Salt water symphony…

Aha!!  The sea is definitely calling. I hear it in the gusts whistling through the rigging and the loose halyards slapping out whatever tune they wish.  Even the tarps are joining in today.  The SE is kicking up quite a symphony at our marina.  

It was all hands on deck today as we have little time left to play with Shannon's Spirit and her dinghy before we head east to the UK for May. Yes, we have another trip planned (it's a bucket list thing) but we'll be back in time for the late spring and summer cruising season.. have no doubt.

This is only our 8th day at home (March 31 doesn't count) and we've been, not running but sprinting, through each day. I won't bore you with the details but please forgive me if my posts are shorter than normal.  Like now... gotta go... glad to be home.. looking forward to going sailing.. and looking forward to visiting England and Ireland during May. Hope each of you are enjoying every day.  TTFN.....  CJ

Sorry honey, but it’s time to head home…

And, so we did.

‘Twas with mixed emotions we realized it was time to point our noses north and west.  What a winter we’ve had.  Don’t worry. I’m not going to rehash the challenges we had to work through this time… they have been set aside and will be moved to the ‘lessons learned’ and other such files in due course.

Instead we will focus on the beautiful scenery and skies we had the good luck to enjoy, the wonderful people we met along our route and the natural ‘high’ one experiences when you step off the usual path and seek out new horizons.  We remain blessed with our friendships (old and new) and we consider ourselves extremely lucky to be able to live this life and share the good times. We are determined to continue ‘living’ our summer, sailing locally, and exploring warm places in the winters as long as we can. We wish you all your own beautiful horizons each and every day.

Suffice to say we are home; tired and road weary… but home.  April will be a busy month as we have dedicated May for a long awaited ‘Bucket List’ journey.  More on that at a later date.  For now, we must unpack and tuck in to all the springtime chores that houses and boats demand.  

Bye bye for now. CJ

Wine anyone?

So last night's stay may not have been 5 star but tonight's certainly is. We headed on down the highway to an address unknown. But, there was wine involved… how bad could it be? Fact is, it was perfect.
As advertised; large, flat. open parking area…
Free wine tasting, dogs welcome, lovely hosts, and fun at the wine tasting. This is a well run, family owned, small vineyard that has been owned by the same family since the 1930's. Except when Charlie (the family wee dog) decided to voice his displeasure (we assume related to the presence of Maddie) by urinating on the floor behind my chair- narrowly missing the sleeve of my favourite fleece jacket… aside from that, it was a perfect visit (and the family was quick to apologize and mop up the evidence! 😄.

We had fun and met some nice people too. Tomorrow, we head to another mystery stop called Walker Lake. Stay tuned. Adios for now. CJ.

Plan B… Hooches 66

Plan A had been leaving Cattail Cove SP this morning and heading to Tehachapi, CA where Kathy was going to experience a ride in a glider. Unfortunately Mother Nature had other plans for us. Once packed up and getting ready to leave, like all good sailors, we checked the weather and highway forecasts. Oops…. Heavy winds (up to 40 mph) forecast in all directions but one. And…apparently Tehachapi is expecting the winds… and snow! Ergo, cancel Plan A. 

We stopped at Lake Havasu SP to see if they might have room for us for one night, but no dice. They did allow us to park in their parking lot long enough to come up with a Plan B.

Don't know if you've heard of the Harvest Host program but it allows folks like us to stop and stay the night… sometimes on the hosts residential street, sometimes in an actual Vineyard or ranch or farm… and sometimes in the parking lot of a Pub or some other business venture. Each host asks the camper to spend a little; like a purchase from their shop of whatever wares they are selling, or a donation to their favourite animal rescue group or, as in the case we chose… a meal at their eatery.

So, Plan B brings us to a small and dusty town on Route 66 called Topock and a bar and grill called Hooches 66.

 The photos say it all but they don't tell you about the dirt bikes, dune buggies (“side-by-sides”), and antique cars travelling all around us. Today being Saturday, as it turns out, was one of those “club poker rides”, kinda of like a pub crawl by motorcycle, where each rider collects a poker card at each bar and grill they stop at on their route.   Yup, it's a little noisy and camping on a level dirt parking lot isn't my first choice BUT the price is right, the food is good and it got us on the road. 

Tomorrow, we cross over the Colorado on the I-40 from Arizona into California, a scene which might be familiar to you, from the movie Easy Rider. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/roadtripmemories/14705690006

All going well, we will continue to hop north and west and, hopefully, get to stop at the Seven Feathers RV resort on Canyonville for at least one night on our way home. Until you hear differently, all is well, we're travelling towards home, and we still plan to make the early Coho on the 31st. 

No more news is good news… we're 'on the road again 🎶 …. TTFN. CJ & Kathy

I know there’s a toy in here somewhere!

There may be, but odds are it's well buried. And, as you can see, it's time to start sorting and packing up. We've had a lovely stay at Cattail Cove SP… including meeting up with friends and making a few more. Even the weather cooperated. We'll be heading west and north starting on Saturday and we're booked on the March 31st Coho.
Hope all is well with each of you. CJ

Look who’s turning five today!

Wishing a happy birthday to our funny, playful, devoted, brave, friendly, resilient, smart-as-whip, fast-as-the-wind, and sometimes very, very loud Wee Ms Maddie Mulhaley!   May you have lots more snuggles, scratches, treats and balls and many wonderful adventures ahead! 

Maddie says hi to all her buddies at Camp Yellow Dog.

Group photo courtesy of Julie Davidson @CYD.

 

The Hitching Post

One of the craziest, funnest bars I've ever been to… and with excellent food, great servers and good music. This place is just down the road from the State Park we're staying at and we noticed it was always busy. We went to find out why last night and had a super time. We didn't sit at the covered wagon table but it sure was cute. The other photo is a little hard to see but the inside of this place is crazy. The walls and support beams are all covered in dollar bills. Everything from bicycles to stuffed animals hang from the ceiling and every square inch of wall is sporting some unique piece of history or whatever. And, did I mention… the food was great!

We move sites today, for one night dry camping and then we head west to Cattail Cove State Park, just outside Lake Havasu City. The weather's going to turn a little wet and cool. Hopefully it won't last long. All is well here…. Hope you are too. CJ
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