Salmonberry Campground…May 22, 2012

 

So we have finally made it to our destination, Salmonberry Campground, for the next 10 weeks.  We are volunteering as campground hosts at Salmonberry which is operated by Benton County.  This is the first time we have taken a volunteer position but it sounded like something we would enjoy and Oregon was #2 destination on my bucket list…Alaska was #1 and we spent the summer of 2009 traveling up there.  As most of you know, I do not do hot weather so that pretty much means we go west and north for the summer months.  Of course Bob is open to anything…thank you Jesus!

Salmonberry, hereafter known as SB, is a beautiful little campground.  We have 27 tent and RV sites.  The campers do not have any utilities (water, electric or sewer) at their sites but there are water spigots along with dump areas for gray water in several places.  We are furnished full hookups (w,e,s) at our site plus we also have a washer and dryer to use in the utility building.  There is also a big utility sink…this is very nice and something we are not used to having.  A land line phone is also provided for us to make local calls only but we can receive long distance calls.  They do this because we have no cell phone reception in this area…too many trees.

There is a day use area with picnic tables, a boat ramp and a trail that leads along the Alsea river for fishing and general enjoyment.  There are bait restriction for fishing in the river…I must find a Fish and Wildlife site for more information.  I did have to throw my line in a few times the day we got here but we won’t tell as I don’t have my license yet.  Mark Didelot, wish you were here to fish with me!  Bob does not fish…where did his parents go wrong?

So here we go…hope you find this place as beautiful as we do.

Showers and restrooms

Some of the tent sites.

Cissy had not seen grass in so long she was not sure just what it  was.

Our site.

And some of the RV sites.

The campground.

As a postcard would say…Wish you were here!

Moving On.

Alsea, Oregon May 2012

So, after we got all put back together, we were able to move to Salmonberry Campground which is 7 miles west of Alsea, Oregon on state highway 34.  We are about 34 miles west of Corvallis and about 34 miles east of the Oregon coast. (Meg…the campground is about 7 miles west of Alsea on Hwy. 34.)

The weather has just been beautiful up until night before last.  It has been raining pretty much all the time for the last 48 hours…forecast is continued rain for the next few days…it is such a nice, gentle rain.  Mark and Sue, Chuck and Loraine…it reminds me so much of Alaska. 

We do not have cell phone reception or internet access in the campground but we are able to get satellite TV unless it is raining as it is now.  I don’t mind not having a phone but I sure do miss the internet.  We have to drive about 2 miles to get phone reception but usually we just drive the extra 5 miles into Alsea and go to the library and use their internet connection.

Alsea has a population of 164…they have a post office, library, medical clinic, one general store and one restaurant. Alsea is on Oregon state highway 34…between Corvallis and Highway 1 on the  coast.

This is Highway 34…the main street in Alsea.  I was on the front porch of Deb’s Café…you see the general store just down the street to the left…the library and medical center are about 1/2 mile from Deb’s Café.  Welcome to Alsea, Oregon.

This guy was roaming around at a vacant house in Alsea.

The clinic

And the library…the most important location in town for us.  If we are going to be stationary for any length of time we always go to the library and get cards…libraries are a wealth of information, not just for books but for the daily papers, current magazines and just the general knowledge the librarian has.  Kathy, the librarian in Alsea and Ashley, the librarian in Philomath (about 18 miles east of us) have been trying to figure out how I can borrow library books on my NOOK. 

The day we walked into the post office, the postmistress, Nicole just immediately said “Oh, you must be Box 231”.  The parks department also furnishes us with a post office box while we are here.  One of the beauties of a small town is that everyone knows you…One of the downfalls of a small town is that everyone knows you.

Old Friends

 

While on our way from Texas to Oregon recently we were able to hook up with some friends that we had not seen in a while…we are always so excited when we are able to do this.  It seems you just can’t get away from RVers…not that we would want to.  And, part of the beauty of this is you just never know when you are going to cross paths with friends.

We left Caldwell on April 28 and headed northwest…spent our first night on the road in Abilene.  The next day we drove to Clovis, NM for the night.  Our third night we stopped in Albuquerque, NM and stayed on historic Route 66 at Enchanted Trails RV Park.  It was a neat park with some interesting old RVs.    They actually use these vintage RVs are used by them as rental cabins…neat.  The Wiz really liked this one.

Our good friend, Margaret Bushon, was also on the road from Silver City, NM.  We were able to meet her that evening at Standard Diner in Albuquerque for dinner.  It was soooo good to see Margaret.  We met her while working at Adventureland amusement park in Altoona, Iowa in 2005 and continue to stay in touch with her.  Margaret was our social planner that summer in Iowa.  What a great lady…love you Margaret.

After spending a second night in Albuquerque we hit the road headed west.  We made it to Holbrook, AZ that night.  I realized that our friends, The 2 Lindas, were also working in Holbrook…I keep up with their blog.  Wowee…this is great!  I called them as soon as we got settled to try to get together for dinner…it gets better…they had just put some homemade eggplant parm in the oven and invited us to join them.  The food was wonderful and the visit with good friends even better.  We love their new rig…a toy hauler.  We agreed to meet them the next morning at 8:00 for breakfast at Denny’s.  Well, you know how the Moore’s are…we can screw up the simplest thing.  We got up early the next morning as we did not want to be late for breakfast…arrived at the restaurant about 15 minutes before the appointed time.  Bob checks his watch and assures me we are there in plenty of time so we go in and order coffee and start checking news and emails on our phones while waiting for Linda and Linda.  We wait and wait and wait…hmmm, they are never late.  Bob are you sure of the time?  Yes, it is now 15 minutes after 8 according to Bob.  Then I remember…he has the watch from hell!  I ask one of the wait staff what time it is and find out it is now 7:15 am not 8:15 am…another cup of coffee anyone?  You gotta remember those time changes  when travelling.  We can now name every item on the menu at Denny’s in Holbrook, AZ.  We had a great time seeing the ladies again…we decided it had been 2 years since we were with them in Pensacola, FL when we went to watch the Blue Angels.  Good friends.

Moving On.

50th High School Reunion Caldwell, TX

April 2012

So, a few months ago I received an invitation to attend my 50th high school reunion in Caldwell, Texas.  I showed the invitation to Bob assuring him that they must have addressed it to the wrong person as there was no way I had been out of high school for 50 years…but alas, there was no mistake.  It is truly hard for me to believe that it has been so many years since I graduated.  Then in speaking with several friends it seems they too were were going to be attending their 50th reunions in different parts of the country.

And so we made the short trip from Georgetown, TX where we had been staying, to Caldwell.  The reunion, the first I had attended since graduating high school, was so much fun.  It was held at the home of Jan Davis…which happens to be right across the street from our house in Caldwell.  Jan has a beautiful home and garden and it was the perfect setting and size for our gathering.  She and Linda Key did a terrific job in putting the affair together. Thanks ladies for having it in April and not waiting for the roasting heat in summer.

Of course The Wiz had to attend so he became an honorary Hornet for a night.

 

 

Of course my Bob had no trouble fitting right in…here he and Albert “Gopher” Matus are getting something worked out…we will all sleep better tonight.

That’s my friend Jane Marek seated looking up and speaking with Diana Watson.  Jane is a quilter and knows all the quilt shops near Caldwell.

Please notice the letter jacket, number 48, draped on the chair to the right…that is the jacket David Jones earned playing football at CHS. When he arrived at the party wearing it someone said that only David would still have his letter jacket and only David would be able to still fit into theirs.  The gentleman in the center front, Kenneth Key, has a claim to fame…his son, David Key, is a professional team roper and was the national champion a few years ago…or was it world champion!  Oops, anyway, if you are into rodeo you will recognize David Key’s name.

A good time was had by all…we had planned on pulling out of Caldwell the next day but ended up staying another week in order to have some dental work done and get back to the quilt shops…Jane made me go! 

A great time was had by all.

Moving on.

Mardi Gras in Alabama May 9, 2012

 

Okay, so we are back to Alabama…it’s February and it’s Mardi Gras!  (Remember I am still trying to catch up.)  First you need to remember that Mardi Gras did not originate in New Orleans but in Mobile, AL. 

Bob and I decided to join Escapees…a club made up of RVers…yeah I know, another one.  To try to make a long story short…the Escapees have a park in Summerdale, AL which is about 8 miles from the park we winter at in Fairhope, AL.  Escapees are, to put it mildly, a fun loving group of people who are never idle.  Mardi Gras is the largest celebration the park, Rainbow Plantation, has during the year.  They elect a queen and a king…and here they are making their entrance to one of the activities.

And the jester…

Our great cook that plans and oversees all of our meals at Rainbow Plantation…you can see what a sophisticated group this is.

Why, we even had The Chenilles performing one night.

Besides fun and games, this group does a lot of charitable work.  Some of the ladies got together and made 15 quilts in one day and donated them to the sheriff’s department for the boy’s home that they sponsor.

Some of the guys pitched in also as you can see.  It was a busy day.

Moving on.

We’re Back May 4, 2012

 

I can’t believe I have not blogged since December of last year but it seems that is the case.  So here we go…finished working at Amazon.com on Dec. 23 and headed for the Dallas, TX area where we spent a wonderful Christmas with Bob’s two brothers and sisters-in-law and Gayle’s children and grandchildren…had a wonderful time. Just so you know the Moore boys…John, the youngest is on the left, Jim the middle boy is…drum roll…in the middle and of course my sweetie Bob, the oldest, on the right.

Then down to the Austin area to visit with my sister and her family.  Got some doctor stuff done and headed to Lake Charles, LA to see our good friends, Susan and Mark Didelot, not sure why I did not get a picture, it was so good to see them…then we were off to Red Bay, AL for our annual service appointment with Tiffin Motorhomes and Red Bay Diesel.

Friends, Art and Geri (on either side of me) were starting their new job as campground hosts at the Tiffin service center CG…we worked at Amazon together.  Then we discovered that our friends, Joe and Jan Lawrence who we had not seen in several years were also in the Tiffin campground.  You just can’t get away from us RVers.  We all enjoyed dinner together one night. 

Finished up with all of that and pointed the Phaeton south to spend a few months at Coastal Haven RV Park in Fairhope, Al. 

When we got there we found our fearless leader, Linda Saunders, whipping up goodies for us…Linda doesn’t quilt but she makes sure we don’t hungry during our sewing sessions…thanks so much Linda.This was our fourth winter in southern Alabama.  Had a wonderful time visiting with friends, eating so much shrimp and quilting with the ladies at CH.

Elise and Margie showing off one of Elise’s quilt tops. 

Bonni and Linda making some big decision…like where to go for lunch!

The Wiz and me showing off one of the quilt tops I finished.

Joan, Dodi and Sandy with one of their quilted hot pads.

Deanne and Eleanor sharing a machine during one of our classes.

The Wiz is helping me work on my “mystery quilt”. 

Mary Lawrence giving Rosanne some further instruction during one of our classes.

Sally…where are you…I don’t seem to have a picture of you with one of your beautiful creations…my bad!

More to come so stay tuned…Moving On.