The "Dew Drop Inn" Chronicles

Ah geez. There was a big shoot out there yesterday. Glad you weren't there then. Some whack-job killed one of my parents neighbors (I grew up in a pretty nice neighborhood, so this was especially shocking) and then went on a crime spree through Eugene, before heading south and making it to Mckerricher. He killed a Sheriff Deputy down there and ended up succumbing to another shoot out with police. Crazy. He should have been in prison due to some charges earlier in the month, but they didn't have the resources to hold him (according to the prosecutors office). We are all in shock over it. George was a really wonderful man and one of the Coquille Tribal Elders (as well as one of their best story tellers and a former U of O Anthropology Professor). He will be missed for sure.

Sorry for the downer story! Beautiful pictures and coming north you should have nice weather until Tuesday (at least as you get to the northern Oregon coast, not sure what is happening south or central right now). Then a few days of rain, which might push our trip to the beach to the later part of the week. We are all coming off being sick, so if it is still raining towards the end of next week, we will probably stay home.

 

So sorry to hear of your loss, our human misfortune and misery can sometimes be too much. I would have never guessed that such sorrow had visited a place as beautiful as this.

We are also keeping a weather eye, we will not be able to make it home before this latest system comes in, looking for a place to hunker down, this coast road ends soon, will be slightly inland, a good thing.

We'll see, any way it pans out we will see you folks in Mossyrock end of May.

Michael

 

No problem, at all. It was my post that was unclear.

and you sounded just fine!!

 

Tony's clam chowder at Cedar Key, Fl. is delicious!! It's only 2 hours from our house and we had a bowl on New Year's Day 2014 to start the year off right!

 

There you go another reccomendation for Tony's at Cedar Key FL, so far Tony's has the most at 2. Any more reccomendations out there?

Michael

 

There certainly is a lot of wildlife here at MacKerricher State Park...


Campground neighbors


Shore birds at MacKerricher Beach


Beached harbor seals


Great blue heron out making a living on Cleon Lake

Michael

 

The town of Mendocino is one of those rare places that have been frozen in time, the time being the logging boom of the late 1800s.There are plenty of hamlets that have old buildings intact but almost never where the whole of the town has been preserved and also without the encroachment of burger and schmotel alleys.

The first time I rolled through these parts was on a bicycle trip from San Francisco up the coast to northern Washington State and then across State Road 20 to eastern BC to visit my sister in Rossland. What an eye opener that trip was for someone like me, a resident of Miami. You leave the fast food, motel chains and big box stores behind on State Route 1 after crossing the Golden Gate, you don't see any of that stuff for hundreds of miles, it was like that then and amazingly it's like that today.

And Mendocino is the crown jewel of the north coast like Key West is to the Florida Keys and Savanah is to the southeast coast and Lunenberg is to the Nova Scotia Coast...

The setting of the town is spectacular, perched high atop bluffs with the cool mist leaden air streaming in from the ocean. Of course most of the beautiful old structures are repurposed with contemporary businesses, a health food store in an old church, a bank in the Masonic Temple, there's a great camera/ binocular shop in an old bank, B&Bs in the grand old houses. A cool throwback that is now proving hauntingly ironic are all the water towers in the town. In times past each house and business had a windmill to pump ground water into their water tower. They still use the water towers, the only difference is they now use electric pumps instead of the windmills. If you look behind the houses and businesses you see water storage tanks, some new, some vintage.

We've enjoyed our visit to the Mendocino coast, but now it's once again time to pull stakes and continue our journey home, so it's on to Humboldt Redwood SP tomorrow, or at least that's the plan.


Mendocino headland (SHHHH don't tell anyone but this is my secret abalone dive spot)


Mendocino open space


Ocean Setting


Working water towers


Masonic temple


Masonic Temple detail with Father Time "The Grim Reaper" (see the scythe)and the Weeping Maiden, with a whole lot of other symbolic doodads thrown in...this is a Masonic Temple after all!


Mendocino in bloom


Mendocino, spires and water towers

Michael

 

Wow Michael, amazing pictures. When I see your pictures I want to go there.

 

Thanks Pat, here's a few more.

Dewey and crew broke camp this morning and drove the last of California State Route 1.


Had to have this cool pin for Dewey's galley

We picked up US 101 at Leggett but not before our reroute through the Chandelier redwood tree, that's right the famous drive through tree, oh no I hope we squeeze through!


Tina makes it...


... now it's Dewey's turn, RV in a tree!


...yep they both got through without a scratch

When you find yourself on this stretch of the 101 north of Leggett take the parallel road called Avenue of the Giants to see some of the biggest most easily accessible redwood trees and good ole roadside Americana.


Avenue of the Giants

We saw our first Camp-Inn in the wild, a 550 with a silver SUV TV
heading north on the 101 while we were going south ( cuz we missed our turn and were heading back) couldn't stop, but I did wave, still wondering who that was.

We're camped in site #30 at the Burlington campground in Humboldt Redwood SP with towering redwood trees all around us. A pretty good low pressure system is coming in, we'll see how that goes before we continue north.


Camped amongst the giants

Michael

 

Great pictures! love the tear in the tree.

 

Michael,

Great photos. Two years ago we wanted to do a drive through tree, but the tree was too small and they wouldn't let me (it was the one right there down the road from Burlington...blanking on the name). Love the Avenue of the Giants and that stretch. We came through with the Harley Gangs. They were doing their big road trip. That was kind of a hoot.

What else is funny? The only time I have ever seen a Camp-Inn in the wild was in the Redwoods too. No idea who they were, but they were in a silver Outback, and we were at Elk Prairie. Tried to catch them up, but lost them. I think there are decoys out there!

Weather moved into Portland last night. They said we were meant to have dry weather over the next weekend, but it must have been an April Fools joke. Now it is rain out as far as the eye can see. Hope it isn't too bad for you. We are in the process of changing our plans. Unless something changes, the NWRU will be our first trip out.

Drive safe!

 

Great Pics Michael,
I didn't know you were a diver too?? Secret spot? c-c-cold one though...
fun...

Hwy 1 is always beautiful, even in the fog... fun trip...

 

Mendocino - I forgot to tell you to get the Mushroom Ice Cream...

http://www.yelp.com/biz/frankies-pizza-and-ice-cream-parlor-mendocino

it is fantastic!!

for the naysayers, which would be almost everybody, the ice cream tastes like maple walnut, but without the nuts. VERY tasty.

plus, the place has decent pizza, too

-Al

 

Mushroom ice cream in Mendocino?? Sounds like a trip.

 

Al, if you come to Portland any time, head over to Salt & Straw ice cream. They are awesome and do all sorts of blends. There is usually one with mushrooms. Their Turkey Dinner was interesting. My favorite: Burnside bourbon with Stumptown Coffee. They change their flavors every month. Just awesome and you can taste as many as you like!

http://www.saltandstraw.com

Best ice cream in town!

 

Ah yes, California and PNW Candy Cap mushrooms ( Lactarius rubidus and Lactarius rufulus) when well dried will make your whole galley smell like maple syrup for days. Yup, they make great desserts (like Mendocino ice cream) and now can be found on the menus of a few fine CA & OR restaurants. Excellent fresh, but sweeter when dried. Very nice in cookies, breads, pancakes, and waffles.

BTW, the sequoia tree shots are gorgeous!

Regards, T

 

Yes Frank mostly California and Florida diving, scuba and free diving, spearfishing, bug and ab hunting, stills and video and club looky loo stuff, lots and lots of diving. Haven't done much lately though, my newish wet suit shrank and I don't want to buy another one. Have been trying to shrink myself on this trip in hopes of diving again soon, we'll soon see if my wet suit fits again when we get back home.

It might be a good week to play inside Sarah, it really came down last night, more on the way. We've been using the awning on our Northern Breeze to cover our doors so we can get in and out of Dewey without getting wet. I read a review of the NB way back when, someone complaining that the awning wood pool water then dump, common complaint right...someone else responded with a solution, you place the long pole on a corner, the short pole in the middle and guy out the other corner. We tried this for the 1st time in an absolute torrential downpour in Florida and it worked great, no pooling.





Boy they sure have some big trees
here...





...so big they don't fit in one picture.

Those were just for you T cuz now I know you appreciate them.

Al, we'll have the mushroom ice cream on our next visit to Mendocino, always nice to have something to look forward to, thanks again Al, Sarah and you too T for the great recommendations.

Michael

 

Your wetsuit shrank. That's precious. Ima use that one.

I went shopping with the wife the other day. She came out of the dressing room and said, "It's two sizes too big. But it fits."

I said nothing.

 

AshWolf, you're a double threat, funny and smart, or is it a triple...

Michael

 

My lord it is raining now, staying dry under our NB and toasty warm with the furnace on... will post on the morrow, to tell how the Dewey crew faired, I fear for the tent campers this eve, they may experience a miserable night, thank you heaven and earth for all the folks at Camp-Inn for building us such a comfortable home away from home.

Michael