Post Covid Safari 2021

General Grant Underground gardens Sierras Underground Gardens in Fresno     May 10-13, 2021   Fresno, California.     Left the East Bay and headed down to Fresno.   We hit the road in our respective rigs and headed south and east. The day had a few frustrations, water pump in the rig did not want to work, the hitch that connects the towed truck to the rig had a problem, and when we did get to camp our truck’s starter battery was DEAD! Fortunately all of the problems seem to sort themselves out. We stayed at the Elks in Fresno, small little camp sight, but rigs are mostly under the shade of some big trees, so relatively comfortable.    It was very hot when we got to Fresno, and got hotter as the afternoon progressed. Took it easy and had dinner out and then came back to camp and “VEGGED”!   Tuesday morning we went to The Forestiere Underground Gardens, in Fresno. Interesting place,1906 Baldassare Forestiere started creating a...

  May 6-9, 2021   East Bay, California (Vallejo, Orinda, and surrounds)     We made it to the Tradewinds RV Park where we met up with Eric and his dog Remi. Our first evening at Marq and Staph’s house. All of us enjoyed a nice evening outside and reacquainting with Peyton and Brady.   Friday Eric, Mike & Karen drove out to the Rosie the Riveter National Park in Richmond, California.   Eric had been there before and thought we would enjoy it. Very impressive, so much was achieved in the name of winning the War. An interesting part of the history of our country to have many women   and men who couldn’t join the military services because of limiting conditions, entering the work force to get the necessary job done.   Saturday morning Eric, Mike and Karen met up with the “gang” at a Ford Shelby GTs car rally, various activities such as horseshoes, giant Jenga block stacking, and farm animals to watch and feed. ...

April 30-May2, 2021   Redding California:   Well we made it into our first camp. An Elks lodge with RV parking, 50A and water. That was good because it was hot, in the low 90s. As we stopped to disconnect the pickup we realized a problem. The coach was leaking oil and the truck was covered in it. We crawled under the coach, NO we DID NOT. I called our mechanic in Medford where we had just had service and explained our problem. The service manager said he would drive down and fix the problem. He called back in a few minutes with good news. The owner was on his way back up the I5 after buying a new Indian Motorcycle near Sacramento. the owner, Dave, and a buddy arrived in about 1 hour. After some searching he found that they had received a defective oil filter that was installed in our RV. A few runs to a parts store and 5 gallons later we were fixed and ready to go. I gave the guys a bottle of wine and they promised they would save it until they got ...

May 1-2, 2021 Redding, California: Think we are feeling better about making it to our first stop and arriving with most of our “wits about us”. Despite some worrisome moments over our oil leak all appears to be ok. Our camp for the 1st 3 nights was the Redding Elks, a nice facility and lodge. We felt good about most everything working as we remembered. We enjoyed some rest and relaxation, some driving around the Redding Area and a Sunday morning visit to Turtle Bay Exploration Park. Featured there was a display of art made of Ocean Plastic Trash created by a beach cleanup organization started in Bandon Oregon. We walked across the Sacramento River on the Sun Dial Bridge and enjoyed a beautiful day. We finished our last evening in Redding at the Final Draft Brew Pub. This was a nice way to spend an evening - comfortable patio, good food, drink and atmosphere. Enjoying ourselves we decided to see if we could make this our challenge for the 2021 Motor Home Season. Is it possible to visit ...

Well we made it into our first camp. An Elks lodge with rv parking, 50A and water. That was good because it was hot, in the low 90s. As we stopped to disconnect the pickup we realized a problem. The coach was leaking oil and the truck was covered in it. We crawled under the coach, NO we DID NOT. I called our mechanic in Medford where we had just had service and explained our problem. The service manager said he would drive down and fix the problem. He called back in a few minutes with good news. The owner was on his way back up the I 5 after buying a new Indian Motorcycle near Sacramento. the owner, Dave, and a buddy arrived in about 1 hour. After some searching he found that they had received a defective oil filter that was installed in our rv. A few runs to a parts store and 5 gallons later we were fixed and ready to go. I gave the guys a bottle of wine and they promised they would save it until they got home. We planned on staying in Redding for 2-3 days so now our job ...

Well we are finally getting back on the road. The Safari is being prepped at the mechanic, several long neglected maintenance items are being taken care of. The route is fixed, the Covid shots are done, camping spots reserved, menus planned, Corona (the dog) is groomed and ready. I crawled into the drivers seat and familiarity oozed back into my body and mind. It is starting to feel like we can do this after all. We will attempt to post daily adventures along with photos. Karen's brother Eric will be caravaning with us for part of the trip. Nice to know someone will be around to prod our old brains into a state of alertness. That's about all for now. Let's see if I can post this and will continue after we are on the road. Mike and Karen