We have been on the road recently, and it feels good to be traveling again, even if it’s only temporary. The weekend after Memorial Day, we went with Tom’s brother and friends to Winchester Bay. It was raining most of the way over and when we got there, but I was SO happy to have different scenery out the windows. And after that first day it was mostly sunny skies – and cold wind!
We were the only ones of the group not to have OHV’s, but we enjoyed just hanging out at the campground. We took the bikes with us and rode them down the beach as far as we could go – about 5 miles before the Snowy Plovers nesting area signs stopped us.
Normally all of the driftwood piles would have had me longing to do some beach combing, but I was thinking “in another month I’ll be able to make a 20 minute drive to the beach at any time to poke through driftwood as much as I want” and that thought made my heart so happy. (Yes, we’re in escrow!)
One day Becky had company, so Tom took her place in John’s side-by-side, and sent me back some beautiful photos he took on the ride.
Another day John rented two single seaters to try out, so we went out with them in John’s Yamaha. Tom loved how it drove. Huh-oh! We had to remind ourselves we were buying property – not toys. We got to try out the singles as well. It’s hard to describe the absolute vastness of the dunes in Oregon – even the pictures don’t do it justice.
Since we were so close, we took the group to see the property. Tom was able to get some brotherly advice on weed control and fencing and it was fun to see the place again. We are so ready to get started on cleanup. Here it is! It may not look like much, but it’s got RV hookups ready to go!
It was great fun being so near the ocean, and the four or five hour drive there and back was magical. Highway 38 along the Umpqua River is one of the prettiest we’ve ever been on. That’s saying a lot!
Our long weekend was extended to Wednesday because it was so nice and we were having such fun. Which only gave us a day at home to prepare for our next outing.
This time we left the RV and just took the Jeep on a whirlwind visit back to California. The beauty of the drive south down I5 and back is getting to see Mt. Shasta in the morning and evening light and from both directions.
We were invited to an abbreviated (due to covid) wedding reception, and I’m so happy the timing worked out and we were close enough to make it. My BFF’s son got married to my DIL’s BF, so now we’re practically related! It was great to spend a little time with old friends along with my son and DIL (daughter-in-law).
Now that we’ve purchased property where we plan to stay, it’s time to get rid of property where we’ve never stayed. So, while we were back in the Valley, we met with a Real Estate agent at the property in Squaw Valley. Hopefully that will go as smoothly as the selling of the RV!
It’s lucky it was brown and dried up when we were there. I found some pictures of when Tom first bought the place and it looks like a fairy tale. It’s a pity we never even camped out on the property.
Of course, we can’t go to the central valley without seeing the grandsons. We were able to stay at my daughter’s on the way down and again on the way back. Short visits, but so great to see them. And so fun to be able to take them to the park again!
Another bit of business while we were there was to pick up some items from storage that will be useful on the property: Tools, utility trailer, shovel & rake – things we kept just in case. There is a small storage shed on the property that will be filled up in no time! When we got the trailer-full back to John’s place I talked him out of a workbench, so Tom loaded that on as well. Now we’re fully loaded!
We even had time to squeeze in a surprise visit to Tom’s daughter and family before we headed back up. That’s three out of four kids and all the grandkids in four days. My heart is full!
Now we are heading back to Beatty for the arrival of the Lithium batteries. Tom successfully installed the new solar panels, and with the batteries changed out, we will be good to go off grid! It was wonderful that Tom had access to John’s tools, expertise, and help to get the solar done.
Our next trip will be back to the Oregon coast – to “move in” to our new property. I’m so excited – but for now we are waiting on title. And in the meantime, we’ve picked up some pretty sweet deals at yard-sales and on craigslist for the ever enlarging list of things we’ll need to take care of land again. Here is a shot of the future fairy garden area:
Happy Travels!
Peace & Love, Joy
