CA to NY-2

Day 20 7/27/17

Having dropped off Silvia and Aaron at the airport for their trip to Europe Wednesday evening, Chuck and I had dinner at The Loma Brewing Company in Los Gatos.

Chuck's appetizer, Deviled Eggs. Spicy egg
filling topped with giadiniera

My Loma Pale Ale is made with malt from both
Germany and the United States and the
German hops were bred from American varietals...

...went perfectly with my burger with white cheddar,
caramelized onions, lettuce, pickles and burger
sauce on a brioche bun. It was one of the best burgers
I've had in a very long time.

The next day, Chuck and I were off to Ventura Ranch KOA, a 5 hour drive we decided to split. Chuck wound up doing the majority of the drive.

Winnie parked on Elwood Road.

'Twas great to have a real co-pilot;

believe it or not, MB, we talked about

a whole bunch of things.

On our 5 hour trip to from San
Jose to Ventura Ranch KOA in
Santa  Paula, CA, Chuck did most of the driving.

I took a ton of photos but chose thee to illustrate
the stark contrast in the landscape as
we drove south on I-5.

A lunch break at John "Chuck" Erreca
Rest Area on I-5; 100°

Beside the word HOT the word for today was FARMS. Almost the entire length of the trip, farms and their produce laid before us to the not so distant horizon. Artichokes, avacados (10 for a $1.00) grapes, tangerines, oranges, almonds, cashews and melons. On the north bound side, I stopped counting the number of tandem produce carriers. Most were carrying tomatoes but there were truckloads of onion and garlic (Gilroy is the garlic capital of the world)

Beautiful sights, steep hills with surprises at every summit.

San Luis Reservoir and Recreation area...

...an artificial lake covering 20 square miles provides
a magnificent view that only a passenger can appreciate.

Pyramid Lake is another reservoir further south formed
by Pyramid Dam on Piru Creek in the eastern San Emigdio
Mountains, near Castaic, Southern California.
It is a part of the West Branch California Aqueduct,
which is a part of the California State Water Project.

Pyramid Lake and Dam, completed in 1973, 
were named after a pyramid-shaped rock carved
 out by engineers building the Old Highway 99. 
Travelers between Los Angeles and Bakersfield christened
the landmark “Pyramid Rock,” which still 
stands just adjacent to the dam.

Site A29 at Ventura Ranch KOA is in a
cul de sac. I missed photographing
the wild peacocks roaming throughout.
At night we saw one fly up on top of an RV.

The wild peacocks roaming the area here did not have the long plumage seen in this video clip. They, did, however, have their characteristic call that Chuck didn't appreciate. He thought they'd keep him up all night.  

A view from above.

Day 21 7/28/17

The temperature was 68° when we left Santa Paula, CA and 115° when we arrived in DESERT Hot Springs in southern California. The entire trip south on I-5 was H-O-T. The traffic was not as bad as northbound but it was the busiest drive I've encountered so far. Again, I lucked out with my co-pilot, Chuck, helping with the best routes. With only a three hour trip behind us, we took advantage of time and stopped at the Palm Springs Air Museum. Their website is here.  I took close to 50 shots but, you dear reader, will only see a few photos here. 

With the heat what it was, I tried to convince Chuck that yonder mountain
was beginning to erupt. He didn't buy it.

Wind farms once again dominated the
landscape...more so than in the previous
states I passed through.

The Palm Springs Air Museum

Winnie waited outside - 115°

Russian MIG Korean era

Navy fighter

The most impressive aspect of this visit was the ability to immerse yourself into the era be it WWII, Korea, or Vietnam. It had to be a frightening and amazing period of history for the youth of that era to experience; a time that most Americans today know very little about unless they were "into" the history of the era; our youth in particular, I feel, are clueless. When you see actual war footage of assaults on the enemy, aerial dogfights accompanied by interviews with the actual pilots via the Discovery and History channels, you are simply in awe of the military sacrifices and the war effort back here in the US; the true American spirit that produced the massive war machine we were able to send into combat thousands of miles away. The peace treaty signing on the USS Missouri accompanied by the actual footage and speech given by MacArthur was especially poignant. There was once again the significant reminder looking at the young faces of those fighting, be they pilots flying in combat or serving on the ground or at sea; of how young they really were, ranging in age from 18 to 25. You just sit back in amazement and shake your head when comparing our youth today. I, for one, shake my head depressed. 

The stark reality of war: The MIA's; These from the Vietnam war.

C-119 Flying Boxcar and a look inside....

Chuck took a tour of the massive B-17G Flying Fortress, Miss Angela 

B-17 Super Fortress

One part of the huge engine....

The four engines were named Sneezy and Grumpy
on the starboard side and Doc and Sleepy
on the port side.

Chuck inspecting one of the circular gun
turrets on the underside of the fortress.

The space gunner was cramped into
for up to eight hours is not to be believed.

 

To further study what the museum has to offer, check their website HERE.

Site 94. Thank goodness our site was on the west side of the road;
once the sun set behind us the temps went all the way down to 85°.
It was just plain H-O-T.

And this is in the coach

That's spelled H-O-T. I'm finding a disappointing trend
in that a lot of KOA's do not have decals or stickers
of their campground. So, a pack rat like me cannot
show of all the places (KOA's) I've visited.  :-(

Until tomorrow, stay cool, stay happy and we'll see you in Arizona. 

CA to NY-1

Day 20 7/27/17

Take 5 minutes to appreciate why this return trip home from California (to Texas) with Chuck is so special to me.

My child arrived just the other day

He came to the world in the usual way

But there were planes to catch, and bills to pay

He learned to walk while I was away

And he was talking 'fore I knew it, and as he grew

He'd say, I'm gonna be like you, dad

You know I'm gonna be like you

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon

Little boy blue and the man in the moon

When you coming home, dad?

I don't know when

But we'll get together then

You know we'll have a good time then

My son turned ten just the other day

He said, thanks for the ball, dad, come on let's play

Can you teach me to throw, I said, not today

I got a lot to do, he said, that's okay

And he walked away, but his smile never dimmed

Said, I'm gonna be like him, yeah

You know I'm gonna be like him

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon

Little boy blue and the man in the moon

When you coming home, dad?

I don't know when

But we'll get together then

You know we'll have a good time then

Well, he came from college just the other day

So much like a man I just had to say

Son, I'm proud of you

Can you sit for a while?

He shook his head, and he said with a smile

What I'd really like, dad, is to borrow the car keys

See you later

Can I have them please?

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon

Little boy blue and the man in the moon

When you coming home, son?

I don't know when

But we'll get together then

You know we'll have a good time then

I've long since retired and my son's moved away

I called him up just the other day

I said, I'd like to see you if you don't mind

He said, I'd love to, dad, if I could find the time

You see, my new job's a hassle, and the kid's got the flu

But it's sure nice talking to you, dad

It's been sure nice talking to you

And as I hung up the phone, it occurred to me

He'd grown up just like me

My boy was just like me

And the cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon

Little boy blue and the man in the moon

When you coming home, son?

I don't know when

But we'll get together then

You know we'll have a good time then.

Yup, we're havin' a good time then.

NY to CA-10

Day 18 Wednesday 7/25/17

Well, there are no photos and no exciting tales to tell. I'm just writing what I did for my own recollection when I look back on this trip.

First, there was a 15 minutes trip to Leale' RV and Auto where I waited three hours (including one lunch hour for the tech) to install my two new coach batteries. A simple do-it-yourself type job you would think. The Service Manager, Savio, however, returned with word that the corrosion of terminals, bolts and battery shelf were such that extra time would be needed to clean and hose it all down before installing the new ones. That extra work ran into the noon hour lunch. He charged me 1½ hours labor for the 2-hour job. Thanks to Chuck and Silvia's membership in Costco, the batteries themselves were an acceptable expense. The operation at Leale's is huge. Their 3 giant bays and incredible square footage had at least 40-50 RVs within, many of which were big Class A's. Driving in without an appointment was another factor to consider. Anyway, the job is done and I'm feeling better about coach power for the long ride home.

After lunch, I broke down and visited "Great Clips," a chain with many locations in the San Jose area. The one I visited was in the same shopping plaza where we enjoyed sushi the night before. Although the Asian owner/stylist (Jeanne, I think) had her work cut out for her with my head of hair, she trimmed in short order and I'm a bit lighter for it.

Day 19 Wednesday 7/26/17

A busy day for all; Actually, it's been a busy week for all (except me). Aaron continued with his lacrosse practices (with mom driving him back and forth). Yesterday he successfully applied for and received his Learner's Permit (with mom driving back and forth); on top of that a visit to the orthodontist continues his progress with his appliance for one more year (with mom driving back and forth). Silvia's agenda and schedule continues to wear me out as I look on and watch her walk Bruce, engage with others while video conferencing with them on a project and, of course, chauffeuring Aaron (for a little while longer). Tonight, she and Aaron take off for Europe and their excursion with friends to mountain bike through Iceland, Sweden and Norway. Packing will be the order of the day. Today, Chuck entertains a Facebook colleague from Israel and will bring Aaron and Silvia to the airport this evening after returning from work. He too will do some packing as he and I will leave Thursday for the Ventura Ranch KOA in Santa Paula, CA, 5½ hours or 322 miles south of us. I haven't been in Winnie in over a week other than to visit and run the engine and generator--and try to bring dead batteries back to life. Fortunately, the frig/freezer running on propane have kept things as they should be. I will, however, check dates of a few refrigerated items. 

So, I'll make this my last post from CA. The next blog (CA to NY-1) should be from Desert Hot Springs, CA when two days of traveling with Chuck will be described. Unfortunately, his childhood memories of  camping with family and friends 35 years ago include a snoring bear that slept among them and witnessed by a good number of the fabulous folks that were there with us; there's even written documentation. It seems that I was the "bear", the big time snorer in those days (and things have not gotten better). If he doesn't bag out before reaching Austin, TX, it should be a memorable and wonderful trip; a rare experience that I am very fortunate to be able to have. To redeem myself, I am undergoing CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) therapy with a portable device that greatly reduces the snoring and seems to be an effective sleep apnea therapy. We shall see. 

NY to CA-9

Day 16 Sunday 7/23/17

After mass at Holy Spirit Church in San Jose, CA we returned home for a quick change of clothes and set off to the Wharf at Santa Cruz,

I went hang gliding with my GoPro and got this great
shot from above. The current wharf was built in 1914 and with 
a length of 2,745 feet, it's the longest pier on the West Coast of the U.S.

A fog hovered off shore and made for a poor
photo day and probably added to the 65° day.

For a Sunday, not crowded at all and no surfing.

For a fee, you can drive out to the end enjoy
lunch at....

Here's the MENU

As dogs are not allowed on the wharf, Bruce and
I hung out on a bench while Chuck parked the car
and Silvia and Aaron went for the food.

And soon enough, they returned...

...an angel bearing my kind of food (not hers) 
(fried breaded prawns & fries with a cold
Guinness). Bless you Silvia!!

Needless to say, about a mile away there's a more
private beach past the Surfer's Museum where
dogs are allowed.

Nice setting, picturesque; dogs have complete
unleashed access to the entire beach.

But, says I, how am I going to get down there?

Problem solved (but what came down had to go back up).

Bruce with his three trained humans.

And it is here where Bruce enjoys the surf and his friends to run
crazy on the beach unleashed.

Tide is in otherwise you'd be able to walk through the arch.

It amazed me how all the different breeds ran
around together and played seemingly oblivious
to each other. 

Bruce, being more laid back and shy didn't get
too involved with the local riff-raff.

In the distance, cormorant rock is a
favorite hang out for sea lions but today,
although we heard one (Chuck), I don't
see any competing for space with the birds. 

So far, a full day but more tonight; an invitation for a going away dinner for Andrea.

Andrea Battistoni completed his post-doctoral work
in Physics at Stamford and is returning to Italy to
teach high school math and physics in Rome.

Very well liked, there was quite a nice turnout
of folks whose lives he touched.

Lots of kids

Chuck at signature board with Andrea.

Francesco Federico & Silvia

Father & Son. No, not drunk; just caught in the middle of a blink

Oh, did I hear someone ask about the food? That whenever there's food, the nut-job will get a photo of it no matter what? Okay, if you insist.

Grilled eggplant

Grilled zucchini 

Rice salad

Lasagna 

Toasted garlic slices

Fried dough with oil and tomato sauce

One of many tunes sung that ended a delightful evening; A love song of the Alpini sung by Giacomo, Andrea and Davide.

Day 17 Monday 7/24/17

I used today for "catch up" day and have enjoyed looking back on what I've done two days at a time for the past week. A minor glitch has been taken care of. My coach battery has finally kicked the bucket...dead. Fortunately, in this area, my choices for RV services and for purchasing two deep cycle group 24 RV batteries were found and at a reasonable price. Chuck picked them up on his way home from work and tomorrow I'll drive Winnie 9.2 miles hopefully in about 18 minutes to have them installed. The timing is good. We'll be on the road again Thursday and knowing I've got a new fully charged pair of coach batteries eliminates that stress.

And, Taa-daaa. You'll never guess what we'll be having for dinner? Click the link for menu.

Almaden Sushi

Cinnabar Hills Roll: Shrimp tempura, cucumber and
yamagobo (carrot) topped w/tuna & salmon,
tobiko, green onions and spicy mayo.

What goes great with sushi and Chardonnay?
A tall Aaron...15 years in the aging process!!

Helping to make a great trip even greater.
Thank you.

Caught the old man borrowing glasses.
Held back my chuckle knowing what's
in store for him as he joins 'our club."
And his sister better not be laughing because
she's next.