7 July 2024: Northern California and the week of casino's

 

The best South African export...

So after dropping Tim in Santa Rosa, I headed off to Russian River Thousand Trails park for a week.  The park is near Cloverdale on the 101 and nothing spectacular in the area - except quite a few wineries.  Seems in the 'Valley' wineries abound.  The Russian river runs through the park and it is a beautiful river, but unfortunately it is so full of fertilizer runoff from the valley it has the murky color and 'rock snot' everywhere.  I did swim/float in the river for a few afternoons to cool down as the heat dome was settling over the valley.  My neighbor, Steve was an old Vietnam vet, retired who now lived in his truck camper full-time.  Interesting guy.  Divides his time between Thousand Trails parks in the US and at least 6 months out of the country - preferably southeast Asia (he went back to where he was stationed in Vietnam and befriended one of the tour guides who was also stationed there during the conflict - on the other side.  He keeps a written diary of all his doings... has 57 books already and he said for the first time he reread one of his diaries when he went to Vietnam (the one when he was stationed in Vietnam).  Was apparently very weird, but also very healing.  Last winter he spent in Panama - total cost was about $2,000 per month living in a cheap hotel on the beach.  After 3 days I fled the heat - predictions were temperatures up to 110, and that was not going to be good there.

Cloverdale, CA

We forget the large Mexican / Catholic presence in California - the US took it from Mexico back in the late 1800s...

Steve contemplating life

Headed to Bear Creek Casino on the coast where I could stay free for 3 nights (in the car park), and where it was 40degrees cooler.  The casino was close to Eureka, California.  As I move further north, the surroundings becomes more dilapidated, poor and the number of homeless/car dwellers are increasing dramatically.  The number of 'Dollar' stores and weed shops increase disproportionately. Eureka is at the mouth of Humbolt Bay and near the Eel river.  One of the interesting things about the northern California coastline is that because of the mountain range (the mountain range on the sea-side of the Sierra Nevada's?) close to the sea, the rivers in the valley run north-south and then where they managed to break through the mountain range there are these huge rivers that flow over a wide flat expanse (delta) to the sea making for good crabbing, fishing except... it is recommended that you do not eat the fish/shellfish (or not too many of them).  Great surf though.  Also saw my first north coast dolosse - click the link - designed by a South African who never patented the idea.

Derelict and run down

The delta's of these large rivers are very fertile and make amazing farming

Someone (a car camper) parked at another desolate beach near Eureka

The Eel river mouth

Long stretches of sandy beaches

Some of the locals keeping an eye on who uses the restrooms

Eureka harbor - unfortunately the light was bad, but zoom in on the face

The price we pay for hyper production

Some great surf at the mouth of Humboldt Bay, Eureka

2 guys out, but the current is very heavy so I watched from the sideline

Dolosse doing their thing.  This closest one weighs 42 tons and has been moved over a 100 yards in the past few years - they track some of the dolosse..

Also met the first young (under 30) guy traveling in a truck camper on his own.  Also works remote and sells parcels of land to mainly people from the Philippines - sounded a bit sketchy ....

Next 2 nights were at casino's again - in Trinidad and at the mouth of the Klamath river.  I remember Trinidad from our 2008 trip with the kids - beautiful little town and beach.

Trinidad harbor

2,668 miles and counting

Huge amounts of starfish and anemones - the beautiful colors of the anemones are due to algae that live in their tentacles in a symbiotic relationship.

Went on a redwoods scenic drive with Barbie

Hiked into the bos

The Klamath river

Tot hier toe en nie verder nie...

Then 2 nights in Crescent City - another stop from our 2008 trip.  I remember this wide sand beach full of drift wood (not sure if one should call whole trees drift wood, but...) and we kept a fire going for the 3 days we were there.  This time round the beach was all cleaned up and full of people.  Before I checked into the rv park, I stopped on the side of the road and went surfing.  It was a gorgeous day.  Met a Durban boy out in the surf.  Apparently everyone that stays in the Valley (basically along I5 on the other side of the mountain) have weekend trailers/beach houses in Crescent City and come here to get away from the heat - its only 90 minutes away.  As normal, went for a nice bike ride (now have 2,700 miles on the clock), and ended up in a brewery for a beer.  Turns out, the Dumpster Puppies and 2 other bands were playing there that night - serious punk / screamer stuff.  The bartender gave everyone who came in with children a warning that there was going to be some really loud music starting up soon.  The best line from the bartender was "I was working here the last time they played here and before the show started they were doing double lines so I asked for some support this time".  For clarification...which I had to ask about... a double line is a line of coke plus a line of some crack derivative... The people watching was great.

Fascinating what forms the Oregon coast - zoom in

Pushed up by the plates

Crescent City beach

The surf was not big, but pleasant

An ode to the dolos

Punk rockers punkin'

I think he was the father of one of the band members...

Dungeness crabs reign here

The lighthouse at Crescent City

Then into Oregon