Crater Lake, OR

Steve and I decided to pose in front of this painted backdrop and call it our vacation at Crater Lake. Honestly it is the real thing! Crater Lake was formed by the volcano Mount Mazama thousands of years ago. It is the deepest lake in the United States and is a beautiful cobalt blue almost purple color. We declined to go swimming since the water is a chilling 44 degrees. We are spending the night in Bend, OR and plan to travel back to the Oregon coast tomorrow.

Glass Beach, Fort Bragg

We're finally in Oregon with our final destination being Redmond , Washington. We drove yesterday from Mendocino, CA to Medford, OR. On the way we passed through more rugged California coast, the Redwood National and State Parks and beautiful Oregon forests. Mendocino is a quirky little coast town set on a bluff over looking the ocean. We stayed at the Hill House of Abbot Cove which played a critical role in the tv show Murder She Wrote with Angela Landsbury. Just north of Mendocino is Fort Bragg were we discovered glass beach. This is portion of the coast that the residents of Fort Bragg used as a dump from 1949. In 1967 the beach was cleaned up but of course they couldn't get all the garbage so the beach is littered with tiny pieces of glass which are frosted and rounded from the constant tumbling of the waves. Just like a giant tumbler!

More of the Coast Highway

Today Steve and I traveled up more of Highway 1 from Bodega Bay to Mendocino with a side trip to Sebastopol and Bodega. We were attracted to Sebastopol because it is known for being the southern most Russian outpost in North America during the 1800's. What we found there was a wonderful farmer's market. The fruits and vegetables look more sculpted than grown. And the varieties of each fruit and vegetable! They didn't just sell peaches but they had sun crest and Arctic gems and another variety. There must have been a dozen different varieties of tomatoes. The vendors were also selling huge bunches of herbs for two dollars. On the way back to the coast we went through Bodega which is famous for being one of the locations used in Alfred Hitchcock's film "The Birds". Here is a picture of the school house used in the film. It is now occupied as a house with a gift store on the bottom floor. Guess what the main theme in the gift store is?

Point Reyes National Seashore

Point Reyes is a peninsula which sticks out from the California coast and the San Andreas fault. This is beautiful rugged country dotted with old farms. The old lighthouse although no longer in use is open for visitors. The trek down included 300 stairs. The little town of Point Reyes Station outside the park has some cute shops and restaurants. We also visited Cowgirl Creamery where they make some of the most wonderful cheese and sell other cheese from around northern California. We watched them make red hawk cheese yesterday. You can check them out online at www.cowgirlcreamery.com.

more houseboats

Here is another couple of houseboats. Each boat had a sign on the dock stating the home owner's name, the boat name and what type of boat it was originally. Most boats were either life boats or tug boats. See the previous post for more pictures and description.

Sausalito, CA

So after a week at Capitola on the California coast; Steve and I are traveling up the coast of California, Oregon and Washington. Today we made it from Capitola to Bodega Bay on the way stopping at Sausalito and Point Reyes Station. Sausalito is a funky artist colony just over the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. I have always heard about the houseboats that people actually live on which are permanently moored at the dock in Sausalito. Each one was as different and unique as its neighbor. So here are a few of my favorites. Since living space is at a premium the outside space displayed flower pot gardens, patio furniture, barbeque grills, and work benches. A few houseboat owners were offering home tours. The inside reminded me of a motor home the way space was utilized.

Capitola, California

This is a view from the cliff overlooking the pier and beach at Capitola, California. It is hard to make out in the picture but right at the beginning of the pier is a row of brightly colored tiny homes. These are the first condominiums in California. Steve and I are actually staying in #11 this year. The sun does come out each day somewhere between noon and 2 pm. We really don't care if it doesn't show. The cool, misty mornings are the best.