November and December 2006

November and December 2006, too
Jan's still recovering, so not much sightseeing. We'll be in Southern California for Dec.-March drying out from the record Oregon rains.

September & October 2006

(Update Oct. 28, 2006...update on my knee replacement...all doing well, though a long recovery. I appreciate all the good wishes that have been sent to me from readers of our website. Many thanks!)

Coburg, OR...We spent much of this month with family in Southern California after the death of my father, due to Alzheimer's, early in August. However, on the way north, we treated ourselves to a visit to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, places we've long wanted to see. It was Labor Day Weekend, but we found room at the Visalia KOA which is a good place to park the rig while visiting these two parks. Forum members had recommended we visit Sequoia one day, stay over IN the park at the Wuksachi Lodge, and travel to Kings Canyon the following day. We would highly recommend others follow this same plan since it saved us hours of driving time back and forth to the rig and allowed us to spend more time visiting the various places in the park which are "Musts." The following are just a few of the sights, but will give people an overall view of the highlights.

The view from the top of Moro Rock, a 400-step climb, but the view is worth it! (Looking at the Sierras, and a nut who had climbed over the barrier.)

Yes, there's the proverbial "drive through log" in this forest, too...

These are "small trees" in the Senate Group.
About 5 minutes later, a baby bear crossed our path...couldn't see the mother anywhere, so we backed up fast! We continued after about 10 minutes and could see the baby in some tall grasses, so we assumed that the mother was with him/her there...we walked quickly.

Wuksachi Lodge in Sequoia NP...excellent food, too!

Kings Canyon

We headed to Bend, OR to meet up with friends and family and stay again at Crown Villa before it closes this Fall. After a few days, the weather was beginning to change, so it was time to head to the Willamette Valley via Route 58, the Willamette Pass. Along this route (which is the easiest way to get from Bend to Eugene) there is a wonderful stopover at Salt Creek Falls...almost exactly halfway between the two towns. We found plenty of room to park for any size RV and tow car and one of the prettiest waterfalls you can see. We recommend this as a great lunch stop on the way over this pass.

Salt Creek Falls on Route 58 near the tunnel on the Willamette Pass

This is the end of our journey for a few weeks/months. Jan is having a total knee replacement, so shall be busy working on recovering from that.