Week Three

Day 15 Tuesday
Portland

Portland was a lot of fun. I got to eat pupusas again with Becca, and I did laundry for the first time on the trip. I bought a couple of books at Powells. Becca, Allison and I watched an old Hitchcock film and fell asleep. I am not even sure which one it was now. I think Notorious. The next day Becca got off early, and we went out to the Columbia river gorge, and hiked near some of the falls. It was raining, and Becca wondered if she were to live in Portland long enough, if she would be unhappy when it werenít raining.
 

Day 16 Wednesday
Carl Washburn State Park, Oregon
(we stayed in a Yurt)

Then Allison and I really started our trip. It was the first day of freedom. I donít think Allison really felt that, but it was my first day of freedom. Our first act was to go out of our way. Up the Columbia to Astoria, not because we needed to be Goonies groupies, as we both has been there, but it seemed like the thing to do.

It took us all day somehow to drive 200 miles. And that pace has somehow become the norm. We are doing a little better now that we have left LA, but the impending end of our time is somehow a good motivator. We have to drive better to get home before Christamas.

The drive down the coast of Oregon was uneventful but beautiful. We stopped at a few beaches to look around. We stopped to camp late, and found that the site had Yurts. We couldnít resist, especially when the other option was a wet tent. The yurt was plush, with a double bed, and electricity, and heat. The bathrooms were a bit of a hike.
 

Day 17 Thursday
Mill Creek Campground, Rogue River National Forest, Near Crater Lake, Oregon

Things got a lot better when we turned inland to head for Crater lake. The Umpqua River Scenic drive was the nicest I have ever seen. We drove along the river and in the gorge all the way to Crater lake. There are no services anywhere near crater lake so we had to then leave to find a campsite, and a little dinner. Perhaps I wrote about the dinner. The campsite was nondescript, and in the middle of nowhere, which was nice but spooky.

Crater lake was perfect. The rim road was closed but we could drive up to the lodge and then walk along it and then onto a trail along the rim. I donít know how long we were there. There was about 6 inches of snow on the ground, but the day was so warm. With the sun out from behind clouds, I was warm in a t-shirt. Today I though how nice it would have been to be at Hoover Dam in the harshest weather. I wanted to be at crater lake during a snow storm, and see 40 foot drifts. The day we were there was a close second.
 

Day 18 Friday
Redwoods Hostel International, California

On the way back to the coast we stopped and saw the rogue river gorge again, where it runs through old lava tubes, and even underground for awhile. We had dinner in Crescent city, and ended up at a hostel in the redwoods there.
 

Day 19 Saturday
Salt Point Campground, California

We had another meandering day down through California. We stopped for drive through trees, and then I remembered the Real Goods Solar Living Center. I took hardly any pictures there as I was so overwhelmed and pleased. It was so amazing. I really want to have  a solar house. It is hard in upstate NY, though there is more sun in Lowville than Syracuse. The bumper stickers they sold, said ,îI was inspired at Real Goods.î Some of the best things there were the whole design of the place, including the absolute commitment to using recycled, renewable or earth frienly building materials, like rice straw paneling, reclaimed toilet lids to tile the bath, and all hay bale structures. The extensive gardens relied on irrigation but it was all pumped by solar and all reclaimed, and use over and over. It was also just amazing to see a huge bank PVís. I get really excited about renewable energy.

Just south of Hopland and Real Goods we cut over to the coast on the windiest road ever. It was 44 miles at 15-20 miles per hour, up and down the sides of mountains. There were times when I went around curves where I was sure I have come a full 360 and would meet myself. In fact those curves did follow around a hill at least 270 degrees. As if the curves were not enough, the road was plaugued by wash outs so you would come around a corner to ëroad workí and ëone lane roadí signs. And on top of that the road dumped up in the middle of nowhere. We were so hungry and tired, and we ate at this terrible resort.

We havenít been really good at taking care of ourselves. That was not the only night that we have been past witís end and have been desperate for the next CAFE sign or campsite. It is a challenge of traveling in the fall that it gets dark so early, which just adds to the feeling that you have been on the road forever, and makes it really hard to find your way around.

Salt Point State campground was weird. It was partially shut down for the winter and was full of portatoilets instead of real bathrooms. And there was some serious partying going on. We hadnít seen one other tent in our travels and this site was full of tent villiages. I donít know if it was family reunions, or college break or what, but it was strange. It was chily but not cold. I was happy in my t-shirt in the morning, but all the Californians were running around in heavy fleece jackets with sweaters underneath. It was sureal. The next morning we headed off to another campground where we could use out ticket to get in and shower. The showers were still coin operated, but they were almost free. It was good to have a shower before San Francisco.
 

Day 20 Sunday
Big Sur National Forest Campground, California

Route one along the coast is again amazingly twisty.

San Francisco was the first great plan to suffer due to our slow progrees. We had thought to spend a whole day and night there. To park at a Hostel and settle in and then explore. I donít know what we would have done for sure, but it was a good plan. Alas we had to settle for the three hour driving tour. It was fun to see some parts of the city. We started by coming in on the Golden gate, and then explored including Lombard Streetís curvy block, just for the amuzement of the beetle. Though who really needed it after the curves of the past two days. The steepness of the streets was really impressive. They should have regraded the place, like they did Seattle, though the hills control neighborhoos traffic as well as all the traffic circles that Seattle has added. We ended up at Coit Tower for the view and then we headed south. We hoped to be able to see the coast down to Big Sur as we drove.

The most spectacular part of route one just south of S.F. was probably the forests of Big Sur. Of course it had been dark awhile when we finally found a campsite in Big Sur. I guess there is not scene there other than nature. I had had some idea that Big Sur was a happeniní place since Kirouac went there On The Road, and others have made comments about my having skippped it.

Now we can get back to the nartive. I think I am cought up to about a week of now. Today is Saturday. Last Monday morning we woke up in Big Sur and headed straight to LA. Of course we got distracted, but forst we were slowed by more very curvy route one. We stopped to see the very first arrivals of a n Elephant seal colony. They just come down the coast and then up on he same beach every year, where they bask in the sun, mate and give brith for like two months. Sometimes they go out to sea to play, but they donít eat the whole time. I didnít know this about pinipeds and whales. They only eat a few months out of the year where they have safe feeding grounds. If they spend time out at sea from that beach they would get snatched up by sharks. I guess they have feeding grouds that are sheltered from deeper water, and they have fish that are easy to catch, like migrating salmon, or something.

Then we stopped at the Hearst Catsle vistors center. It is an unworldly place. It has a certain weird quality to it. The best I could say is that it is like a spaceport. It is clean to the point of feeling uncomfortably sterile, and at every turn there are high tech screens telling you what tours are leaving, and show you pictures of what you will see up the hill. The fact that the tours all leave by shuttle adds to the whole station feel of it. The Castle was bilt by William Randolf Hearst as a vacation home, but the whole point was t make it a decadent example of classic archetectures and art. It was beautifully all put together by a woman architect. I am sorry I forget her name. The pictures are just astounding of roman baths and great halls, and the huge art collection housed, one of the largest in the world. And if that is not enough, there is a private zoo spread out on the grounds that you can see on your bus trip.
 

Day 21 Monday
L.A.

Day 22
L.A.

Finally LA. I was so afraid of the place. I was afraid of traffic and smog, and crime. It was all good, though. It was great to see Vanessa, and it was good to explore the city. We had to saty a whole extra day to get to see a little more, because it just takes so long to drive to any part, even in good traffic. We would leave late in the morning, to avoid morning traffic, but then it would take and hour to get somewhere and it would be time to come back. We did see the Griffith Park Observatory, the freaks and thrift stores on Melrose Ave, the farmeerís market, the LaBrea Tar pits, Venice Beach. PLus some less well known sites like Vanesssaís apartment, and her experimental film class, and the film dept. at UCLA.

Of course keeping up with the election has been a big part of the last few days. It still makes me sick to think about it. I guess I would rather there be a chance than Bush be president, which I thought was the case, when I went to bed on Tuesday.

Leaving LA we heard the very best commentary on the whole thing so far. It was Talk of the City, on LA public radio, and they were playing LA games. They were having people call in and tell how they would make the movie of the 2000 election. Who would star? Who would direct? What is your title? How would it end? One scenario was the whole film would lead up to where you know that it all rests on one voter, and the you see this old man who needs help standing o into the booth, he pulls the curtain closed and that the end of the film.

We were in LA Monday night through Thursday morning, and then we were off to Vegas.