Impressions from the Road: That hits the spot!

Thus far, my road trip has been nothing but amazing. Currently, I am in Chico, California, where I was lucky enough to travel in the company of both Shannon and my mom. The three of us, via the beautiful 101 bi-way, visited the Northern California Redwoods, home (well, at least one of them) of Paul Bunyan and Babe the blue ox and the Trail of Mystery.

The Redwoods were incredible, but also worth mentioning are the numerous beaches along the 101 coast, each different in appearance. Also great in diversity are the bridges presented in all shapes and sizes along the way. When traveling highway 5, one forgets the beauty of the Pacific Coast, but 101, so far, has reminded me of its greatness.

After the Redwoods, we said goodbye to the coast as we traveled SE toward Chico, California, where my grandma and two uncles live. Shannon then caught the train back to Oregon. My mom will be doing the same on Saturday while I will then be finding my way back to 101 and venturing down to San Francisco. Don’t worry, though, I will not be alone, but in the presence of Copper Bopper (car), Mandy (GPS) and Strawberry Shortcake (large, intimidating doll), all of which have become BFFs.

Today, though, TODAY was the best day ever, literally. I went cross-country skiing throughout Mt. Lassen with my uncle. The mountain was amazing beyond words. The 5 feet of snow mixed with a clear bright blue sky and the sun proved for perfection. We saw fumaroles (volcanic hot spots), meadows, mountain peaks and an unlimited supply of trees. What we did not see: people. There was absolutely nobody around us. Throughout the adventure and now, I feel liberated. Places like Mt. Lassen are the reason my mom wants so badly to move back to northern California. Places like Mt. Lassen make my wonder why I have never considered such a move. Living in California would not only allow me to enjoy the prettiest environment that I have ever seen, but I would also be able to be near my 80 year old grandmother who says “Wow, that hits the spot” every time she enjoys something (a beer in today’s case).

Apologies for the enormously long entry, but I am having a difficult time locating free wireless around these parts and so, I keep adding to this entry before I get a chance to post it. Here are some highlights thus far:

H. B. Van Suzer State Park

Pirates Plunder: Antiques and Collectables Mall, Newport, OR

Fishtails Café, Newport, OR. Pictured is the only neat thing about this café, the mermaids. The food was awful.

Battle Rock: Wayfinding Point, OR

Oregon’s Prehistoric Gardens. We stumbled upon this on accident, but it is a "garden" full of lifesize dinosaurs. It was closed, so we did not enter, but I would be interested in hearing from anyone that has visited.

Motel Trees, Del Norte Coast Redwood State Park, CA. Our motel in the Redwoods was great. I must write a review because every one that I saw was negative, but in reality this place is adorble. I did not get a picture of the interior, but we had a mural on the wall of our room and a fake frog croaking outside. OK, so I could have done without the frog.

Paul Bunyan of Trees of Mystery, CA. Babe the blue ox was, indeed, present as well.

Sky Trail in the Trees of Mystery. We rode on up, saw the tops of trees, had our fingers gnawed on by squirrels (well, not really, but we were warned about the animals), and then hiked down an "advanced" trail with hiking sticks. Go ahead an call me a professional woodsman.

Giant clover of the Redwoods.

Giant Redwoods. Honestly, amazing! The Native Americans of the region once said they were inhabited by spirits. I did not feel their presence, but the woods still felt magical.

Endangered Roosevelt Elk, Highway 101. This guy made direct eye contact with me and, for a second, I feared for my life.

Book collection in the Bidwell Mansion, historic home of John (founder of Chico, CA.) and Annie Bidwell, famous guests include Susan B. Anthony and Rutherford B. Hayes. I still need to return and snatch a photo of the exterior of the mansion.