| Otto and Louis ripping it | |
Monday, March 26, 2007
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Only one week?
The camp at Oak County Park in Simi Valley was quiet and it was probably nice in its day, but that day is past. We found out that they are closing April 1st so we just made it. The absolute best part of that stay for me was going to Keith and Christi’s for dinner on Saturday night. They were kind and gracious. It was wonderful fellowship with a sincere Christian family. They have two children, Nicole, who never seems to get girls her age as part of the guest list, and Kyle, who had a great time playing with the boys. They invited Gene, a friend who rode both days with Keith and Greg, and his family for dinner, also. Unfortunately, Gene was called in to work at the last minute, but his wife Sandra still came with their two boys. They have a pump track in their backyard which only Greg and Henry were willing to try of our family, but the other boys rode like crazy. Foosball was another favorite along with running, chasing, etc. Everyone was ready for sleep by the time we made it back to the trailer.
My cousin Leslie and her husband Chuck, with their two older children, Jackie and John, live in Southern California and invited us to stop by their home. They even offered us food and the opportunity of using their washer and dryer and their internet (that is how I posted the blog before this). They have a beautiful home and yummy food; we felt welcome. Thank you, Chuck, Leslie, Jackie and John!
We then continued our journey to Oak Grove Campground in the Cleveland National Forest.
We arrived just as dark was setting in, but found a great site close to water and flush toilets, a luxury. We stayed there five nights. The place was alive with rabbits and squirrels. We had cool nights and a fair amount of rain, but Greg rode and Tuesday with Doug and Jeremy from the San Diego BOMB. He was scheduled to ride Thursday, but that was Louis’s eleventh birthday so he stayed with us and played. We were there long enough that I was able to get some more things settled in the trailer. It has been a challenge to figure out where to put everything (have I said that before?). There are still things that get moved around constantly, but it is getting better. We left on Friday (now March 23) and made our way to Laguna Campground in the same forest. It had obviously had a fair amount of rain and we wondered if they would be able to ride the trail they had planned, Nobel Canyon.
A strange fog rolled in that night, but Saturday the sun rose bright and beautiful. I can not imagine more squirrels that they had at Laguna, and woodpeckers and blue jays. I hadn’t thought before about how much wildlife we would see. Louis was working on his math one afternoon and later told us how he had made up a story to go with the squirrel play he was watching out the window, full of names and all the movements of the squirrels.
Laguna Campground has several trails from the campground including Nobel Canyon, so after his ride Greg rode the Big Laguna trail back to camp. He said it would be great for the kids and me (we had ridden a little of it on Friday when we were just exploring around). Sunday morning Louis, Otto and I left camp, rode to the trailhead and followed the trail back to camp. It was such a surprise when we were getting close to find Greg, Henry, Solomon and Olivia had walked out to meet us. This trip is full of fun times, love and laughter. There is a lot of stress, too, and we are trying to let that bother us less and less. It will take time, but we are getting there.
.JPG)
After we got back to camp I rode my bike a couple of miles (nearly all uphill) to a store to use the phone. Out in the forest our cell phones have no coverage and we wanted to call a couple of campsites to see where we might stay the night on our way to Arizona. We had hoped to get close to the border, but ended up extremely close to where we were. The decision was based completely on internet access. We want to keep our family and friends up to date with how and where we are, but time on the computer is a challenge.
Actually, it’s not just internet access, but access to electricity. We opted not to get a generator because they are just so expensive and we haven’t needed it except when it comes to charging our batteries and using the computer. We will see how things continue. We are learning a lot. Tomorrow we will head for Arizona and some parks near Phoenix. We do not want to spend the majority of the day driving, but sometimes it seems the best option. We will let you know how it goes when we can.
My cousin Leslie and her husband Chuck, with their two older children, Jackie and John, live in Southern California and invited us to stop by their home. They even offered us food and the opportunity of using their washer and dryer and their internet (that is how I posted the blog before this). They have a beautiful home and yummy food; we felt welcome. Thank you, Chuck, Leslie, Jackie and John!We then continued our journey to Oak Grove Campground in the Cleveland National Forest.
We arrived just as dark was setting in, but found a great site close to water and flush toilets, a luxury. We stayed there five nights. The place was alive with rabbits and squirrels. We had cool nights and a fair amount of rain, but Greg rode and Tuesday with Doug and Jeremy from the San Diego BOMB. He was scheduled to ride Thursday, but that was Louis’s eleventh birthday so he stayed with us and played. We were there long enough that I was able to get some more things settled in the trailer. It has been a challenge to figure out where to put everything (have I said that before?). There are still things that get moved around constantly, but it is getting better. We left on Friday (now March 23) and made our way to Laguna Campground in the same forest. It had obviously had a fair amount of rain and we wondered if they would be able to ride the trail they had planned, Nobel Canyon. A strange fog rolled in that night, but Saturday the sun rose bright and beautiful. I can not imagine more squirrels that they had at Laguna, and woodpeckers and blue jays. I hadn’t thought before about how much wildlife we would see. Louis was working on his math one afternoon and later told us how he had made up a story to go with the squirrel play he was watching out the window, full of names and all the movements of the squirrels.
Laguna Campground has several trails from the campground including Nobel Canyon, so after his ride Greg rode the Big Laguna trail back to camp. He said it would be great for the kids and me (we had ridden a little of it on Friday when we were just exploring around). Sunday morning Louis, Otto and I left camp, rode to the trailhead and followed the trail back to camp. It was such a surprise when we were getting close to find Greg, Henry, Solomon and Olivia had walked out to meet us. This trip is full of fun times, love and laughter. There is a lot of stress, too, and we are trying to let that bother us less and less. It will take time, but we are getting there.
.JPG)
After we got back to camp I rode my bike a couple of miles (nearly all uphill) to a store to use the phone. Out in the forest our cell phones have no coverage and we wanted to call a couple of campsites to see where we might stay the night on our way to Arizona. We had hoped to get close to the border, but ended up extremely close to where we were. The decision was based completely on internet access. We want to keep our family and friends up to date with how and where we are, but time on the computer is a challenge.
Actually, it’s not just internet access, but access to electricity. We opted not to get a generator because they are just so expensive and we haven’t needed it except when it comes to charging our batteries and using the computer. We will see how things continue. We are learning a lot. Tomorrow we will head for Arizona and some parks near Phoenix. We do not want to spend the majority of the day driving, but sometimes it seems the best option. We will let you know how it goes when we can. Sunday, March 18, 2007
Elk Grove to Simi Valley
I could have written more while we were at Rick and Kathy’s, but the stress of change is beginning to effect me and I don’t want to do anything. We had a great time in Elk Grove and Lodi visiting friends and family. Rick and Kathy fed us and took care of us the whole time we were at their home, it was like our home. It was hard to leave and we did leave later than expected, Wednesday (3-14-07) at about 1:00PM. We didn’t want to spend another whole day in the van, but we did want to get down to Ojai, so we drove the rest of the day arriving at the campground at 9:38PM. We pulled into the first pull-through site and went to sleep. In the morning we moved to a site further from the road and there were no other campers anywhere nearby. There was a creek and boulders and we even found a little single-track to ride. Greg went exploring on his bike while I was getting breakfast together, then Otto and I checked it out further after breakfast and Greg went back with Louis after that. We had a good day at camp, the kids played outside, although there was some complaining about the many small flies constantly in our faces, and after dinner we learned how to play Skip-Bo. Friday morning we got around as early as we could, maybe 7:30, and left camp by 8:30. Simi Valley was our next stop and unfortunately our directions were not as clear as they could have been and we spent an awful hour trying to find our campground, making two u-turns with our trailer and finally buying a map for $6 to find the road we needed. Next time we will be better prepared. We still made it to camp in time to set up before Keith came to pick up Greg and take him for a ride on some of the trails here. As usual you can check Greg’s MTB blog for his take on that and my Ramblings for my thoughts of late.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Greg and Marla Ride Alone
Kathy gave us another great day. She came home early from work on Friday and let Greg and I go riding while she and Rick stayed with the kids. Thursday Greg took Otto back to the trails he had ridden on Monday in Fairfield and Friday he took me. We know it will be rare for the two of us to ride together on this trip, one of us will need to be with the kids, so it was a special treat. The day had not started out well. During the night Rick and Kathy's cars were broken into and Greg's new cell phone, which he had unintentionally left in their car was stolen. We had just bought 1000 minutes, too. T-Mobile told us that we could transfer those minutes onto a new phone, which is a great relief and we will get one soon. Thankfully we bought the least expensive phones available.
I think it was after 11:00 before we finally got on the road, but it was a cooler and overcast day so we had no concerns of it getting too warm. The Rockville Hills trails are only about 70 miles away, and freeway miles, which go quickly. There were quite a few cars in the parking lot and we saw a few people riding, but usually going a different direction or from a distance. The landscape was so completely different from the trails I have ridden in Oregon and Washington.
No close trees, green grassy meadows. It was dry, but moist in some areas, perfect. Large rocks firmly embedded in the path creating obstacles I had seen before in pictures, but never tried to ride on myself. Some I rode, some I walked. Having not been on singletrack trails for...8 months I knew it was important not to have any big crashes. I was on my new Haro, first trail ride with a full suspension bike and it was a good thing because my manauvering abilities wer
e extremely rusty. I often saw a line to ride, but didn't make it that way, so I plowed through wherever. And, my legs were stronger than my lungs, but not by much. I hope to ride often enough on this trip to improve my endurance. I'm sure I will. Greg wants me to improve, as much as I do so that I can enjoy the long trails as he does.
I think it was after 11:00 before we finally got on the road, but it was a cooler and overcast day so we had no concerns of it getting too warm. The Rockville Hills trails are only about 70 miles away, and freeway miles, which go quickly. There were quite a few cars in the parking lot and we saw a few people riding, but usually going a different direction or from a distance. The landscape was so completely different from the trails I have ridden in Oregon and Washington.
No close trees, green grassy meadows. It was dry, but moist in some areas, perfect. Large rocks firmly embedded in the path creating obstacles I had seen before in pictures, but never tried to ride on myself. Some I rode, some I walked. Having not been on singletrack trails for...8 months I knew it was important not to have any big crashes. I was on my new Haro, first trail ride with a full suspension bike and it was a good thing because my manauvering abilities wer
e extremely rusty. I often saw a line to ride, but didn't make it that way, so I plowed through wherever. And, my legs were stronger than my lungs, but not by much. I hope to ride often enough on this trip to improve my endurance. I'm sure I will. Greg wants me to improve, as much as I do so that I can enjoy the long trails as he does. Wednesday, March 7, 2007
Someplace Fun 3/6/2007
Kathy treated us to an afternoon at Someplace Fun. Only about 10 miles away, it is a large space with huge inflatable slides, scooters in little race tracks, video games, air hockey, and a big carousel, basketball hoops for all sizes, etc. 
The kids had a great time. I don't think Henry did anything except video games. Otto probably did the largest variety because he was the perfect size and age.
Olivia was too little for many things and she was worn out by the time we left; just climbing those slides was a challenge for her. My cousin Pam and her daughter Jill met us there and Solomon and Olivia has an especially good time playing with her. We look forward to seeing her again while we are here. We all went to bed early, especially for not having to get up in the morning. I suspect I am still recovering from the stress of ge
tting ready to leave and Greg from his Monday ride, though he said he wasn't sore at all. He is struggling with allergies. I should have posted our fun at the park on Monday on this site, but it is on my rambling page (see link), there is a great video there of Olivia going down a slide.
Monday, March 5, 2007
Starting Out 3/3/2007
The journey has begun. We spent last week moving out of Chris and Stacy's and into the trailer. In actuality we lived with Jim and Charissa again, only it must have been much worse for them. Charissa took care of the kids and the meals, I think everyday, while Greg and I ran errands, packed, cleaned, etc. trying to get ready to leave. We pressed their friendship in a big way and can never repay their graciousness and generosity. (I'm sorry Charissa, I inadvertently stole your laundry basket.)
Greg's dad came out on Saturday to help us get packed up and on our way.
He had been out several times before helping us with repairs and showing us things we didn't know. We pulled out onto the road about 5:30 PM, a little later 
than we expected, but we wanted to get going. After spending a little time at Greg's dad's with his sister and her family we headed south at 9:30, a much later start than expected. It was wonderful, however, and when we wanted to stop and sleep, around the Jefferson area, we did. We slept in our own beds. We got up when we wanted to and kept heading down the road. 
We were planning on heading over to the coast because the weather was keeping the mountain passes on I-5 in dangerous condition. But, the weather was beautiful and when we got to the turn off we decided to call about the road conditions
and they were great. We came straight down I-5 with bare dry roads all the way. It is a lot slower pulling the trailer, but why do we need to hurry? We arrived at my brother Rick's home at 9:30 PM.
Rick and Kathy are warm and welcoming. We expected to sleep in the trailer, and they wouldn't have minded, but they set up space for us in the house and welcomed us in. Their house is so comfortable it seemed impossible to refuse and the kids are thrilled with the big boxes of Legos to play with, the many books and toys. The weather is a little overcast, but warm and dry. The trees are blooming... Greg went on a ride this morning, but you can read about that on his MTB blog.
He had been out several times before helping us with repairs and showing us things we didn't know. We pulled out onto the road about 5:30 PM, a little later 
than we expected, but we wanted to get going. After spending a little time at Greg's dad's with his sister and her family we headed south at 9:30, a much later start than expected. It was wonderful, however, and when we wanted to stop and sleep, around the Jefferson area, we did. We slept in our own beds. We got up when we wanted to and kept heading down the road. 
We were planning on heading over to the coast because the weather was keeping the mountain passes on I-5 in dangerous condition. But, the weather was beautiful and when we got to the turn off we decided to call about the road conditions
and they were great. We came straight down I-5 with bare dry roads all the way. It is a lot slower pulling the trailer, but why do we need to hurry? We arrived at my brother Rick's home at 9:30 PM.Rick and Kathy are warm and welcoming. We expected to sleep in the trailer, and they wouldn't have minded, but they set up space for us in the house and welcomed us in. Their house is so comfortable it seemed impossible to refuse and the kids are thrilled with the big boxes of Legos to play with, the many books and toys. The weather is a little overcast, but warm and dry. The trees are blooming... Greg went on a ride this morning, but you can read about that on his MTB blog.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)