OREGON

Deschutes River running through Bend

Brasada Ranch

Upon leaving California, we headed to Bend, Oregon.  Situated in the center of the state along the Deschutes River, and surrounded by volcanic mountains, Bend is a lovely town that has easily doubled in size since we were here with our motorhome in the late 90s.  


People are drawn to central Oregon's sunny days, dry desert climate and a landscape dramatically punctuated by snow covered mountain peaks. We enjoyed several days in a one bedroom unit at the Seventh Mountain Resort just outside town.  

Athletic center and pool

I wondered what I had gotten us into as we drove through miles of open countryside to our next destination.  The Brasada Ranch in the tiny hamlet of Powell Butte is at least 20 miles from a town of any size.   

Mountains to the west

Patio off bedroom with view of...

Fortunately, there was no need to worry and no desire to leave the place during our 4 day stay.   A casual restaurant in the Ranch House and a beautiful restaurant on site had excellent food.  The athletic center housed a top notch gym and indoor pool that opened to  outdoor pools.  Our suite was a beautiful one bedroom apartment with spectacular views of the Cascade Mountain range.  This was one of the most idyllic places we have visited in our journey.

Columbia River - Part of the Lewis & Clark Trail

Having heard about the beauty of the Columbia River Gorge, we made our way to The Dalles and Hood River. Unfortunately, the weather was wet, windy and cold, but the majesty of the area was still apparent.  

Basalt cliffs line Columbia River

40-60 million years ago, this part of the country was covered by a large inland sea. The earth gradually rose only to be covered by volcanic lava some 10 – 15 million years ago.   The volcanoes that formed the Cascade Mountain Range also formed the basalt cliffs of the gorge.

Multnomah Falls

      
Then the land was submerged again as glaciers melted after the last Ice Age and floodwaters  from western Montana broke through ice dams, carving the canyons walls.  Today the Columbia River is the 4^th largest in the U.S. and forms the border between Oregon and Washington.   The surrounding mountains include Mount Hood, Oregon’s highest at just over 11,000 feet.  Waterfalls include Multnomah Falls, America’s second highest year-round waterfall dropping 620 feet.

SACRAMENTO

CALIFORNIA STATE CAPITOL

When we told people we were going to spend a few days in Sacramento, they said “Whyyyy?”  Nevertheless, we’re glad we did.  Yes, there are economic problems, vacant buildings and homeless people on the streets.  But there is also much to see and enjoy.  Not to mention that Sacramento is often listed among the 10 sunniest cities in the country.

We stayed at the Citizens Hotel, a beautifully restored old hotel in walking distance to the Capitol and Old Sacramento.  The latter is one of the most authentic and best restored old towns we 

have ever visited.   Situated beside the Sacramento River, 28 acres have been designated a National Historic Landmark District and State Historic Park. 

MAIN ST. OLD SACRAMENTO

Sacramento began with the establishment of Sutter’s Fort following the arrival of John Sutter in 1839.  The town slowly developed until 1848 when the California Gold Rush began.  Then it grew virtually overnight.  It became the last stop on the Pony Express route as well as the terminus of the transcontinental railroad.  

RESTORED BUILDINGS OLD SACRAMENTO

Originally called Sutter’s Embarcadero, the busy trading center for miners became the City of Sacramento.  While convenient for travel and trade, the waterfront was  prone to flooding.  As described on the official Old Sacramento website: "In 1853 a mammoth project was proposed to raise the city above the flood level. The ambitious and expensive proposal was not fully accepted until another devastating flood swept through the city in 1862. Within a few years, thousands of cubic yards of earth were brought in on wagons and the daring scheme to raise the street level began. The original street level can be seen throughout Old Sacramento under the boardwalks and in basements."

Eventually, floods and fires that ravaged hastily erected wooden buildings forced the commercial development of the town eastward, away from the water.  The original town became known as the worst skid row west of Chicago.

RAILROAD MUSEUM OLD SACRAMENTO

In the mid 60s, a plan was born to redevelop the original city.   The result is 53 beautifully restored buildings, wooden sidewalks, shops, restaurants and several museums. 


The capitol city seemed an appropriate place to conclude our time in California which consisted of 3 months and 17 stops.  All of it enhanced by friends visited along the way.   So far, the nomadic lifestyle agrees with us. 

MT. SHASTA - OUR LAST PHOTO IN CALIFORNIA

As we drove north from Sacramento headed for Oregon, we stopped to take a picture of Mount Shasta and bid farewell to California.  For now.   

NAPA & SONOMA

Ron with Marcia at her Napa home

Old Mill & River Walk; Napa River Inn far left

We were fortunate that Marcia, yet another friend we met on the World Cruise, was at her house in Napa the day we arrived.  Combine a brilliant sun,  roses blooming and the beauty of her 25 acres and you have the picture of  tranquility.   We enjoyed lunch at the Oxbow before Marcia headed back to her home in Sausalito and we drove over to the Napa River Inn in the Old Mill District.  This was a deal from luxurylink.com (described in an earlier blog).  It included 2 nights at the Inn with a bottle of wine, breakfast and complimentary wine tasting cards.  We had a lovely room overlooking the Napa River.  

 Mission Sonoma

We spent several days in Sonoma County with the charming town of Sonoma at its heart. Sonoma is the northernmost point of the Mission Trail 1523 - 1823.  The trail went as far south as Guatemala and covered what is now 11 states.

Fayemarie, Ron, Geri & Jules

After a few relaxing days in Sebastopol, a little sun and getting caught up on laundry and correspondence, we headed back to Napa to visit Fayemarie and Jules.  They were on the World Cruise with us from San Francisco   to Beijing. 

Wine tasting at Stag's Leap

Their home is high on a hill with an expansive view of Napa Valley.  We had a wonderful time dining and wining with Jules, Fayemarie and her sons, Ian and Devin.  The highlight was a private wine tasting at Stag’s Leap.  The winery is one of California's oldest and has 90 acres of vineyards.  One could become intoxicated on the setting itself.  The wine is good too!

Gardens at Stag's Leap

Vineyards at Stag's Leap 

TRAVEL TIP: Groupon and Livingsocial have also come in very handy in our travels.  I simply put in the area we are going to visit and deals with considerable savings on lodging, meals, massages, salons etc. are emailed to me. 

MARIN COUNTY

Acqua Hotel Mill Valley

Sorority sister Carol

It was a pleasure to settle down for 9 days at Acqua, a charming boutique hotel in Mill Valley. Our room faced Richardson Bay which we enjoyed walking and biking along.  The highlight of this stop, however, was visits with several friends including a sorority sister I had not seen in over 40 years.  I had a "catch up" visit with Carol before we met Ron for lunch.  It turned out to be Carol's birthday - even more reason to celebrate.  

Ron with Tove & Gene

Gene & Tove's home in Tiburon 

Coastal Redwood 909 - 1930

Another treat was seeing several friends from last year's world cruise including Tove and Gene who live in nearby Tiburon.  We had a wonderful dinner at their beautiful home overlooking San Francisco Bay.  
   

Ron supporting the Redwoods

Muir Woods National Monument

We were fortunate to have great weather the day we went to Muir Woods, home of some of California's magnificent coastal redwoods.   150 million years ago, redwood and sequoia trees were growing throughout the United States but most have been destroyed by development. In California, almost 2 million acres of old growth forest was lost to logging.  Thanks to William Kent, the stretch known as Muir Woods was saved because he donated it to the Federal Government and Theodore Roosevelt declared it a National Monument.  Rather than having it named after him, Mr. Kenwood requested that the land be named after his friend, naturalist John Muir. We have Muir to thank for our national parks as he petitioned Congress for the National Parks Bill that passed in 1890.


"Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where Nature may heal and cheer and give strength to body and soul alike."   John Muir


                                              Now it is on to Napa Valley.    

PISMO BEACH, PASO ROBLES and MONTEREY

Wine tasting in Paso Robles

California has everything!  From seashore to desert, valleys to mountain peaks, it is an ever changing landscape.  It also has ever changing weather!  Unfortunately, the 2 days we spent at  Pismo Beach were cold and rainy, but going inland a little to Paso Robles we found some sunshine.  

Paso Robles is slightly north of San Luis Obispo in the heart of the central coast wine country.   Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio spent the first night of their honeymoon here (don't ask me why).  It was established in 1870 by Jesse James’ uncle Drury James.  Jesse hid out in tunnels underneath the original Paso Robles Inn. 


California's Highway 1 is one of the most scenic drives in the world. We were fortunate in that the weather was clear and the road had not been closed due to rock slides.  It was hard for me to believe that some15 years ago we navigated the same hills and curves in a 40' motorhome with a car hitched to the back.  

(Ron and I sold both our homes when we married in 1995. We bought a motorhome and lived in it full time for 6 years as we  traveled all over the US and Canada.  On this 9 month circle the U.S. car trip, we are re-visiting some places we especially liked as well as making sure we see some areas we missed.)

Slightly north of San Simeon and Hearst Castle is a large colony of northern elephant seals, the largest of the seal species.  Males can be 20 feet log and weigh over 5,000 lbs.  Females are much smaller, about 1,600 lbs.  The males fight aggressively for dominance to win and protect harems of about 50 females.  Once a year elephant seals shed all their fur.  It is called a ‘catastropic molt.’  Here they rest in the sun - exhausted from mating season? They line the beach as far as you can see.

Northern Elephant Seals

We stopped in Carmel By The Sea for lunch en route to Monterey.  Both towns have grown considerably since we were last here.  Monterey has morphed from a fishing village into a major tourist town.  

Pacific Grove, next to Monterey, is reminiscent of Carmel some 20 years ago.  The coastal drive around the peninsula is gorgeous with views to rival Pebble Beach’s 17 mile drive – sans the $9.75 toll.  We returned to Monterey to visit Fisherman's Wharf and Cannery Row.

Shacks immigrants lived in

In the early 1900s, after attempts to can salmon failed, Monterey turned - wth great success - to canning sardines.  Most of the laborers were from Sicily but workers also migrated there from Japan and the Philippines.The market collapsed in the 1940s; all but a few  canneries closed by the early 50s.  Cannery Row was made famous by John Steinbeck's book of the same name.  Steinbeck, one of the great American writers of the last century (Grapes of Wrath, East of Eden) won both the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes. 

CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

Su Nido Inn in Ojai

Santa Barbara pier

Mission at Santa Barbara

Danish village of Solvang

We spent several days on the border of Oxnard and Ventura. We had hoped to visit the Channel Islands National Park, five islands just off the coast, but were discouraged by cold, windy, rainy days.  Fortunately, the weather was in our favor during the 5 days we spent in Ojai (oh-hi).  This idyllic area was the site of Frank Capra’s 1936 movie Lost Horizon.  Ojai Valley was the Shangri La Ronald Coleman discovered.  

The charming little town has an artsy/new age ambiance and boasts a ten mile “rails to trails” path for hikers, bikers and horses. We were fortunate to be there the one day of the week they show an art festival film.  The showing that day was  “Whistleblower,” a true story about an American policewoman who went to Bosnia as part of a United Nations peacekeeping mission and uncovered a human trafficking ring in which members of the UN played a part – either directly or in covering it up.  A woman who addressed the audience after the film said that there are at least 27 million slaves in the world today of which more than 2.5 million are sex slaves. 

Ojai was also the American residence of Krishnamurti, considered one of the greatest philosophers and spiritual teachers of the last century.   We visited his home and retreat center.  Our visit to Ojai was enhanced by the cozy one bedroom apartment we had at the Su Nido Inn, a small complex built around a lovely courtyard. 

Ballard Inn

We were in Santa Barbara, sometimes known as the American Riviera, over Easter weekend.  

During our time there, we enjoyed walking State Street and the pier, eating at a few of the numerous restaurants.  On Sunday, we strolled through the weekly art show, drove around Mendocito and followed winding paths across the Santa Ynez mountains to the Santa Barbara Mission.  Completed in 1820, it was the tenth of 21 Franciscan missions built in California.

One of best schools in Santa Barbara

125 miles north of Los Angeles and not far from Santa Barbara, six small and picturesque communities sit within the Santa Ynez Valley.  They are surrounded by the Santa Ynez and San Rafael mountain ranges.  This is big wine producing country and wineries abound.  It is also some of the prettiest countryside you can imagine. 

Western village of Santa Ynez

The biggest of the villages is Solvang.   It was founded in 1911 by a group of Danes who had come west to escape harsh midwestern winters. The architecture reflects traditional Danish style, the restaurants serve Danish dishes and there is even a replica of the little mermaid statue.  After lunch in Solvang, we drove on to our destination, the Ballard Inn.  The town has less than 500 residents but the Ballard School has been in operation since 1882 and is one of the top performing schools in Santa Barbara County.

We spent 3 nights in a charming room at the beautiful Ballard Inn. While there,

Santa Ynez library

we visited Los Olivos (seen in the movie Sideways), and the western style town of Santa Ynez.  There we saw a replica of one of the stagecoaches that passed through all these towns.  As you can see from the pictures, the stage coach is almost bigger than the local library.   

In the late afternoon the Ballard Inn hosts a wine and hors d'ouevres hour for guests.  It is a wonderful way to meet fellow lodgers, and provided some of the pleasurable memories we will carry of this beautiful area.

PALM SPRINGS, TEMECULA, LA JOLLA and RANCHO SANTA FE

Palm Springs 

In the last few weeks, we have stayed in Palm Springs, Temecula, La Jolla and Rancho Santa Fe.  Years ago, when we had our motorhome, we spent some time in Palm Springs.  It has changed.  Many of the upscale shops and restaurants have moved to Palm Desert.  We found Palm Springs to be kind of funky and fun, and we had a peasant two weeks there.  

Scott, Ann, Geri, Ron Temecula

Then we drove over to Temecula for a week long seminar at the Foundation for A Course In Miracles.  This has been our spiritual path for many, many years and we try to get out here at least once a year.  It is always nice to see familiar faces and friends we have made over the years.   

Debbie, Conrad and Ron

Estancia Hotel La Jolla

View from the Inn into town

The fabulous weather changed abruptly on March 17.  That is the day we left Temecula and drove to La Jolla. It was rainy, windy, foggy and cold.  For the next couple of days, we shivered in 50 degree weather while it was in the 80s in Chicago and the northeast.  But the sun finally came out, temperatures rose into the 70s and we enjoyed our last couple of days at the beautiful Estancia Hotel in La Jolla. While there, we were able to spend a little time with two different couples we befriended on past cruises and had not seen in a couple of years.  Conrad and Debbie invited us to lunch and a matinee performance of Room 

Our room at Rancho Santa Fe

With A View at the Old Globe Theater.  We did not realize until we approached the theater and saw a sign that it was named after Conrad.  He is such a dear and humble man that you would never realize he is one of San Diego’s greatest  philanthropists.   


Another delightful couple, Cheryl and Imre, came to the Estancia one night to have cocktails and dinner with us.  As I've said before, one of the great pleasures of traveling like this is seeing friends along the way.

We are spending a week in Rancho Santa Fe, a quaint and charming town about half an hour north of San Deigo.  Ron is looking forward to seeing a former patient whom he inspired to become a chiropractor.  On March 28, we begin our travels  north.  

GREAT READ: "Behind The Beautiful Forevers" is a true and heartwrenching story about the slums of Mumbai, India.