Week 419-420 - On the Road Again - 08-31-2014

On the Road Again!

After so many months on the Central California Coast we can't even remember our last trip. But, we are finally on the road again. We went to our daughter Emily and Chad's home in Paradise, California. Having driven the boring Interstate 5 so many times, we wanted some new scenery. Leaving Atascadero we crossed over the 5 to Fresno and then took the Gold Highway, California 49 for a couple of days.

Wow, someplace besides our house in Atascadero! What a joy it was to be camping at the Fresno Elks. But, we couldn't help dreaming of some place better.

Highway 41 from Fresno heading toward Yosemite National Park is a beautiful drive.

Passing through Coarse Gold and heading to Oakhurst where we will depart the 41 for the southern start of Hwy 49.

1) Mandy guides us down Hwy 49. This road is a "must see" and we have seen all of it. California Hwy 49 Complete. 2) Passing through Mariposa - Wally and Diane's stomping ground.

This 13 mile stretch of Hwy 49 is really fun. It would be much better on the ScooterShip as in the MotherShip you can't exceed 15 mph. So it takes about an hour!

The entire descent is full of 15 mph curves but costs almost nothing to go down. Coming up in the motorhome will take about $24.00 in diesel.

Down at the bottom, the bridge crosses Merced Creek, known in wetter times as Merced River which originates in Yosemite National Park.

1) The Hotel Jeffery in Coulterville and 2) the fun of squeezing the MotherShip through the narrow streets of Sonora (Dar and Cindy, sorry, we missed you by that much!)

Our second night was spent in the town of Columbia, also known as Columbia State Park. The town is bustling on the weekends with cute shops and people dressed in era costumes. We stayed at Marble Quarry RV Park and got a very shady spot, the only "pull in" site in the park.

You can hike 10 minutes to town or explore the area close to the RV park. 1) Here is "Waving Hand Rock" which looks realistic. Turns out, it was just Ellen!

Typical scenery along the 49. You'll encounter a lot of bikers, log trucks and a couple of motorhomes.

The logging trucks hauling their load through San Andreas and under the circa 1935 bridge built with Calaveras Cement.

On the third day, we rode again, and faced with another hundred miles of tight turns. We left the 49 in favor of eating lunch at SmashBurger in Citrus Heights. Excuse us for not getting photos of SmashBurger but we were too busy stuffing our faces with the best burger in America and of course the Rosemary and Olive Oil Smash Fries.

Arriving at Em and Chad's we were greeted by a couple of four-wheelers, Zeb and Micah.

Em was there to guide the MotherShip into Site #1, our favorite, with shade, 50 amps, water and sewer. Thanks Chad and Emily for thinking of us!

We'll be here for a few weeks building a deck cover over a non-existent deck and perhaps a deck or laying pavers and playing with the grand kids or playing cards every night or ...

It's great to be moving again!

Love, Pete, Ellen, Mandy, Emily, Chad, Micah and Zebulun.

Photos from aug 2014