s birthday (#29) and our anniversary (#24). Yeah, I married a five-year-old.
Alan
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Edwards AFB and Morro Bay
We never left the base during our two-day stop. Instead, we visited the Air Test Center Museum, the NASA Visitor’s Center, and a few other places on base. We also walked a lot, enjoying the untold miles of trails crisscrossing the 470 square mile base. We tidied up the motorhome and stocked up on steaks from the commissary. It was a pleasant stop.
Then on Friday, sixteen days after leaving Denver, we left Edwards and four hours later arrived at our first milestone, the Pacific Coast at Morro Bay, CA. Morro Bay is a great little coastal town, famous for the monster haystack rock. The downtown area is full of restaurants and pubs, as are most of the little costal towns. Ann and I enjoy wandering around in such towns, stopping in shops and the occasional pub, and people-watching.
We’re parked at the Morro Dunes RV Park, about as close to the beach as you can get in a 40’ motorhome. The park is old and crowded, but we aren’t here for the park; we’re here for the beach. We’re spending an hour or so in the morning walking the beach and then returning in the afternoon. Muffin is in heaven. She loves to chase the birds in the edge of the surf. Given her plentiful fur, she picks up about five pounds of sand every trip that we have to get off her before she’s allowed back in the motorhome. Luckily, a little sand never hurt anyone.
We’re also enjoying some of the inland towns, particularly Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo. Both are towns I believe we could enjoy living in, except for the California prices. Both are surrounded by beautiful country, rolling hills full of farms and vineyards. Both are also home to some great breweries; in particular, the Firestone Walker Brewing Company in Paso Robles, brewer of some of the finest beers in the craft beer world. So far, we’ve visited Firestone Walker, SLO Brewing, Creekside Brewing, and Pismo Brewing, and we may work in another one or two today. Have I mentioned I’m a beer nut?
We end our time here tomorrow and head up the coast to Monterey, CA, so we’d better get busy and visit all the spots we’ve missed. Our best to you all. See’ya in Monterey!
Alan
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Las Vegas
Some people love Vegas; some hate it. I’m somewhere near the middle. It’s an interesting place to visit for about 48 hours, after which I’m done. But it’s a good thing we don’t all agree on things of taste, or Vegas would either be overrun by people or deserted. As it is, it’s just crowded and busy and crazy and fun, at least for most folks.
We arrived on Thursday after an uneventful drive from Williams, AZ, and settled into a nice parking spot at the FamCamp (Family Campground) at Nellis AFB. Nellis is a nice base with lots of flying going on, some of which is done the F-16’s that I once flew. It’s nice to hear Vipers going over at low altitude. Hard to believe that it’s been almost 20 years since I last swung a leg over a canopy rail.
As I said last time, we’re terrible tourists. We spent one day on The Strip, wandering around enjoying the sights and marveling at the melting pot of people. A visit to the shops along the canal in the Venetian Hotel, an IPA (good but not great) at the Sin City Brewing Company, and an incredible lunch at the buffet at the Bellagio pretty much sums up our day. We then headed home without seeing any shows and, since neither of us are gamblers, with our retirement savings intact. Pretty boring tourists, huh?
We also spent a day touring Lake Mead and Hoover Dam, one of the marvels of the modern world. It’s amazing that most of the construction was done during the dark days of the Great Depression.
We couldn’t build it now. The folks in Congress can’t agree on the most trivial things, so to think that they could agree to fund a project like Hoover Dam is silly. I’m afraid those days are behind us.
Last Friday, I unexpectedly got to do something that was what I call “a hoot.” A friend with whom Ann used to work was in town, so we met him and his wife for lunch at a truck stop diner next to the Las Vegas Speedway, which is also home to Shelby American, Inc., maker of some of America’s most famous cars such as the Shelby Cobra. Well, it turns out that Ann’s friend owns a Shelby GT500 Mustang that he bought at the factory, so after lunch we followed him to the factory to see their museum. As it happens, he ran into one of the people he had dealt with when buying his car, who invited us to their “skunk works” to see #98, one of the prototypes of the new Shelby Focus ST (the same car tested by Autoweek). But the icing on the cake came when the fellow asked if we’d like to take a test drive. We were soon blasting up and down the deserted back streets of the Speedway like the devil was after us. It’s an amazing little car!
Other than that, we worked at getting the motorhome livable. We simply ran out of time in Denver so we piled boxes and bags and clothes everywhere and have been living in the mess until now. Being here for a week gave us (mostly Ann) time to sort things out and get the place in order. I’m not sure where it all went, but it’s out of sight!
Tomorrow morning, we leave for a couple of days at Edwards AFB, home to the Air Force and NASA Test Centers since World War II, which makes it holy ground to an old flyer like me. After Edwards, we travel west to the coast at Morro Bay, CA. I’ll be in touch then.
P.S. Note that I’ve turned comments on (click “Comments” below on the right). Being untested, I can’t guarantee a quality user experience, but give it a shot. I’d really like your feedback.
Alan
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Santa Fe
Today is Tuesday. We arrived in Santa Fe last Thursday, planning to stay four nights and depart Monday (yesterday). Well, Mother Nature had other plans. The weather has been great here until today, but it’s been ugly to the west along our planned route to Williams, AZ and then Las Vegas, NV. A monster storm raced down from the upper Pacific coast bringing winds of 40-50 mph with gusts above 70. On Sunday morning, the National Weather Service issued wind warnings along I-40 through western New Mexico and all of Arizona, specifically advising “high profile vehicles such as trucks and RVs should avoid travel through the area.” Having experienced lane-changing gusts in the past, I decided staying in Santa Fe for a couple more days would be wise. So, we adjusted plans, rescheduled reservations, and are still in Santa Fe. I’m glad we did; yesterday, a long section of I-40 was closed to all traffic due to high winds and blowing dust. We had a dust storm here yesterday afternoon, sleet and snow this morning, and are expecting more snow this afternoon and tonight. Extending our stay here was, to put it lightly, a very good decision. Luckily, it’s been warm enough that no snow accumulation is expected, so with a little luck we’ll hit the road tomorrow, hopefully in much-improved conditions.
But that’s not all. Yesterday morning I went online to America’s Mailbox, our mail forwarding service, and ordered a delivery of mail to meet us in Las Vegas. This morning, I received an email from the owner of the business advising that the Postal Service has suspended all mail services until further notice due to snow and high winds in Rapid City, SD. Thus, our mail will not ship until Thursday or Friday. So now I’m facing the decision of whether I should leave the order in place and hope the shipment will make it to Las Vegas before we leave, or cancel the shipment and order another later, perhaps while we’re in Morro Bay, CA. I guess I’ll wait for an update on conditions in Rapid City tomorrow morning and make the decision then. Such is the life of the fulltimer. You make plans…, and then you adjust.
April 10, 2013 09:25 PM
We left Santa Fe in light blowing snow this morning and are now in Williams, AZ. The trip was windy but uneventful. Tomorrow is forecast to be even better.
William’s claim to fame is the Grand Canyon Railway and their famous Route 66 main drag. We just returned from brews and BBQ at Cruiser’s, a 1950’s style diner on Route 66, which also hosts the Grand Canyon Brewing Company. Kinda fun.
Tomorrow morning, we head west to Las Vegas, where we’ll spend six days at the FamCamp (“family campground,” an RV park) on Nellis AFB. Check back in a few days for our Las Vegas report.
Alan
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On the Road Again
Time passes, things change. Decisions that were right when they were made—decisions that changed the direction of your life—are revisited. The endless conflict between the known and the unknown, between security and adventure, demands new decisions.
That’s where we’re at. Almost three years ago, on June 4, 2010, I posted my last blog entry, “Full Circle,” to our old Web site. In it, I explained that we were coming off the road, leaving the fulltime motorhome life behind. I explained why. I ended it with a tone of finality; I really believed we were done. Our adventure was over, or so I thought.
But time passes and things change. We’ve spent the last two-plus years in a beautiful townhouse in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, enjoying the wonderful Colorado lifestyle. We’ve made new friends here, explored the area, and settled into new working arrangements. It’s been pleasant and secure and enjoyable, but…
There’s little adventure to be found in suburbia, and we’re addicted to adventure.
So we’re hitting the road again. Over the last three months we’ve put our house up for sale, stored the few things we can’t give up but can’t take with us and sold or tossed the rest, spruced up our 2003 Newmar Kountry Star 3905 motorhome, said our goodbyes, and tied up a lot of loose ends. And then we waited. And waited. And waited.
And now—finally—Ann has quit her job. Today is her last day. We closed on the sale of our house a week ago and drove to South Dakota and became residents. Today, we depart.
The plan is to stop for one night at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and then head south to Santa Fe, west to California, and then work our way slowly up the coast to the Puget Sound, taking all summer to do so. Of course, plans may change. That’s one of the great things about the fulltiming lifestyle—there’s nothing forcing us to stick with the plan. We can head off in a completely different direction any time we choose.
So here we go, “On the road again,” as Willy said. We plan to keep this blog up to date and to post pictures of some of the beautiful and interesting things we see along the way. We’d be honored if you’d join us on our adventure. Stop by this Web site occasionally or sign up for our RSS feed. You may also check out our old Web site, which contains a lot of great information for newbies considering the fulltime life.
I’ll close by quoting from the last entry in our old travel blog. As I brought it to a close, I said,
That pretty much explains why we’re hitting the road again. When I look back on my life, I regret a few things I did, but it’s the regret for the things I didn’t do but wish I had that brings the most pain. We have the opportunity to once again experience the beauty and adventure of this great nation, and we can’t pass it up. So we’ll cut our ties and head out, looking for wonder and adventure. We'll focus on "Now" and let the future and past take care of themselves. We’ll live life like we’re not going to get another chance—because we won’t.“Please allow me to leave you with some heartfelt advice. Don’t postpone life. There’s one you, living one life, one time—no do-overs, no second chances. Don’t waste another moment of your life worrying about the future or regretting the past; you can do little about either. ‘Now’ is all that’s real. Enjoy it.”
I hope you’ll join us in our adventure. See’ya in Santa Fe.
Alan
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