Hello from vacation. There’s too much to fit in – so I’m just going to hit the high points and backfill later.
Woke up this morning in Ashland, OR. It’s a funky – funky little hippie commune of a town. I woke up there because we had attended redmeds brother’s graduation from American Band College the night before. He’s got a Master’s of Music Education now – and while the speakers at the graduation were good – the concert was absolutely killer.
Anyway, woke up and went to get breakfast with redmeds parents, brother, and sister in law. We ate at Morning Glory, where I ordered the french toast stuffed with nutella and cheesecake. With maple butter. And cherry syrup. It was a little over the top.
Then we swapped out the rental cars for the one we’ll be driving to San Francisco, and hit the road. Zoom. We drove through the Rogue Valley, and then eventually hit coastal 101 and turned south, amidst the redwoods. In short order, we were in Crescent City. Picked up a map of the Redwoods National Parks, and decided to head out on the pier at the edge of town. We were walking out on said pier when I noticed EYES looking at me from the water. Eyes in a chubby little face. SEAL!!!
With that to kick us off, we drove south, stopping about every 200 feet to photograph some amazing scenery. Got to the mouth of the Klamath river and started to walk down to the overlook when SNAKE!!!! Fortunately, it was a cute little (4′) garden snake, but after that, every rustle in the grass sounded like a snake to me.
From the overlook, we saw Osprey, Pelicans, Gulls, perhaps Murres, and a whole bunch of unidentified birds.
Continuing south, we rounded a corner and saw TEN ELK!!!! They were peacefully grazing on the hillside over the road. We hung out with them for a while and then continued on.
Making our way into the driveway for the cabin where we’re staying (just north of Trinidad, on the bluffs, overlooking the ocean), we saw QUAIL, and QUAIL BABIES!!!!
Went into town, had a nice dinner, chatted up the waitress, she asked about my “Helping Hands for Haiti,” shirt, I dropped that I had gone down there after the earthquake, and she gave us pie with ice cream “for what you did.” I just about cried.
Finally, sitting on the park bench between our cabin and the ocean, watching the sun set, we’re just being quiet. I see a kitty come around the tree beyond the house. Wait – not a kitty. RACCOON!!!! He was being all chill, just goin’ to work, and then he saw us – just about lept out of his skin and skitter-skitter-skittered back around the cabin.
So that was my day. I’m gonna stay up late and watch for bear.
— EDIT —
No bear last night. Two BUNNIES on the porch though, and HUMMINGBIRDS EVERYWHERE!!!
