ON THE ROAD AGAIN: SACRAMENTO TO RYE PATCH, NEVADA

It’s a long uphill haul from the Sacramento Valley to the top of Donner Summit on Interstate 80.  While Odel jockeyed for position with the slow-moving semi’s and their heavy loads, I watched the outside temperature slide from 77 degrees when we began our climb (around 10 am) to 63 degrees as we reached the summit (around 11:30 am). 

Of course, while the higher altitude meant a steady drop in outside temperature, the long, sometimes steep grades meant that the engine temperature was relentlessly climbing.  Add in the numerous construction zones and we were very happy to cross the summit and head down the other side.  Good practice for our visit to the mountains of Colorado later this summer!

Soon after we descended from the summit, we passed Truckee and crossed the California/Nevada state line, where the trees thinned and the arid bones of Nevada’s landscape were revealed.  We negotiated the heavy traffic and construction zones through Reno and Sparks, took a brief break for lunch at a vista point (can’t believe what passes for a “vista” in that part of Nevada!) along I-80, and kept rollin’, rollin’, rollin’ to our destination for the night, Rye Patch State Recreation Area. 

We first discovered Rye Patch (run by the Nevada State Parks) 4 years ago – a wonderful oasis in an otherwise rather bleak landscape.  (Click here to read our review from 2008, updated to reflect a fee increase from $10 to $14.)  Lots of green trees, a large lake impounded by Rye Patch Dam, and very friendly park rangers make this stop a winner with us, even though there are no campsite hookups. 

This time, instead of unhooking the Jeep and backing in to one of the campsites, we parked in the huge graveled “overflow” area just west of the dam.  We had the whole place to ourselves, with a view of the lake, the campground, and the arid mountains to the east – quite a nice change from our month-long stay in the close quarters of Cal Expo.

Speaking of Cal Expo, I updated our review from November of 2011 to reflect a couple welcome improvements: the WiFi now extends to all the sites, including those on “the slab”, where we stay; and four or five of the usually vacant sites in the gravel lot were made available for camper or visitor parking, a reasonable solution to our often-voiced complaint about lack of tow and towed vehicle parking. 

All in all, it was a good travel day after sitting for 30 days in one spot.  :)

FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND FOOD: FIVE WEEKS IN CALIFORNIA’S CAPITOL

Five busy weeks in the Sacramento area, and the only photos I have taken are of food!  That’s what happens when we spend time with my family and friends – food talk, cooking, eating… and discussing what we’re planning to eat at our next meal.   Boy, did we have fun!

While in Tucson in March, I stopped in at Native Seed/SEARCH – and began an unintentional love affair with heirloom beans (dried).  Yum, yum – so much variety of color, texture, shape and taste.  I picked up an inspiring cookbook while there, Heirloom Beans, which introduced me to Rancho Gordo, a source for heirloom beans in Napa, California.  A visit to Rancho Gordo’s retail shop immediately went on my “to-do while in Sacramento” list… and I placed an order with them for twelve different kinds of beans, to be sent to my sister Sydney’s house in advance of our arrival in her neighborhood.

I love the sign in this tub of dried “touching beans”: ”Go Ahead – You Know You Want To”.	Rosanna couldn’t resist reaching into the tub, and neither could I.  What a fun idea!

At the same time Odel and I were sampling new (to us) bean varieties in Arizona, Sydney (a vegetarian, along with my BIL Frank) had picked up a copy of The China Study and found the information presented there compelling.  By the time we hit Sacramento, emails were whirling between me, Sydney, and our cousin Rosanna, a long-time vegetarian, about beans, veganism, and all related topics.  And my 12 pounds of heirloom beans had arrived from Rancho Gordo.

So we planned an event.

Six cooks in our family – my younger sister Nancy, my older sister Sydney, BIL Frank, cousin Rosanna, Auntie Carol (Rosanna’s mom), and I – each chose one kind of bean and took it home.  We picked a later date to convene at Rosanna’s new home (she and Auntie Carol just moved up to Placerville from Sunizona, Arizona) with our cooked beans. 

Clockwise from upper left: Good Mother Stallard Bean and Barley Stew; Black Beans in Red Velvet Mole on Mashed Sweet Potatoes; Louisiana Red Beans and Rice (using Lila beans); Christmas Lima Beans and New Potatoes in Miso Bagna Cauda; Black Bean “burgers” with Salsa (using Ojo de Cabra beans); Cannellini Beans with Broccoli Rabe on Garlic Toast.

On the chosen day, we each arrived with our beans.  In preparation, we had each set aside enough plain cooked beans that all of us could taste each bean “unadorned”; the rest of each bean type was prepared as a vegan dish.  Following the wine tasting example (and with both wine and beer at hand), each cook introduced their chosen bean while we passed the unadorned sample for poking, prodding, admiring and tasting.  And of course, I had prepared a note sheet for all participants.  :)  Each bean was discussed in its turn, copious notes taken, opinions exchanged.

Then we got down to the real event: tasting the dishes.  I’ll tell you, this group can COOK!  What a blast – and what a fun, fun way to discover new beans and recipes.

With so many vegetarians in our family, with my newfound obsession with beans, and with lots of discussion amongst us about The China Study, Forks Over Knives, and The Engine 2 Diet, even Odel’s interest was piqued.   (By the way, if you are interested in “the other side of the story”, this witty, thorough and well-written blog is an interesting read.)  We both would like to reduce our cholesterol and our weight, so we’ve decided to explore a “plant-strong, whole foods” menu for four weeks, beginning when we head off for our summer travels on Monday. 

It is difficult to imagine that Odel and I would give up our omnivore ways permanently (though I must say that the “pink slime” story was extremely unappetizing!), but we both enjoy food adventures.  Eating “plant-strong, whole foods” (the Engine 2 Diet’s description of a no-animal-products diet that includes minimal amounts of processed foods) has introduced all sorts of new foods and recipes into our lives (and mouths).  I’m interested to learn what changes (if any) we see in ourselves after a month without meat or dairy… or store-bought cookies!  Meanwhile, we’re finishing off the lamb chops, steaks, and Italian sausage pasta sauce still stashed in our freezer.  :)

TIME TO MAKE TRACKS - COTTONWOOD, ARIZONA TO CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

We have returned to our ex-hometown of Sacramento, California, in springtime each of the 9 years we have been traveling.  (Today begins Year 10 – Happy Anniversary to us!)  Each year, we’ve arrived a bit earlier… and this year we planned our earliest arrival yet, April 2nd.  Once that date was set, the speed and direction of our travels fell in place.  Leaving Dead Horse Ranch State Park in Cottonwood (click here to read our review), we knew we needed to cover 900+ miles in 8 days – no big deal. 

Our plan?  From Dead Horse Ranch State Park, head up I-17 to Flagstaff, hang a left, and land in Williams, Arizona (motto: Gateway to the Grand Canyon) for three nights (to include a day trip to the Canyon); Williams to the Elks Lodge in Needles for an overnight stay; Needles to Mojave for the night, then on to the Escapee park in Coarsegold, California for two nights – with potential for a day trip into Yosemite National Park if weather cooperated.  A short drive from Coarsegold to the Sacramento area would be the final leg.

RV travel is very weather dependent!  This time of year, in the southwest, wind is not infrequent… big wind.  We kept a close eye on the weather as we headed north and west.

Our drive to Williams from Cottonwood was short and enjoyable.  After spending the winter in the arid southwest, we felt elated as we headed into the forests of Arizona’s higher elevations.  Snow on top of Mt. Humphreys!  On I-40, we turned west, dropped a little in elevation, and settled in to a site at Canyon Gateway RV Park (review to come later) for three nights… which turned out to be one night too long.  :)

We had beautiful weather for our drive, and more of the same on Tuesday – so we headed off in the Jeep to the south rim of the Grand Canyon.  In prior visits, we have camped (with Scoopy) at the south rim; this time, we opted for the day trip, since it is both easier and cheaper to visit by car.  Fabulous day – cool sunshine, manageable crowds.  We walked and walked and walked, ogling the canyon and enjoying major people-watching. 

At one point, sitting on a bench along the Timeline trail, three elk came grazing up the hill behind us, completely unfazed by the pedestrian traffic.  Clots of camera-toting tourists formed, snapped their photos, then moved on… and we got a huge kick out of their guesses concerning the nature of these animals.  "Llamas?  Alpacas?  “Moose, look, moose!”  Deer?  Relaxing on the bench, Odel played senior ranger, providing animal identification to those who asked. 

My favorite “mind’s eye” snapshot?  A skinny, twenty-something male, smoking a cigarette, creeping slowly towards one of the big animals, taking photos with his iPad (or maybe a video?).  Such a funny juxtaposition of nature and technology!

On Wednesday?  Nothing much.  If we hadn’t already paid for three nights in Williams, we would have moved on.  A hike I thought we would like was still under snow… I should have started our taxes, but couldn’t get motivated.  Ho, hum… :)

Time to check on the weather again.  The report?  Needles, our next stop – and only 175 miles away – was considerably hotter.  While we enjoyed cool sunshine at Arizona’s higher elevations, California’s low Mojave desert was hot; the forecast for Needles on Thursday was pushing 90 degrees.  Ugh.  What a place to spend the afternoon!

Driving through southern California’s desert areas on I-40 is one of my least favorite routes.  It probably was interesting the first time we did it, maybe even the second and third.  Now, though, it is a long, usually hot, slog.  Heading west, I-40 dips down from a couple thousand feet above sea level at Kingman, Arizona, to a couple hundred feet above sea level at Needles, on the Colorado River, then climbs up and down the arid mountain ranges that march across the landscape.  Tiny towns, deserted service stations, closed rest stops (not all, thankfully), wild tire skid marks cutting across lanes… lots of scrub, plenty of heat.

Where I-40 ends at I-15 in Barstow, we pick up highway 58, even more boring.  Four Corners, Boron, Mojave… flat, pale, scrubby.  At last, 58 begins climbing up to Tehachapi through a pass populated with giant windmills – a clue to high profile vehicles drivers that this isn’t a good place to travel during a wind storm.

To avoid the heat of Needles, we decided to stay in the upper elevations as long as possible.  On Thursday, we drove a mere 100 miles, from Williams to Blake Ranch RV Park (review to come later) a dozen miles short of Kingman, AZ.  We’d have a longer drive on Friday, but better weather for any sightseeing we could dig up on Thursday afternoon.

And we found some GREAT sightseeing near Kingman!

With such a short drive, we were set up in our new site by noon.  We headed back out on I-40 and into Kingman, Arizona, taking the turnoff onto old Route 66, once THE route to L.A. from the east.  After a quick lunch stop, we were on that famous road, heading up over Sitgreaves Pass towards the revitalized mining ghost town of Oatman. 

The drive was FANTASTIC!  Twisting, turning, climbing and descending.  The interesting sights we discovered along the way piqued my curiosity, and I found a great website detailing this stretch of Route 66 when we returned home – I especially enjoyed the part about Model T’s backing up the slope, and about the Shaffer Fish Bowl (I climbed those steps and photographed the bowl).  Oatman, our goal, was not of much interest to either of us – too touristy – but we were happy that it had drawn us into this lovely, historic drive.

Above: I climbed the cliff side steps to the Shaffer Fish Bowl, captured from a seep from the rocks. Below: the “ghost town” of Oatman had too many tourists and shops for us.	Above:  the view from the fish bowl ledge. Below: The Garmin’s route map of the road to Oatman – very accurate!

Early Friday morning, we pulled out of Blake Ranch RV Park and headed west again, planning a drive of almost 300 miles to Mojave, California.  The forecast was great (though a little warm): sunny and calm.  But a change was coming, with high wind warnings posted for all the passes in southern California, including the wind tunnel of Tehachapi Pass.

When we hit Mojave at 2 pm, we just rolled on through, and ended up posting our highest one-day mileage record, 375 miles.   We took advantage of the calm winds to climb Tehachapi pass, roll down through Bakersfield, and continue on to the big, flat parking lot at the Elks Lodge in Wasco.   The entire, boring Mojave desert drive was behind us and we had just a short hop up to our next stop.  Yippee!

And now, we’re safely settled at the beautiful Park of the Sierras, the Escapee RV park in Coarsegold, California (review to come later).  Our drive from Wasco to Coarsegold was wonderfully uneventful; by the time the forecast wind and rain hit us, we’d finished setting up camp and taken a short walk.

I was up early this morning to check the Yosemite webcams, wondering whether we should venture up Highway 41 to the national park.  Ha, ha, ha!  Yes, the road is open (chains required)… but I don’t think we have the right clothing for the park today (photo from the Sentinel Dome webcam).

Tomorrow, we’re off on the last leg of our winter travels, back to visit family and friends in Sacramento.  Maybe we can slip back down to Yosemite before we head out for our summer travels.