If a person looked up mileage from Quartzsite, AZ to Sisters, OR it would say 1085.4 miles. We managed to take almost 4000 miles to make that trip! We didn’t exactly stick to the, “optimal mileage” route.
“At T minus 60 there will be no delays or interruptions expected or accepted…”
I think we left off from our last writing playing in the surf at Jalama beach waiting for the rocket to launch from Vandenberg Air force Base. The closest we could get to the rocket was about 6 miles from the launch pad. There were bleachers set up with a big speaker transmitting all of the final checks and tests and, of course, the countdown. We’ve waited so long to see a rocket launch we were all very excited. As they started the final countdown I felt like I was sitting at the top of a roller-coaster waiting to go down. The air was electric! Although it was all over very quickly, we were not let down. We saw a burst of fire, heard the explosion, and then watched the trail (that for all intents and purposes didn’t look any different from a jet stream) until it disappeared.
Waiting for the rocket
Take it from the locals – they know!
We’ve learned a few things on the road, and one of those things is to follow the local’s advice. At church on Sunday we were given very good advice to visit the La Purimisa mission and a Danish town, Solvang, with instructions at which bakery to try the pastries. What a ball! As we walked through the mission (a fully restored catholic mission that was self-sustaining in its prime) we pretended to be walking through the free-commots from, Taran Wanderer of the Chronicles of Prydain (the Black Cauldron series). We had a good time talking about Hyevid the blacksmith and looking at the loom of the weaver woman. We’ve been talking about someday settling down and having a farm of sorts that could be self-sustaining, so we had a good time talking and planning. The garden at the mission was very different from gardens I am used to. If it hadn’t been posted what all of the plants were, and how they were used, I wouldn’t have known it was more than decorative landscaping.
We topped off the day with Danish Desserts. YUM! We sampled many varieties of butter cookies, shared a filled, “waffle” and had a cream cheese filled croissant. We ate the treats at a park that had a bust of Hans Christian Anderson, so Tyrell read us the story of the Matchbox girl. What a sad story; hardly my idea of a child’s fairytale.
We enjoyed a trip to a cute little Danish area.
Otters are Awesome
Monterey Bay has an amazing aquarium. We were able to spend the day there with the children, and we were not disappointed. One of the more impressive exhibits were the sardines. Not much imagination is required to see how the makers of, “Finding Nemo” came up with their use of sardines in the movie.
From the displays they have on preserving oceans and the animals the inhabit them, the kids are still noticing in grocery stores if they see something, such as rockfish, that is on the AVOID list, and try to talk us into buying fish, like tilapia, if they remember it was on the BEST CHOICES list.
The shark exhibit was fascinating as well, along with the seahorses, the docent presentations, the penguins, the touch pools, and – well you can see we had a great time!
Exploring the Montery Bay Aquarium.
Rock and Waterfalls
I grew up hearing about Yosemite as being a very popular National Park, and after marrying Dan I knew about it as a very popular place to rock climb, but I really didn’t know what to expect. Anybody who knows me well, knows that I am a waterfall junkie. It was a joy to see all of the waterfalls Yosemite had to offer. The first trail we took was a short walk to Bridal Veil Falls. The kids loved getting sprayed by the mist and it was a warm enough day that we all dried very quickly.
Dan would have loved to hike up Half Dome, but he recognized that the children were still a little young. He’s planned a tentative trip for when the older boys are in their teens. We hope to make it back before then, though. As for the rock climbing, he couldn’t peel his eyes off El Capitan, but was happy to stick to a safe, family friendly route up Swan Slab. The three older children made it all the way to the anchor! Their climbing technique and strength has improved over the last year and a half.
We had a fun surprise as we were packing up our things to leave our rock climbing. The rangers had suggested that a black bear that frequented the area might come our way looking for food in our pack. They assured us the bear was friendly enough, just to shew her away. Sure enough, the bear came along, about 20 yards away from us, like a big dog begging at the dinner table. The kids quickly gathered in around us as we had talked about and we shouted for her to leave. She took one look back and then loped off like a sad little puppy that got told no. We saw two more bears from the safety of a vehicle the next day.
The kids have started collecting Junior Ranger badges at National and State Parks. In Yosemite National Park this program was especially fun because in order to earn their badge the kids just had to go on a ranger led hike designed especially for children. They walked along looking for signs of animal life. The ranger had a lot of energy, something I was out of. She guided the children and taught them with her enthusiasm, and I was so grateful for the break.
Our hike up to Vernal Falls included an awesome shower on steep steps. The trail is about a 3 mile round trip. Only the people who thought to wear rain gear didn’t get soaked on the hike. Kudos to the kids, especially Davey. It was his hardest hike ever, and he did awesome!
Things in the Yosemite Valley don't really fit into pictures.
Under Bridal Veil Falls.
I loved stone trail on the hike up to the falls!
We were able to do a little rock climbing.
On our way out of Yosemite we had been thinking to go the quickest route to Crater Lake in Oregon and then end our trip in Sisters, OR. Another thing I have learned, a little earlier in life, is that my mom often has very good advice. When she first suggested visiting Redwood National Park, my reaction was to think, “But we saw the redwoods at Sequoia, how different can they be?” I’m glad she encouraged us to go – and that we took her advice. The answer to my question is very different! The trees are much taller, and most have faded to the color gray over time. It gave me a new perspective to learn that only 3% of these amazing creations are still standing, and that is only because people took military action to protect them. I’m so glad they did.
On our hike through the Big Trees loop we heard a sound like a bull elephant. I’ve heard enough bears, and seen enough in Yosemite, to not want to come up on a bear by surprise in the thick cover of trees. Dan agreed we should turn around. We heard another sound that made Dan think the limbs were creaking and it wasn’t an animal after all. We turned around anyway. We had fun talking about our, “Bigfoot sighting” that we missed because we turned around.
Right through the heart of Big Foot country!
We heard some strange noises in the woods.
Notice the relative size of the kids and the tree trunk.
The redwoods are amazing!
Oregon has some gorgeous coast line.
Grant’s Pass and New Friends
I can’t miss writing about Grant’s Pass. As a rule we take Sundays off of traveling. We make a point to go to church and be in a place where we can park to observe the Sabbath. We happened to go to church in the town of Grant’s Pass, Oregon. I have never been more overwhelmed with kindness! I lost count of how many people greeted us before and after we sat down. By the end of church we had been invited to move into town several times, and we had two dinner invitations for different nights. Since we didn’t really have a hard schedule to keep we thought it would be inconsiderate not to accept. We could use the time between appointments to catch up on laundry and errands. Sunday night the kids had a blast playing with the Fisher’s children, we enjoyed delicious food, and by the end of the meal we were invited to sleep in their driveway with electricity, refill our water tank, and do laundry at their house. We took them up on all but the laundry.
The next night, at the Page’s, the kids got to swim in their pool while brother Page visited with us and cooked chicken on the grill. Sister Page had a special bond with Jacob. After dinner they got the bunnies out for the kids to feed and play with. I think David and Natalyn picked enough clover for the rabbits for a week! Again we were invited to stay overnight with showers, electricity, and water. (We did sleep in the driveway and wondered if we were becoming bums, but decided that it was practical because it was past the kid’s bedtime and since we hadn’t asked – or even hinted we could use a place to park, we could excuse the notion a bit. They are just super kind people).
Crater Lake, a Snow Park?
Crater Lake was nothing like I expected! We arrived to 5 feet of snow. Unlike every other park I have been to, this is a winter park. People go to Crater Lake to cross-country ski, snowmobile, snowshoe, and camp in snow caves. Dallin was especially thrilled to get the coats out and go sledding. He felt like we had denied him an inherent right all winter by living in a place without snow! I was glad we could accommodate him while knowing that the snow was as temporary as a couple hours drive away. We did get a beautiful look at the lake and learned that it is the deepest in North America. Tyrell really impressed the Ranger with his knowledge about the place. He learned it all on his own, too, by reading the displays in the visitor center.
On our way into Sisters we drove by Smith Rock just to take a peek. Of course, by the end of the day, after we had climbed something on the cinnamon slab, and all had a turn, we realized that we would need to get a better look soon!
We were surprised to find snow at the Crater Lake.
Crater Lake is beautiful.
A little summer sledding.
Smith Rock is an amazing place.
How far can Dan pull the Trailer on a Bike?
We were so excited to get all set up at Sisters. We even washed the suburban and the trailer and deep cleaned our, “garage.” Dan ran into town (we were camped about 8 miles out of town in the National Forest) and the suburban refused to start. I was pretty proud of myself for correctly diagnosing a broken fuel pump. Of course, it was Saturday of Memorial weekend so all of the garages were closed until Tuesday. Sisters did not offer anywhere to rent cars, but did rent bikes so Dan rented a bike in town and had a very steep uphill 8 mile bike ride to get back home to us. The sheriff told him he could keep the suburban where it was until Tuesday.
We had a wonderful church for the family at home.
Tuesday morning Dan got to see how well the brakes on the bike worked as he went down the “trucks use lower gears” hill to meet the tow-truck to take him into Bend, OR. We were grateful we have towing insurance.
Since they had to order the fuel pump from Washington, Dan needed to find a place to stay overnight. We were both grateful that he was able to locate his cousin Jenifer Harris that we had met at the last Gordon family reunion. Her family took good care of him while he was in town. I was grateful that he was able to let me know he would be spending the night before my cell phone died.
I’ve heard that some people have a thing with watches that they can’t wear a wristwatch without it breaking. I seem to have the same type of phenomenon with cell phones. Fortunately, if you want to look at it that way, we’ll be out of signal range until September, so a phone won’t do me any good anyway.
Dan came back Wednesday afternoon with a working Suburban. The kids and I were just heading out for a little hike, so he was able to join us on the trail that Natalyn and David found. The deer at our spot didn’t seem to mind us at all and came very close to the trailer. We were surprised how close they let us come while we were on our hike as well. Deer are such pretty animals.
Not going to work!
We got set up in our campsite at Camp Creek near Mt. Hood just before Aaron, Rob, and Mike pulled in. It was a beautiful spot and I was very happy that they had big dumpsters. The biggest trick I have found with free camping is trying to find a place to put the trash. The kids did an awesome job of cleaning up the National Forest spot so we had an abnormally large amount of trash with us. Of course, Camp Creek isn’t free camping, but it was almost worth the fee to dump the garbage!
Mt. Hood.
We were happy that Aaron invited us to visit at his house for the weekend and to go to church with his family. Julie’s parents were there as well. We had a wonderful barbeque and the kids had fun playing with their cousins. We really enjoyed relaxing and visiting with them. We were also grateful to them for letting us park in front of their house for the weekend.
Baby steps
Jacob took advantage of the carpet and extra space in the Varney’s living room to take his first official crawling steps! He’s been pretty happy with his new mode of transportation. We have to watch him carefully because he keeps an eye on the door. He’s determined to go headfirst down the steps!
On the subject of Jacob – he has been popping out teeth like popcorn. Since he turned nine months old, he has grown a new tooth every week and a half. As soon as one is all the way in, the next begins.
Just a Little Further…
No one can really blame us for heading toward Mt. St. Helen’s instead of back to Sisters, can they? What else could we do? From Aaron’s house it was about an hours drive to get to Ape Cave at Mt. St. Helen’s. When Tyrell was a year old we went to the visitor center side of the state park, so I was excited to see this side of the park. We were prepared this time so we could go inside the lava tube. We all donned our headlamps and went in. Natalyn was delighted when she realized we were underground. The cave has two formations we located, the meatball and the railroad tracks. We did the, “easy” part of the cave so quickly we took a vote and the majority voted to take the, “hard” trail as well. Dan helped carry Davie because he had been voting for a nap. There were a lot of boulders to scramble over, and it was twice as long, but we did it! We all felt like explorers by time we were through.
The next day we went to the other side of the park to get a better view of the crater and visit the visitor centers.
We had fun exploring the ape caves.
At Mt. St. Helen's visitor's center.
After a lot of discussion we decided not to do the just a couple hours farther north to get to Seattle. A person is just not able to do everything even if they try! Had we gone to Seattle we would have been near Vancouver, which is just down the road from Prince Rupert, which is just down the channel from Juneau, which is just below everything we had to turn around without seeing last summer…
Say Cheese!
Tillamook, OR isn’t that much further out of route to get back to Mt. Hood than just going straight there. It was the only route we saw with a cheese factory stop as well.
We were all talking about what we were going to order for dinner, (yes, we had decided to splurge and eat at their café) when we started seeing signs for Lewis and Clark National Park. Dan wanted to know if he should take the exit or keep going. I asked the kids if any of them could tell me about Lewis and Clark. The answer was less than satisfactory so Dan turned into the National Park.
We were thrilled with our timing because a school group was there and they were just getting ready to do a musket display and telling stories about the expedition. We were even more thrilled the next morning when we were let in free to the interpretive center because we were considered to be a school group! What a great place! I remember spending a long time in fourth grade Idaho history learning about Lewis and Clark, but I realized that I really had no idea what they were all about until we made this stop. Please, feel free to ask any of my children who Lewis and Clark were.
A great Lewis and Clark program and some great camera timing by Lexie.
Inside the interpretive center.
Take Two
Off for cheese again. After we got on the road again, Dallin exclaimed, “I hope we don’t have to make another emergency National Park exit!”
We made it to the factory in time to have a late lunch and early dinner. The kids were glued to the window watching the assembly line and learning about the different steps of production. At one point Tyrell exclaimed, “I don’t like cheese, but this is cool!” He was even brave enough to try the squeaky cheese. He didn’t like it either, but the rest of us agreed that the vintage white extra sharp was worth tasting!
Dallin especially caught on to the aging process of cheese and noticed the difference in taste with how long it had been aged. He was amazed to learn that good cheese can’t be made in one day.
While we were eating our ice-cream, a couple came over to visit with us. They were impressed with the children and had been watching them eat their ice-cream. They suggested a county park to stay overnight. Once again, the locals were right. Since it was indeed a great little park and happened to be free fishing weekend we decided to stay through the weekend and took a break from traveling.
We were disappointed to learn that the fishing on the river was on a catch and release basis, but still had a good time getting out to fish. The river was very beautiful. In the end the catch and release policy didn’t inhibit us any in that there wasn’t any catch to release. Part of the lack of catch was due to only having one over sized lure that had hooks on it. The other pole we had simply had a stick attached to it to give the kids practice casting. The kids were quite certain they got some nibbles on the stick. We did have enough fun that we decided to buy fishing licenses so that we would be able to go out again during the summer.
Mt. Hood
We had been anxious to get to the Varney’s after Dan’s climb, so we didn’t stop at the lodge, or do much exploring around the Mt. Hood area. We decided to go back and give the area a little bit more time. The lodge is a National monument so we started there. Dan showed us the route he took up the mountain, which really got me thinking that when the kids are older he’ll have to go up again, with me. I fell asleep through the movie about the lodge, and their, “museum” was not much more than a display of old door knobs. The kids were disappointed not to be allowed to play in the filthy snow.
The camp host shared a pamphlet on Wildwood with us. We decided to see what that was all about after lunch. We were very pleasantly surprised. David led us on the path by following the arrows to the underwater viewing area. Along the way the kids gathered armfuls of cotton that had blown down from the trees. They gloried in their, “snow” that didn’t melt. Tyrell started to sing, “PHAT Dippin’, a comical song by Rhett and Link, which glorifies swimming with cloths on, as we walked into the underwater viewing area to see the small fish fry. We had a good time trying to identify the little Chinook and Steelhead that were in the river.
We saw a brown sign marking a national fish hatchery on our way back to Sisters, so of course we had to stop and see what was available to see. We were excited that we showed up on a day that they were harvesting the salmon. We saw up close and personal how they sort, count, and harvest the fish. We were the only group there, so the workers let us stand right next to them and look over their shoulders while they worked. I’ve been to a lot of hatcheries, but I’ve never seen so much happening at a hatchery before.
Home in the Meadow
We started our job (technically Dan started his job as camp host, the kids and I are just along for the free camping). The meadow is a gorgeous place where deer frequent. The kids built a great fort with the fallen branches and logs in a little grove of trees. We took out their plastic toy food and had fun walking through the meadow, hiding the toy food and finding it again pretending we were travelers that had to search for the food, build our own shelter, and get water from the stream (no, we did not drink from the stream). Natalyn and Tyrell really had fun pretending they were hunting and making clothing and blankets from the hides, and drying jerky. It reminded me of a book I read as a child, based on a true story of some pioneer children whose parents were ambushed by Indians and so they had to finish the journey on their own. I think it was called, Eight Alone, but I’m not sure. I’ve tried finding it so Tyrell can read it, but I haven’t been able to. Anyone who might know about the book, I would be very grateful if you could let me know the title or author so I can find it.
We’re not too far away from Bend where there is some really good shopping to be had. My shoes had completely worn through, and it was time to get a new pair. We went to a running shoe store, Fleet Feet to look at and try on shoes. We were at the point where Dan and I were deciding if we should keep looking, wait and think, or buy the pair I liked. David heard us talking and chimed in, “Wind her up, and let her go!” Speaking of David, he informed me that, “My name is not Davy, it’s David!” He corrects anyone who forgets. Who gave him permission to grow up so fast?
Our camp in the meadow.
David fishing.
The meadow is very beautiful.
The kids were very excited to do camp host work.
Camp site #5 in the meadow.
Three days later…
We were happy that Hoodoo, the company who manages the campground, agreed to let us have the whole week to travel to our family reunion. We passed through Boise, ID on our way to Swan Valley, where the reunion took place. Just before we got into Boise, we gave Cody and Caureen Miller a call to see if we could stop by and visit. Cody and Dan were in the Electrical Engineering program together at U of I. What fun it was to finally meet their two darling children! They made us a delicious lunch and we had a super visit!
We had a nice visit in Idaho Falls with Grandma Meikle on our way through Idaho Falls. I always have a fun time watching the kids play with the same toys I did as a kid and have just as much fun as I had. Except for Jacob; he hated the jack-in-the-box. I also have fun watching them grow using grandma as a measuring stick, as my brothers and sisters and I did when we were young.
What’s the difference between a horror house and a haunted house?
This is the question that Dallin asked me as we were driving. I answered that I really didn’t think there was much of a difference, that they just had different names. He insisted that horror houses were much worse, even awful, so I stated that he must be thinking of a whore house (yes, I’m very open with my children).
“What’s that,” he asked. I answered, “When a woman sells her body to a man.”
Dallin’s eyes got as wide as saucers, “Is that why there are so many chopped up body parts in horror houses?”
Family Reunion
The bi-annual Gordon family reunion started June 25. We stopped at Thornton to see Grandma Marler and meet up with Dan’s parents and meet Malcom (Naomi and Patrick’s little cutie). After lunch, the family split up in three different vehicles to go to the Avery ranch where the reunion was being held. I should have known that Ray would let Dallin drive.J
As always, there was way too much food, and it was all good. Like Dallin commented, “I want to keep eating, but I know I am full.” Dan and I stayed up way too late visiting with Rob and Becca the first night, but it was really fun to talk without interruptions and sample the caramel shortbread squares without getting caught by little eyes.
Two years seems to fly by so quickly; I was surprised at how young the children looked in the video of the last reunion.
As usual, Aunt Jessine really outdid herself with the crafts. Natalyn looks forward to the crafts the most. She spent all morning with me decorating balls and making door hangars. David held his own with the crafts for quite a while also. I enjoyed spending the time together with the younger kids.
Visiting with the Varney cousins is always a treat. Emily has me convinced that the backpack I want for Jacob is an ergo-baby. He has pretty much outgrown his front pack. Dan had a great time getting to know Kalon, talking about business ideas. Sara and I had fun talking about babies and traveling. I wish her the best of luck with the rest of her pregnancy.
Friday night a hailstorm started just as dinner was getting started. The hailstones were about the size of small marbles and really made a great sound bouncing off the tin roof of the shelter. It was really fun watching people’s reactions as they laughed and covered their ears, or in Jacob’s case, not sure whether to laugh or cry.
We played games inside the cabin to get into a warmer environment. After the kids played a mummy game where they wrapped themselves up with toilet paper in a race, and won candy bars in the left-right game, they went downstairs to watch a movie while the adults and older kids played games. The, “what-if” game, a game where people ask “what if” questions and other people answer them, was particularly fun.
At the family reunion.
Visiting the Andersons
Katie, Landon, and Amanda were on a pioneer re-enactment handcart trek with their stake young men/young women group while my family was at the family reunion. We all got to the Anderson house about the same time. I was really glad they were willing to get together, even though I know they were all exhausted from their trek and Mike was sick. Mike made his delicious meatballs and rice.
After dinner we were able to help Katie take inventory of the tents that her group had used on the pioneer trek. I went back into the house after getting my kids to bed and we had a good time laughing, talking, and playing Frisbee in the house.
Aunt Darlene stopped by the Anderson house to drop off some clothes she picked up for Natalyn from a garage sale. We talked about David rubbing his hair off because he loves the feel of hair between his fingers. She suggested that she had a piece of wool that was soft and felt like hair. We stopped by her home after church on Sunday and picked it up. I’m so grateful, too. David calls it his beaver and carries it around with him everywhere and sleeps with it. He doesn’t rub his hair as long as he has his, “beaver” near. I hope his hair starts to grow back!
Katie's yard looked like a camp ground after the trek.
Mom and Dad
We were able to buzz down to see my mom and dad in Salt Lake for dinner. Wow, it was good to see them. They made a great meal, and we played some games, and went for a walk. Mostly we just talked. Time just seemed to go by too quickly before we had to leave.
We like to listen to tapes while we drive. Natalyn especially loves to listen to the songs. One of our favorite tapes is about people and families. The best song of all is, “I’m a V.I.P. in my family (very important person). Natalyn was very happy asking if we could please listen to I’m a P.I.G. in my family. She couldn’t stop laughing, along with the rest of us, when she realized what she had spelled. We often sing the chorus as, a very important piggy, now.
Home at the Lake
For the next several months our home is in one of the most gorgeous spots on earth! As the snow melts off the ridge and higher up the mountain even the mosquitoes are becoming manageable. We see the fish jumping, and have tried our hand at catching them, but we have proven to be unsuccessful thus far. We still have fun trying! One of these mornings I’m going to get up early and go by myself to catch breakfast.
Natalyn is Daddy’s girl as she helps him go on rounds almost every day. She rides along in the company truck as he collects garbage, recycling, cleans bathrooms, and collects fees. Her favorite part is helping to spot recyclable litter. In exchange for helping around the campground, the kids get to split all of the funds earned from recycling here. So far they’re on their way to earning quite a bit of cash this summer. They’re also making money spotting deer. For every deer they spot in or near the road before mom and dad, they earn a dollar. At the rate the boys are trading teeth, the tooth-fairy will be out of business as well. I say trading teeth, because it has been uncanny how either Tyrell or Dallin will lose a tooth on the same day that Jacob will grow a new one.
We got a ground carpet for the tent which helps keep the dirt down a lot! Jacob loves the new floor as he crawls around the big space.
We have more firewood than we’ve ever owned before due to the forest service clearing out dangerous trees. We’re making good use of it with campfires in the evening.
The lake is just perfect for swimming and the weather has been perfect for it also. Even David can go far out in the water before it reaches his waist. The kids take turns between playing on the body board we got in San Diego last winter, and floating the little wooden boats that Grandpa Gordon made with them last summer.
Dan has started playing softball with members of the branch. We hope the turnout is strong so it doesn’t fizzle out.
I’m looking forward to start hiking with the ladies on Tuesdays. This Tuesday the kids have dentist appointments, but after that I’m setting the day aside for some rejuvenation time for myself.
Looking out from our Lake camp site.
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