Our Baby is Home

Finally we have our 26 footer and a beautiful tow vehicle!  We had planned our first trip would be for our Thanksgiving celebration but instead it was in Davenport California Costanoa.  Why?  Because we were renovating our home for sale! But what a wonderful gift.

We needed to go back and forth from Davenport to our home everyday for clearing and cleaning and packing our stuff.  It was at least 60 miles round trip each day.  It sounds like a very long trek.  It was and it wasn’t.

I have lived almost all my life near the ocean and Monterey Bay in particular.  I had never really looked at the ocean or enjoyed its various changes throughout the day.  But the drive each way at various times from early morning to late evening was a magnificent gift.

Our new baby made the stress and physical strain bearable.  We had to clean her up but that was a work of joy.  I used non-chemical cleansers that had little or no scent.  She shined and sighed and even smiled.  H2O home is what I have used on all our Airstreams and home.  Airstreams are  “green” so I have kept her clean the same way.  Her linens, dishes and our clothes are also cleaned with H2O products.  For traveling it is easy and economical and safe for us and our doggy.

We put our cooking utensils, clothing and food in our “tiny” home and were quite comfortable.  We could sleep listening to the ocean waves and feel at home.  We had beautiful views as we drove back and forth.  Clean ocean air as we walked in the evening and early morning and have coffee looking out at the morning sky.  It is a wow.

We lived in our tiny home working on our big home for over a week.  In that time we really learned about what real needs were and letting go of stuff.  It was an eye opener.  I donated so many clothes I no longer wore, furniture we really did not like or need and helped a new SJPD officer fill his apartment with pots and pans, dishes, and a TV stand.  We felt so blessed that what we did not need or want could help someone else.

I got to start cooking after a long recovery from an accident and the tiny kitchen was fantastic.  The sights of the early morning fog, wave action and fishing boats were like tiny miracles I never really saw in my lifetime of living near it.  We were also able to buy fresh caught fish that was so very tasty and healthy!  What fun to live like a tourist in our own back yard.

A really great part was on our very last morning at Costanoa KOA we happened on the new owners of our very first Airstream!  We couldn’t believe it and we all hugged and cried.  They live nearby also and happened on an overnight fun trip just to relax.  They have traveled often and “Cynthia” as she is named is loving it.  We also found out they love utilizing Harvest Host through out Central California, Washington and Oregon.  They have found many wineries and farms that allowed them to stay over night at no cost.  It is a great organization and we are going to use it ourselves.  Wonderful things happen on our journeys and we are so thankful to be able to travel comfortably and meet so many new friends.

Next going to Las Vegas to remodel another home and then travel for the Thanksgiving vacation to Colorado!  We are such lucky ducks. IMG_0849

 

Looking for THE spot . . .

Its August and its hot!  My husband is assigned to a military post in central California and needs medical treatment in Santa Maria.  What a great reason to take a trip in our silver escape vehicle.  Finding a place to stay is the question.  We are 6-7 hours north of Santa Maria so we need at least an overnight midway.  It is going to be hot and this is our first trip in the summertime with our coach.  We are also taking our doggies – one little and one grumpy.

We look at military family camps (RV and tent facilities for military families) in the area and decide to try Camp Roberts!  We also make reservations at Morro Bay Dunes for the convalescent period.  Morro Bay Dunes is very close to the beach and it is close to town.  We are set.  As this is our first year traveling with our silver coach we pack like  crazy nuts.  Newbies never really know what to take or leave and we took it all.  Always a learning experience.  Remember it is also an adventure and as my spouse says “it’s the best marriage counseling there is”.

Camp Roberts is not going to make my “places to go ” list.  The facility is mostly abandoned, dry, hot and poorly maintained.  I can’t believe they still train personnel here.  It was built to train troops during World War II and many hollywood celebrities were introduced to the military here.  Its layout was a traditional Army Garrison set.  One of the original chapels still stands and there is a beautiful organ still in place.  It is falling apart and not cared for.  The whole camp looks so sad and yet if it could talk I bet there would be lots of great stories. It is said that when  soldiers were remodeling a few of the old barracks for new use they found newspapers and letters that were stuffed in the walls for insulation.  What great insight into the daily lives of the 1940’s trainees.  They also say ghosts are all around and sometimes can be seen and heard during the still warm nights!  It’s just sad to see it falling apart and that a piece of our history is just crumbling away.  It is actually a California National Guard training facility.  It also has eagles flying above and around the creeks, giant oak trees, snakes, dry grasses, abandoned, falling down buildings and a glimpse at what it was almost a hundred years ago!  So sad.   We won’t stay there again as the facilities are very rough and the road to the camp is  poorly maintained and very bumpy.  It was a safe place to rest overnight.

Our next morning was bright and beautiful.  Skies bright blue and the air still – it was going to be a very hot day.  We are on our way to Morro Bay.  We had stayed here before and were overwhelmed with lots of very noisy neighbors and felt cramped but our last outing here was an experience in over planning and an aggressive schedule.

This time we were able to get a great spot G-5 in the back of a cul-de-sac right next to the gate out to the beach!  Wow we were so happy.

Outer Banks Trip 113
The Silver Suite

It was an easy drive from Camp Roberts to Morro Bay Dunes and the scenery went from an old California golden dry to the California coast.  We are so lucky to live in an area where we are so close to everything so beautiful.  The trick is to be able to find a time to enjoy it without a lot of people.

The set-up, as always, was easy, our doggies were happy to sit in the shade and they love running on the beach.  We just relax and enjoy.  The sound of the ocean waves is fantastic.  The next morning we had to be in Santa Maria by zero dark thirty!

Brent convalesced well.  Ocean waves crashing, sun, coastal winds and quiet.  The doggies, well, Gunny the older one was so good and well-behaved.  His little sister was the barky dog who still has not finished her training.  She WILL learn.  Good thing she is cute.

While in Morro Bay we met two great Airstreamers!  Will and Jeff, they travel to California every year, specifically Morro Bay and work while here.  One is a photographer the other an architect!  We really enjoyed visiting with them.  They gave us the name of a mobile home park in Cayucus California off Hwy 1 that has spaces for RV’s too.  So we decided to travel home via Hwy 1 instead of Hwy 101 to see a coastline we rarely see.  We did get a reservation too!

Outer Banks Trip 109

It Took Awhile!

Twelve months had passed since our maiden voyage!  We wanted to really travel with our new rolling home (20 ft Flying Cloud) but life gets in the way.  Wait, I thought escape was the reason behind our investment! hmmmm

Our choice of our “rig” was guided by the capability of our little Sportrac’s tow power.  We really did not know what we were looking for or how we would really utilize this trailer.  It had not occurred to us what trailer travel was all about.  We saw commercials and we thought wow what an adventure.  We would use our own linens, our doggies could go too, we could dine and relax in our own “home” while on the road.  Sounds great!  We’re in!

We visited many dealerships around not only  in California but also Nevada .  It surprised me in the feel, decor and sneezes we encountered.  Yep, I am allergic to the world!  Of course the price ranges were wild!  We had not even considered previously owned trailers either!  We compared the RV to the trailers to the vans, C class, A Class etc, etc.  A whole new world.

I really did not want a trailer after all the looking until my hubby took me to an Airstream dealership!  I did not sneeze, it was well thought out, clean lines inside and out and it did not have a formaldehyde odor!  It also had a light, bright kitchen area that had enough room for me to cook.  The really crowning touch was the FULL bathroom!  Yep the bathroom and kitchen sold the silver toaster for us!  So we took the very expensive plunge.

In December 2009 we went to Moro Bay and stayed at the Moro Bay Dunes RV park.  We were fully packed for any contingency and then some.  We only had one little doggie then and he is a traveler!  We had heard nothing but great things about this park and location.  Funny we live by Monterey Bay and now we are traveling to Morro Bay!  We plan our trips like we planned mission movement in the military!  We flunked the civilian side this time we were late by 30 minutes of our departure time.  We also learned how to properly stabilize our hitch.

Off we go!  We stop in Soledad, California 2 hours into our adventure for coffee and doggie piddle.  We arrive at 2:00 pm at the park and are guided to our site.  We were relieved to see we are in a quiet spot with few campers on our court.  Did I say quiet!?  As the weekenders began to arrive the noise level kept rising and children on bikes and trikes began roaming the area.  We realized our court had one of the few gates to the beach across a paved road!   Too many people but the view from the kitchen is a wow!Outer Banks Trip 110

The first night is almost completely dark, small slice of the moon, we take a short walk on the dunes and listened to the beauty of the surf and sounds!  We did not stay around the camp ground like photos in articles show but we did get a quiet spot to enhance our learning curve.  We do know now that we should do a little more homework about where we want to stay and what our style of travel is.

This is a great base camp point for short drives to Pismo Beach and San Lluis Obispo.  There is also a lot of surf fishing too!  The camp hosts were great and we shall return.