Pooks Canyon

It has been at least 10 years since I last visited Washington state (I think it was for a mud-ridden cyclocross race with Jon in 2002). Since then the apples have remained delicious, the waterways are still majestic, and they legalized weed. I heard a joke that when Colorado and Washington legalized a few years back they were turning Idaho into a giant bong. Well, today we are headed for Idaho. We are driving to Sandpoint for my cousin Anna's wedding as I type this post! We had a nice three day stay in Spokane, Washington. A really great city with scenic bike riding and lots of disc golf. I imagine as I travel what towns I would want to live in. Spokane seems promising. A weed billboard with a Washington sunset.   Axel and I battled at the Jamboree disc golf course. I got him by one stroke in the end; I'll savor these last moments of being able to defeat him.  Pretty soon he will be out-driving me.   Axel also had the advantage of having discs he ...

Yesterday we set off for Oregon with no idea where we would stay that night. We filled our water tank and left Redding knowing we just wanted to be in Spokane by Sunday. I started calling RV parks in Bend, OR and the answer everywhere was full, Full, and No Vacancy! That was when we decided to boondock.  Boondocking is when you stay in your RV with no outside services such as electricity and water. A company called "Harvest Hosts" collects farms, vineyards, and museums willing to let RV'ers boondock for the night. Harvest Hosts takes those locations and maps them for Harvest Host members to access and stay. There was a host on our route exactly halfway between Redding and Spokane in Madras, Oregon so we decided to give it a try. The Erickson Aviation Museum turned out to be better than any RV park! We pulled in to their empty lot and parked. These were our neighbors:   They were pretty quiet but there was the occasional Cessna landing which was fun to observe. Axel woke u...

For our second trip as fulltime RVers we parked the trailer and drove to a hotel. In our defense, Destination Mendocino was grandfathered-in; I had reserved this hotel room last April when planning my 40th birthday. Yes. I turn 40 tomorrow. When I started this blog I was 29 years old. Insert some requisite time-flies crap here. So Jon and I are on the foggy western edge of North America, eating and drinking our way through an extended weekend of disc golf, hiking, and hot-tubbing. I must say it is downright fantastic. Thursday we started with a walk around downtown Mendocino after ohhhhing and ahhhing at our hotel room (which is over three times older than me). Claw foot tub = Pooks is on bath number four. From the walk we found Patterson's Pub with fresh mussels in a basil broth and a Crab and Shrimp Louie that tasted like I was eating it directly from the Pacific Ocean.  On Friday we hiked nearly every trail in the small Russian Gulch State Park and then Jon pla...

The big adventure began this weekend. I learned on Friday that I get anxious watching Jon drive on busy city highways and narrow mountain roads. Remaining calm is a work in progress.  Once we unhitched at the Santa Cruz Ranch RV Park, a sense of the reality of the situation sunk in on all of us. Axel found a giant pack of kiddos to run with all weekend long. Jon had to work a lot. And I had my good friend Jenny's disc golf tournament to go to: the inaugural DeLa Divas. I got 2nd in Pro Masters( 2nd to first or 2nd to last depending on how you want to spin it). Lots of fun and one birdie. I got to play with Jenny the first round and shot +10. Also present was Candace from SF and her sweet man/caddy Nate. Jenny talked Nate into applying her sunscreen (disc golfers do not like to get lotion on their hands). See picture for the giggles. Seeing Jenny's family rally around the event was really cool. Mom Kathie ran the show at tournament central so Jenny could play...